Cookin’ with Cavena Nuda

I’ve noticed that a lot of you seem to stumble upon this little blog of mine through my post on Cavena Nuda.

Cavena Nuda (also known as Canadian Naked Oats and Rice of the Prairies) is a curious grain. It is a hulless and hairless oat… BUT it looks, cooks and tastes like rice.

It has twice the protein of rice, 10 times the dietary fibre and more cholesterol-lowering beta glucan than is found in regular hulled oats.

Also… it’s good for the environment!

You can learn more at http://www.wedgefarms.com:

Sounds too good to be true no?

I thought so. So I had to get some of my own and see taste for myself. Well, I finally did and I’m here to share it with you.

There aren’t too many recipes involving Cavena Nuda out there right now so I thought I would cook a couple up.

The first one I made was:

Stuffed Peppers with Cavena Nuda and Lentils

What You’ll Need:

3-4 bell peppers
1 cup Cavena Nuda, uncooked
1/2 cup of lentils, uncooked
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup tomato sauce or diced tomatoes
1/4 cup shredded cheese (I used goat cheddar)
salt
pepper
seasonings

Directions:

• Cook Cavena Nuda (you can pre-cook it)
  - Place Cavena Nuda in a medium saucepan. 
  - Cover with cold water about two inches above oats.

 
      – Place saucepan on high heat and bring to a boil.
      – Once water is boiling turn heat down to medium.
      – Allow oats to cook for 45 minutes or just until tender. 
      – There should still be a slight bite to the Cavena Nuda.  

• Cook lentils according to package directions. DO NOT overcook! (you can also pre-cook the lentils)
• Put Cavena Nuda and Lentils to the side
• Preheat oven to 350F
• Cut the tops off your bell peppers and remove the inside bits (seeds etc).

• Put the peppers and tops, on a baking sheet or in a baking dish and place in the oven for 10 minutes
• Meanwhile, in a pan, heat oil and cook onions and garlic on low heat until caramelized. Add in tomato sauce/tomatoes and heat through.
• Take peppers out after 10 minutes and let cool. Keep oven on.
• Combine lentils, cavena nuda, and sauce mix into a bowl. Add salt and pepper and seasonings to taste. I used Herbes de Provence, chili powder and a big squeeze of lemon juice.

• Stuff peppers with mixture and top with grated cheese. Place in a baking dish and cook in the oven for 30-45 minutes.

• Place peppers tops on for the last 10 minutes.
• Serve!

I served the peppers with some yummy sweet potato fries.

Verdict: I really liked the cavena nuda. It tasted very much like brown rice and had a satisfying texture and a good flavor. And obviously the nutrition stats are amazing!
The only downsides I can see to Cavena Nuda are 1) It is pricey and 2) As far as I know, it’s not available in the US yet.

I have lots leftover from the peppers and lots left in the container so there will be many more Cavena Nuda meals to come!

Have a great Thursday!