Another tip for quinoa is to be careful not to overcook it. It will turn really mushy if overcooked.
Keep an eye on your quinoa while cooking and turn off the heat as soon as the curly germ separates from the seed. At that point, ideally, there should be very little excess water left. Keep the cover on your cooking container on for a few more minutes while the quinoa soaks up the remaining water.
The result should be rather firm quinoa kernels that "pop" as you chew them, rather than the mushy goop you'd get if you overcooked. Quinoa is much tastier this way.
I also second the recommendation to rinse the quinoa. This is especially important for quinoa that hasn't been pre-rinsed, as quinoa naturally contains an outer coating of that acts much like soap (witness the foam coming out in your rinsing water) which can give you digestive problems if not thoroughly rinsed.
Keep an eye on your quinoa while cooking and turn off the heat as soon as the curly germ separates from the seed. At that point, ideally, there should be very little excess water left. Keep the cover on your cooking container on for a few more minutes while the quinoa soaks up the remaining water.
The result should be rather firm quinoa kernels that "pop" as you chew them, rather than the mushy goop you'd get if you overcooked. Quinoa is much tastier this way.
I also second the recommendation to rinse the quinoa. This is especially important for quinoa that hasn't been pre-rinsed, as quinoa naturally contains an outer coating of that acts much like soap (witness the foam coming out in your rinsing water) which can give you digestive problems if not thoroughly rinsed.