Stereotypes: Sushi and Quinoa

    If you would have met me about 3 years ago and asked me out for some Sushi, my answer would have been a flat-out "NO."  I would have probably replied with, "you think I'm gunna eat raw fish!?.. And besides, it has vegetables in it, yuck."  Well... The times have changed and my attitude towards vegetables and raw fish has improved.
    The first time I tried Sushi was at Blue, one of Omaha's favorite Sushi hangouts.  There was so much to choose from and honestly, I tried the cooked kind (fried and heavily seasoned). It was delicious!  I mean, anything fried and seasoned has to be right???? Well, after my first few baby steps in the sushi direction I finally manned up and tried the full-on raw kind!! It was amazing!  Btw, if you're interested in trying out Blue here's the link to their restaurants, there are two locations in Omaha:  http://www.bluesushisakegrill.com/

    This got me thinking... Why had I never tried Sushi before?? I like fish, I kinda liked vegetables, and I like rice... I think society has molded our minds into thinking that we cannot eat raw foods!  Now don't get me wrong, I don't suggest that you go out and start eating raw meat... But if it is prepared correctly and kept properly, why are we so against it?  Countries all over the world eat raw things, yes yes, I know that there are harmful bacteria and diseases in raw meats, if untreated correctly; but if you do it right (sushi) why is there so much hostility??
So, 3 years later (today) I am enjoying Sushi, whether it's in the University's food court or at a restaurant, I am full-on for Sushi!
    Another misconception: Foods with weird names are gross (especially when their in the healthy section).  Let's take a look at Quinoa: "The word Quinoa is pronounced 'KEEN-Wah' and it comes from the Spanish word 'Quinua'."
    I have known what Quinoa was for a while now, but I had never tried it until about a month ago when a co-worker brought it for people to try. *Shoutout!* :) Anyways, I did some research about Quinoa and found out that it is quite the healthy food; and it is NOT a part of the grain family... Weird. So tonight, I made my own Quinoa for the first time... It was delicious!
    To make the Quinoa I brought 1 cup of Quinoa and 2 1/2 cups of water to a boil, then reduced the heat to simmer for about 25 minutes.... After that, it was done!
But I couldn't just eat it plain... So, you know me, I had to come up with my own concoction...
I sliced 1 red pepper,
1 small bunch of green onions, &
1 tomato and threw them all into the iron skillet with about
1/2 tablespoon of Olive Oil.  I let that cook for a while... Then I realized I had some black beans in the fridge... YUP, those went in the skillet too... Along with
1/2 teaspoon of cumin,
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder,
1 teaspoon of pepper,
1 Tablespoon of Lime juice, & a few                                                                                              
 shakes of dried cilantro.  When it was all done cooking I put some of the cooked Quinoa on my plate and the concoction on top... I wasn't sure how this was going to taste, but it was alright!! I had to add a little more pepper for my taste, and I put an Avocado on the side; I'd give it 4 out of 5 stars!  The good thing about this recipe??? NO salt and 100% natural ingredients, HEALTHY!
    SO, moral of the blog: TRY NEW THINGS!  Even if there are some mis-conceptions about some foods, try them!! AND don't be afraid to try foods you have deemed "too healthy" or "non-fried."  You may find that you've been missing out on something great, like Sushi or Quinoa!
  

If you would like to learn more about Quinoa here's more information: http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?dbid=142&tname=foodspice#descr