Steaming beats boiling for keeping quinoa's nutrients intact
Goussi R, Youssef RB, Gadhoumi H, Jouira HB, Manaa A
Crop Improvement
If you cook quinoa at home, swapping your boil for a steam basket keeps more protein, antioxidants and flavonoids on your plate instead of down the drain.
Scientists tested five types of quinoa grown in two different regions, cooking each one by boiling and by steaming to see what happened to its nutrition. Steaming kept or even boosted protein, antioxidants and other good compounds, while boiling tended to wash a lot of that away. One variety, called Q3, came out on top no matter where it was grown or how it was cooked, while another, Q5, consistently underperformed.
Key Findings
Steaming preserved or increased protein, soluble sugars, polyphenols, flavonoids and DPPH antioxidant activity across all five genotypes and both growing sites, with the biggest protein gains in genotypes Q4 and Q5 from the northern site.
Boiling significantly reduced protein, soluble sugar, starch, polyphenol and flavonoid content in most genotypes.
Genotype Q3 had the best overall nutritional profile (high protein, starch, vitamin E, antioxidant capacity, lowest antinutrients) in both regions, while Q5 had the lowest yield and highest saponin/tannin levels.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Steaming quinoa preserves its protein, antioxidants and beneficial compounds far better than boiling, but the results depend heavily on which quinoa variety and growing region you start with.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Interactive effects of cooking method, genotype and environment on nutritional and antinutritional quality of quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) seeds.
Quinoa has gained global attention as a climate-resilient crop with high nutritional value and strong potential to enhance food security. Quinoa seeds are characterized by high-quality protein with...
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