Instant quinoa - an interview with Christina Mueller from the AltiPlano Gold Company

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Mike: I'm here today with Christina Mueller from the AltiPlano Gold Company, and you have a rather interesting quinoa product that I think people deserve to hear about. Tell us a little bit about that.

Mueller: Sure. It's actually an instant hot cereal that's made from quinoa, which is a grain that's native to the high plains of South America. It's actually a complete protein, so you don't have to combine it with other beans or grains to get a complete protein, and it's also high in fiber. We have flaked quinoa, so it absorbs water more easily, but it hasn't lost any of its nutritive value in the process. You're getting all the protein, all the fiber, all the other vitamins and minerals that you would with whole grain quinoa.

Mike: So in comparison to, say, instant oats, the instant oats have been more refined than a whole oat, but in this case, you have near-instant quinoa with the whole grain properties of quinoa.

Mueller: Yes. Quinoa is very small; it's actually a seed. When it's flaked, you don't remove the endosperm, the germ or the hull, which is where all the nutrition is, so it maintains all of its fiber and protein.

Mike: Now a lot of people, especially our readers and listeners, have heard about quinoa. Maybe they've tried to do something with it once, but they weren't sure: "What do I do – cook it, boil it? What do I do with this?" Your product makes quinoa easy to actually use and get into their daily diet, right?

Mueller: That's exactly right, it's packaged in portion-sized servings. We have eight of these packets in each box, so you literally just take the package out of the box and can put it in the microwave, or add boiling water or milk.

Mike: It's a lot like instant oatmeal packaging.

Mueller: Correct.

Mike: The size and shape of it are similar, too.

Mueller: Exactly. We also have some unique flavors. We have Chai Almond, which has about seven different spices in it; Oaxacan Chocolate, which is based on a traditional Oaxacan chocolate recipe from the Mexican state of Oaxaca; Orange Date; Spiced Apple Raisin; and we also have a regular flavor.

Mike: Is it okay if I start drooling now? What about the ingredients? What do you have in here? How does it support a healthy diet? Are there any refined sugars in here?

Mueller: We use organic evaporated cane sugar, so that is the sugar we use in all of our flavors.

Mike: In terms of the nutritional breakdown, what are we talking about in terms of sugars versus protein and fat?

Mueller: I have to look at my cheat sheet, but the protein is about five or six grams per serving, as is the fiber. The fat's higher in the Chai Almond. It has seven grams of fat; that's all in the almonds. Our Spiced Apple Raisin has one and a half grams of fat, for example, and our Oaxacan Chocolate has two and half grams.

Mike: The protein's fairly consistent?

Mueller: Yes. Our fruit flavors have a smaller protein number, or less protein, because there's so much fruit in them. Oaxacan Chocolate actually has the highest fiber and the highest protein. You get your chocolate fix along with your protein and your fiber. It's a pretty good combo.

Mike: Delicious. What about distribution, and where can people find this product today?

Mueller: We're distributed nationally, mostly in cooperative and natural food stores.

Mike: What about health food stores? Are you in them right now, or are you working on that?

Mueller: Yes, and we're also in some doctors' offices.

Mike: Can people purchase it directly from you, if they can't find it locally?

Mueller: You absolutely can. You can purchase from our website. We're also nationally distributed through the Gluten Free Pantry.

Mike: Wonderful. Now, I have to ask you what gave you the passion and the interest to pursue a product line like this. Is there something about quinoa that you've felt passionate about for years?

Mueller: Yes. Well, I had lived in Chile and traveled extensively in South America, so I was very familiar with the application of quinoa in the local diets there. I'm one of those crazy "foodie" gourmet people and I'm very interested and passionate. One year, my New Year's resolution was to cook with a new grain, so I started doing it in different applications beyond what they use it for traditionally. Then, when I started this business, I knew I wanted to go into the natural food space. I had just been diagnosed with food allergies myself. We knew that the industry wasn't doing anything remotely resembling what we're doing. We researched the market, put all the pieces together and decided to work with quinoa because it was so high in nutritional value. Then, we made it convenient by putting it in this little packet to meet the needs of the American marketplace.

Mike: How long does it take to cook?

Mueller: With boiling water and in the microwave it takes about a minute.

Mike: Interesting. I'm used to spending 15 to 20 minutes to boil quinoa.

Mueller: Yes, the whole grain quinoa does take that long.

Mike: Even that's not bad, right? If you try to boil whole grain wheat berries or something else, you're going to spend a lot more time than that.

Mueller: That's right, and if you're already in the kitchen, you're probably mixing something else while your whole grain quinoa's boiling.

Mike: What about children? Do kids like this recipe?

Mueller: Actually, our most popular flavor right now is the Oaxacan Chocolate.

Mike: Kids are eating it up?

Mueller: They're eating it up. Parents love it too, because it has the lowest sugar number of all our flavors. Kids like the taste of it because it's got that little bit of chocolate in it as well.

Mike: Wonderful. Well, I wish you the best of success with this product line.

Mueller: Thank you so much.

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