Quinoa with Corn & Vegetables

I decided to go a little Mexican last Sunday and was going to make a fried rice type thing and then I remembered that I had an entire bag of quinoa that I had not opened since my last shopping trip. I decided to try and make something similar to the fried rice but use the quinoa instead. I was pretty low on fresh vegetables but I had enough to make a delicious dish anyway. There ended up being a ton left over and I had it for lunch twice throughout the week. If you are looking to make something a little different I definitely recommend this. You could easily serve it as a side with dinner or even bring it as a dish to a party. I think it would be really good in the summer as a side dish at the beach or something. It is simple, filled with flavor and just plain delicious. 

Ingredients

3/4 cups uncooked quinoa

1 can corn

1 tomato

3/4 of a yellow onion

3/4-whole red pepper

caned chopped jalapenos 

fresh cilantro

olive oil

lawrys seasoned salt

taco seasoning

salt/pepper

Directions

Cook the quinoa according to the directions on the back of the package. Dice your onion, pepper and tomato. In a medium pan heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the onion and pepper. Cook until they become soft and then remove from heat.. Drain the corn and rinse off. In another pan heat another 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add the corn. Cook on high until the corn starts to brown and remove from heat. When the quinoa is completely cooked add all the ingredients. (onion, pepper, tomato, corn, cilantro & jalapenos). I did not tell you how many jalapenos to add because it is totally up to you on how spicy you want it to be. I just added a few for some flavor. Mix all ingredients together and then add the seasonings. Again you may add as little or much as you like because the more you add the spicier it will be. You may want to add some olive oil to if the quinoa seems to be sticking together. Like I said earlier you may serve this as a whole dish or a side dish. I hope you enjoy it.

Optional Ingredients

black beans

green onion

garlic

These are just other items you could add to this dish to put a different twist on it. I was going to add the beans but I was also making black bean soup so I didn't want have an overabundance of beans! I really wanted to add some green onions but I was all out. If there are any other ingredients you think would help make this recipe better defiantly let me know I am always looking for ideas to help improve my recipes :)