Quinoa Archives · Jess in the Kitchen

The scene: It’s 5 o’clock and you still have no idea what’s for dinner, but you know you don’t want to cave to the temptation of take out or the quick rotisserie chicken from the local grocery store. You know that life? It was mine just recently. I was coming home from a training to teach cycling (Eeee!) and hadn’t a clue what was for dinner. Enter this delightful little diddy: Kielbasa and Quinoa Skillet.

You guys know me…I sneak all the extra vegetables into a meal. And this one is full of about 5 cups of them. You get all the color with broccoli, tomatoes, and corn. Quinoa provides a nice little base, and the kielbasa has the spices mixed in already so you only need a little garlic, some salt, and some pepper. Best yet? It comes together in under 30 minutes! Winning on all the fronts.

Ready to get cooking? I sure am!

Your Ingredients

¾ cup dry quinoa
1 ½ cups chicken stock (or water will do!)
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 kielbasa, sliced
3 ½ cups broccoli, chopped (include the stems!)
1 15 ounce canned diced tomatoes, drained and salt free
1 cup frozen corn
Salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes, to taste

Your Steps to Kielbasa and Quinoa Skillet

In a saucepan, bring chicken stock to a boil. Add quinoa and lower the temperature to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add broccoli and kielbasa. Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Stir in the tomatoes and cook an additional 4 minutes. Finally, add corn, quinoa, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high heat until the corn is heated all the way through.

Yup. That’s it. A complete dinner in truly 20 minutes. Does it get any better than that? And yes, it seems short on spices, but the kielbasa will give it all it needs. And the color? It’s dreamy. A definite recipe to add to your rotation.

kielbasa slices — Don’t throw out the stems! They are just as good!

Interested in planning out some other meals? Check out my cooking page for all sorts of soups, bakes, and more! Click here!

Kielbasa and Quinoa Vegetable Skillet

Kielbasa and Quinoa Skillet: Eight ingredients, full of color, and comes together in under 30 minutes. This complete dinner is perfect for any weeknight!

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Total Time 20

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings

Ingredients

¾ cup dry quinoa
1 ½ cups chicken stock or water will do!
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 kielbasa sliced
3 ½ cups broccoli chopped (include the stems!)
1 15 ounce canned diced tomatoes drained and salt free
1 cup frozen corn
Salt pepper, and red pepper flakes, to taste

Instructions

In a saucepan, bring chicken stock to a boil. Add quinoa and lower the temperature to a simmer. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.
Once the oil is hot, add garlic and saute for 30 seconds. Add broccoli and kielbasa.
Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.
Stir in the tomatoes and cook an additional 4 minutes.
Finally, add corn, quinoa, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook over medium-high heat until the corn is heated all the way through. Serve.

Keyword kielbasa, quinoa, skillet, vegetables

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

I don’t know about you, but I adore quinoa. I feel like it’s the grown up version of rice, maybe? It cooks quicker, is chock full of nutrients, and is such a blank canvas for your food artistry. Mix in some freshly cooked vegetables, seasoned, cooked chicken and you have this quick and easy dinner: Chicken and Quinoa Skillet.

This isn’t a meal that my family necessarily meal plans. It’s a “Hey look! I have chicken and quinoa and all the veggies that go in that skillet! Let’s make that tonight for a quick meal!” kind of meal. Okay, I declared this a quick meal so let’s stop with the talking and get to the cooking!

Your INgredients:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and uncooked
2 cups water (or chicken stock)
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bit size pieces
½ teaspoon each of pepper, salt onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika, mixed together
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 cups chopped broccoli (about 1 head, if you include the stem)
2 cups chopped tomatoes (I used my frozen roasted cherry tomatoes from the summer–recipe to come soon!)
1 cup frozen corn
pinch of red pepper flakes and additional salt and pepper, to taste

Your Steps:

Add quinoa and water to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and allow to cook for 15-20 minutes, uncovered, until all the water has absorbed. Fluff with a fork when finished and allow to rest.

Meanwhile, season chicken with half of the seasoning mixture. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a larger skillet. Once hot, add chicken. Cook for 8-12 minutes, until just cooked through. Avoid over stirring to allow the chicken to crisp up just a little. Add minced garlic and cook 30 seconds before stirring in remaining ingredients (broccoli, tomatoes, corn, pepper flakes, and remaining seasoning mixture). Cook until broccoli is hot throughout, approximately 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in quinoa. Add additional salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. Enjoy!

I love it because its simple and full of flavor and color. Bonus: We don’t typically meal plan this one. It just comes together as “often in our house” pantry items. Don’t dig chicken? You can totally substitute in a different protein. Yum!

Looking for a different dinner idea? Check out my cooking page here!

Chicken and Quinoa Skillet

Chicken and Quinoa Skillet. A "full of veggie meal" for a quick, clean, and full of flavor meal for any day of the week! Done in under 30 minutes! Win!

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Servings

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa rinsed and uncooked
2 cups water or chicken stock
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bit size pieces
½ teaspoon each of pepper salt onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika, mixed together
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
4 cups chopped broccoli about 1 head, if you include the stem
2 cups chopped tomatoes
pinch of red pepper flakes and additional salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Add quinoa and water to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer and allow to cook for 15-20 minutes, uncovered, until all the water has absorbed. Fluff with a fork when finished and allow to rest.
Meanwhile, season chicken with half of the seasoning mixture.
Heat oil over medium-high heat in a larger skillet. Once hot, add chicken.
Cook for 8-12 minutes, until just cooked through. Avoid over stirring to allow the chicken to crisp up just a little.
Add minced garlic and cook 30 seconds before stirring in remaining ingredients (broccoli, tomatoes, corn, pepper flakes, and remaining seasoning mixture). Cook until broccoli is hot throughout, approximately 5-8 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in quinoa. Add additional salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste. Enjoy!