Selects: The Quinoa Revolution!

Quinoa is a trendy food, right alongside kale and anything else farm to table. But it's really an ancient grain. Although it's not exactly a grain at all. Technically it's a pseudo-cereal. But it is tasty and nutritious, a true superfood. Learn all about the food with the funny name in this classic episode. See omnystudio.com/listener https://omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Speaker 00

  This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human.

• 0:04Josh Clark?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota Ford ability, and it starts with a great deal on an off-road ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's longest-lasting trucks, combining power for work, tech for adventures, and style in between. And they're built on a reputation for quality and reliability, which is why Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. So get a great deal today and a great value tomorrow. Shop toyota.com for more. Toyota, let's go places.

• 0:35Speaker 02

  Hey, everybody. I want to talk to you right now about Black Friday deals at Lowe's because you can get Black Friday done at Lowe's before Black Friday. Right now, you can get up to three free select power tools with the purchase of a select DeWalt, Craftsman, or Cobalt battery kit. And get this, you can get your choice of a Holiday Living Greensboro pre-lit artificial Christmas tree, flocked or classic, for just $99. Black Friday deals are on now at Lowe's in-store and online. Valid through November 18th while supplies last. Free tools vary based on battery kit purchased and location. Happy Saturday. Hi, everybody. Chuck here. We're going to go back in time today with this selection

• 1:18Speaker 02

  to February 7, 2017, the Quinoa Revolution, mainly because I don't remember much about this one, and I have to listen to these again, so I'm going to listen, and I hope you do too. Learn everything you always wanted to know and more about Quinoa right now.

• 1:38Speaker 03

  Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a production of iHeart Radio.

• 1:48Josh Clark?

  Hey, and welcome to the podcast. I'm Josh Clark. Charles W. Chuck Bryant's right there. Jerry's right there. It's a little chilly in here. So it's Stuff You Should Know, the podcast.

• 2:00Speaker 02

  Because it's chilly.

• 2:02Josh Clark?

  That's the cherry on top.

• 2:04Speaker 02

  That's right.

• 2:07Speaker 02

  Spoiler, or not spoiler, teaser. At the end of this episode, let's say, between the end and before listener mail. If that's agreeable to you.

• 2:18Josh Clark?

  At the 43 minute mark.

• 2:19Speaker 02

  We are going to taste Soylent for the first time.

• 2:24Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 2:24Speaker 02

  Live on the air.

• 2:25Josh Clark?

  Yeah. I guess I should have thought this through. I took them out of the fridge already, so.

• 2:29Speaker 02

  I wondered about that.

• 2:30Josh Clark?

  Forty-three minutes for it to warm up. Should we put them back?

• 2:32Speaker 02

  Well, I wouldn't, you know. I wasn't gonna say anything. Then I was gonna say something.

• 2:37Josh Clark?

  Should I put them back?

• 2:38Speaker 02

  Well, it's probably best cold, don't you think?

• 2:40Josh Clark?

  Well, hang on, everybody.

• 2:45Josh Clark?

  So, yes, we're gonna try Soylent eventually in this episode.

• 2:48Speaker 02

  That's right.

• 2:49Josh Clark?

  I'm excited.

• 2:50Speaker 02

  To try Soylent or to talk about quinoa?

• 2:53Josh Clark?

  Both.

• 2:53Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 2:55Josh Clark?

  So Chuck, you just kinda gave it away alongside the title.

• 2:58Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 2:59Josh Clark?

  We're talking about quinoa today, not quinoa.

• 3:03Speaker 02

  No.

• 3:04Josh Clark?

  Quinoa.

• 3:05Speaker 02

  That's right.

• 3:06Josh Clark?

  But.

• 3:07Speaker 02

  It's a superfood.

• 3:09Josh Clark?

  Yes.

• 3:09Speaker 02

  Some say.

• 3:10Josh Clark?

  Yeah. I mean, you can make a pretty good claim that it is a superfood. And what is a superfood if not a type of food that has a lot going on just in and of itself?

• 3:21Speaker 02

  Yeah, it's super.

• 3:22Josh Clark?

  Yeah. Like, blueberries are superfood, or acai berry.

• 3:26Speaker 02

  Superfood?

• 3:27Josh Clark?

  Yeah. Or acai berries.

• 3:30Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 3:30Josh Clark?

  Algae?

• 3:32Speaker 02

  I didn't know algae was.

• 3:33Josh Clark?

  Oh, yeah.

• 3:34Speaker 02

  I buy that.

• 3:35Josh Clark?

  Hemp seeds?

• 3:36Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 3:37Josh Clark?

  Chia seeds?

• 3:38Speaker 02

  Yeah. Lot of nuts.

• 3:41Josh Clark?

  Ritz crackers?

• 3:43Speaker 02

  Hmm, I don't know. Those are just super. Super delicious.

• 3:46Josh Clark?

  And buttery.

• 3:47Speaker 02

  Yeah, with my crab dip especially.

• 3:49Josh Clark?

  Oh, I'll bet. One day, maybe I'll find out.

• 3:53Speaker 02

  What, you just want me to bring you crab dip?

• 3:54Josh Clark?

  Yeah. Give me a cooking lesson.

• 3:59Speaker 02

  Uh, so quinoa, there are at least 120 varieties. And it is nothing new. Uh, it's been around, in fact, we might as well delve into a little history here.

• 4:09Josh Clark?

  Yes, let's.

• 4:10Speaker 02

  It's been cultivated for, geez, more than 5,000 years.

• 4:15Josh Clark?

  I saw up to 8,000 years.

