Our Quinoa Farm – Why Does Our Quinoa Requires No Rinsing?

Superlife Co’s Quinoa

Quinoa grows best at between 2500 and 3800 m above sea level. Quinoa is highly sought after in recent years due to its high quality proteins, high proportion of essential amino acids, Omega 3, 6, 9 fatty acids, vitamins and minerals.

Quinoa contains saponins which is a coating level that protects the grain from pests. It has a bitter taste and is toxic to human bodies and hence needs to be removed before human consumption. Quinoa’s saponin level varies widely from 0.06% to 5.1%. With harvest from quinoa-friendly climate and area and proper grain enhancement technique, saponin can be reduced to the purest form that contains only 0.01% saponin (indicating that it is 99.99% pure which is the type that Superlife Co carries). The level of saponin level depends on the area that they are being grown. Quinoa that are grown in salt lake areas are high in saponin and they are hard to be removed.  In fact, it was found that the more bitter the quinoa, the more difficult it is to reduce the saponin level.

Superlife Co’s Quinoa Farm

Process of removing saponin include…

1. parching – heating harvested quinoa grain for 2 to 3 minutes
2. treading – removing the pericarp from the grain
3. winnowing – pouring the grain from a height of 50cm
4. repeat the process of treading and winnowing
5. washing and rubbing – removing the saponin
6. drying

Superlife Co only carries quinoa that are 100% pure (indicating no toxic level) and hence the quinoa that you get from us requires no rinsing.