KACHEN #28 (Autumn 2021) English Edition

FEATURE
ONLY FAIRTRADE PRODUCTS MEAN
SECURE PRICES
These days, quinoa fans can buy the superfood
nearly everywhere, even at the discount shop
– however, seldom as Fairtrade products. But
only with this label can you be certain that the
small farmers in Peru and Bolivia can live off
their labour. For the world market prices vary
greatly. “We pay the local producers a fixed
minimum wage,” Fairtrade businessman James
Livingstone-Wallace explains. “At the moment
that lies at around 300 dollars / ton above
the world market price.” That gives the local
farmers financial freedom to invest – such as
the Peruvian cooperative Coopain Cabana that
work closely together with the Quinola chef.
“The two farmers could buy two tractors,”
he explains excitedly. “Where before the
ploughing of the fields took two days, now it’s
done in two hours.” Buying from the Fairtrade
label does not mean only getting a delicious
and healthy product, it also means making a
small contribution to a fairer world.
Washing is a must!
Quinoa seeds should only be cooked once peeled. The
peel contains bittern, so called saponin, that naturally
protects the plant from predators. The grains are
usually only sold peeled in this country, but one should
nevertheless wash them thoroughly – until the water
runs clear and no more bubbles appear. The preparation
is simple: simply mix one part quinoa with at least
two parts salted water or stock and leave to cook for 15
minutes. Drain and it’s done! Quinoa is a classic side to
meat, fish and vegetables or curries. For all recipes, rice
can easily be substituted with quinoa. Quinoa plays the
main fiddle in salads and is a nutritious filler in soups.
If you have a sweet tooth, dishes such as quinoa and
coconut pudding with mango or quinoa casserole with
cherries will delight you.
These days, the Inca grain has even conquered the
breakfast table. Quinoa flakes or puffed quinoa are a
popular ingredient in müsli, porridge or yoghurts. The
grain is so versatile that everybody will be won over –
guaranteed!
HAVE YOU HEARD OF FONIO?
Fonio is the African counterpart to quinoa. It’s the
first grain variety that was cultivated on the African
continent and is nevertheless almost unknow in
our parts. Even though the shoot from the family of
millet seeds has the makings of an absolute power
food. The nutritious value is similarly high to that of
quinoa’s. Fonio millet is gluten-free and, according
to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO), has the highest calcium
content of all wheat varieties. The grain’s growing
needs are modest: it grows in great drought and on
meagre ground. In its home, this millet grain was
long the preserve of tribe elders or the nobility or
served at feasts. But who knows, perhaps it will
also make the jump from the African fields onto
plates around the world?
67
KACHEN No.28 | AUTUMN 21