Quinoa salad

This quinoa salad takes us on a long journey to the distant Andes. We are in Peru, a vast and fascinating land, populated by the descendants of the famous and ancient Inca dynasties. When on this side of the Atlantic our ancestors were enveloped by the darkness of the Middle Ages, in Peru a great Inca empire was flourishing. This pre-Columbian civilization was in many ways erudite and advanced, and also had a well-developed cuisine with the few simple ingredients that their land offered. These included - in addition to corn and the ubiquitous potatoes, or sweet potatoes - quinoa, a plant similar to other cereals having a high protein content, but also containing magnesium, zinc and phosphorus. It is a truly wonderful grain, blessed with a rich combination of nutrients and completely devoid of bad fats. Today we invite you to try quinoa with us, which perhaps you already know from a trip to South America or, without even having gone so far, to Spain.

Put the quinoa on to boil in salted water for 10 minutes, then drain and allow to cool. Put the green soybeans on to cook for 20 minutes. Drain and leave to cool. Cut the cabbage into thin julienne slices. Make the sauce by blitzing the carrot and lemon juice with salt and oil with an electric hand blender. Thinly slice the green apple. Serve the salad by mixing together the quinoa with the soya, raw peas, apple, preserved tomatoes in oil, the cabbage and the lemon and carrot sauce.