Ranch Chicken Quinoa Dip |Cooking With Amanda

This dip started out as a dinner main dish. And yes, we did actually eat it for dinner the first and second time I made this.

You know how life gets. We get into a rush with the after school (or after work) routine, dinner, homework, the phone rings because everyone else is off work too.

Sometimes we eat at the table unless it's a sunny spring or summer day then we eat outside at the table all the time. Our dining room is connected to our kitchen so the third time I made this dip, and yes I kept track, it was going to be our main dish again. It was spoonable, cheesy, and warm so my daughter grabbed spoons for everyone but I stayed busy in the kitchen. Some unexpected things happened that day and I lost track of time. I ended up eating my dinner with chips instead of a spoon and we decided this makes a really and truly awesome dip!

Even the fussy eaters love this dip.

Friends who aren't experienced home cooks like to give this recipe a try because there isn't much to it. The only question they seem to have is how do you know the quinoa is cooked? With this recipe, you'll know when most of the liquid is gone and the quinoa is tender. Uncooked it's raw like a seed, but when it's cooked, it'll be a little firm but not mushy with a nice snap.

I like to remove it from the heat before all the liquid is absorbed because that's what gives it the scoopable dip consistency. You can definitely add more cheese if you want. My daughter does if she's around and I'm not looking. ;)

Give this Ranch Chicken Quinoa Dip a try!

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Ranch Chicken Quinoa Dip Recipe

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Ingredients

1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 pound chicken breast, cubed
salt and pepper
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups quinoa, rinsed
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried chives
1 cup buttermilk, or buttermilk substitute prepared at least 15 minutes ahead: 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1 cup milk
3 cups cheese
fresh parsley, or dried parsley, for garnish, optional

Directions

In a large pan, sauté the onion on medium-high heat.
Add chicken and season with salt and pepper.
Cook until almost completely cooked through.
Add garlic and sauté for a minute or two but not too long so you don't burn it.
Add chicken broth, rinsed quinoa, parsley and chives.
Cover and bring to a boil on medium-high heat, stirring occasionally.
Once boiling, turn down to medium, add buttermilk and cook until most of the liquid is absorbed and quinoa is much softer.
Remove from heat.
Stir in the cheese.
Add extra cheese if you want.
Top with fresh or dried parsley for a garnish.
Serve warm.