• 4:17Speaker 02

  Wow, that's more than 5,000.

• 4:19Josh Clark?

  Sure.

• 4:20Speaker 02

  Well, I guess we could say more than five years.

• 4:22Josh Clark?

  Right, more than the last six months quinoa's been around on this planet.

• 4:26Speaker 02

  Yeah, and it's an Andean plant and specifically originated around Lake Titicaca in Peru.

• 4:34Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 4:35Speaker 02

  In Bolivia.

• 4:35Josh Clark?

  In the Altuplano.

• 4:37Speaker 02

  Yeah, it's wonderful, wonderful area.

• 4:39Josh Clark?

  Have you been?

• 4:40Speaker 02

  Oh, no, but just look at photos.

• 4:42Josh Clark?

  Sure, Machu Picchu.

• 4:43Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 4:43Josh Clark?

  You're like, well, look at that place.

• 4:44Speaker 02

  Exactly, one day maybe.

• 4:46Josh Clark?

  I'd like to go for sure.

• 4:48Speaker 02

  Uh, but it is, um, there is historical evidence of it, um, being domesticated, like we said, as maybe as long as 8,000 years ago, and they even saw in, uh, in ancient tombs. They saw little, you know, archaeological drawings and things that what they think is quinoa.

• 5:06Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 5:07Speaker 02

  So people were ingesting it and using it as a superfood way back when.

• 5:12Josh Clark?

  Yeah, and the fact that it grew up there, or grows up there, and not only grows but thrives up in this high, rocky, I think pretty much arid plateau. That's also very cold. It doesn't make any sense that you'd have anything but like alpacas and llamas up there. But in fact, there's a, a plant that's one of the most nutritious foods on the planet that just so happens to thrive up there in Bolivia and Peru in the highlands. That's pretty awesome.

• 5:41Speaker 02

  It is.

• 5:41Josh Clark?

  And so of course they, they have used this for thousands and thousands of years. And it wasn't, uh, it wasn't until I think the early 20th century that it really started to make its way for the first time out to the United States. I think the USDA got their hands on it and tried to get farmers to grow it here in the States and they said nah. Let's give it another hundred years, maybe, a little less.

• 6:07Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, the 21st century is when it really kind of became popular.

• 6:10Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 6:11Speaker 02

  And even in the last, geez, mid 2000s, you can even talk about it being trendy?

• 6:17Josh Clark?

  Well, supposedly, the whole trend for quinoa, which, by the way, in typical Stuff You Should Know fashion, has already come and gone, and now we're doing an episode on it.

• 6:27Speaker 02

  Oh, it's not gone.

• 6:28Josh Clark?

  Are you sure?

• 6:29Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah.

• 6:29Josh Clark?

  Okay. Well, do you know how quinoa hit the map, hit the scene?

• 6:34Speaker 02

  Well, in a lot of different ways. I assume you think it's one thing only.

• 6:38Josh Clark?

  Right. Oprah.

• 6:40Speaker 02

  Yeah, she had something to do with it, for sure.

• 6:42Josh Clark?

  She was on some sort of cleanse diet in 2008, and she ate quinoa and mushrooms, I guess. And everybody was like, what is that? And she's like, oh, you've been calling it quinoa. It's quinoa. And they said, well, we have to try this now.

• 6:58Speaker 02

  Yeah, well, she definitely was a factor. Oprah, her reach is wide.

• 7:02Josh Clark?

  It is.

• 7:03Speaker 02

  But it doesn't reach me.

• 7:05Josh Clark?

  Are you not an Oprah fan?

• 7:06Speaker 02

  No, I think she's fine, but I didn't learn about quinoa from her, or anything else.

• 7:11Josh Clark?

  Where'd you learn about quinoa, then?

• 7:13Speaker 02

  Just, you know, I think the first time I had it was in a restaurant. So, to me, it spread because chefs started using it.

• 7:20Josh Clark?

  Because they watch Oprah.

• 7:21Speaker 02

  Yeah, exactly. Chefs don't serve anything unless Oprah eats it.

• 7:25Josh Clark?

  Patient zero.

• 7:27Speaker 02

  Here in the United States, you know, talked about at least 120 varieties. You're more than likely going to be eating the red, red, white, and blue, no, red, white, or black

• 7:39Speaker 02

  varieties of quinoa. And do you eat it in your home? I guess we'll get to this stuff, but I'm curious if you've cooked with it a lot.

• 7:46Josh Clark?

  Not a lot, no. I've had it here or there. I've had it in a couple of restaurants.

• 7:49Speaker 02

  So, this stuff is, it's known as an ancient grain, but it's not exactly a grain, and it's not exactly a cereal. It's classified technically as a pseudo-cereal.

• 8:02Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 8:03Speaker 02

  Like, fruity pebbles.

• 8:05Josh Clark?

  That's a hundred percent cereal, baby.

• 8:08Speaker 02

  They just came out with cinnamon pebbles.

• 8:10Josh Clark?

  Oh, I'll bet those are good.

• 8:11Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 8:12Josh Clark?

  You could make cinnamon old shoes and put them in cereal box and it'd be good.

• 8:17Speaker 02

  But quinoa technically is a pseudo cereal. It comes from the goose foot plant.

• 8:23Josh Clark?

  Right, that's why it's not a cereal. Cereal is a grain that comes from a grass.

• 8:27Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 8:28Josh Clark?

  And goose foot's not a grass, it's a plant.

• 8:30Speaker 02

  No, and it looks kind of weedy. And as we'll see later, when you're cultivating it, it looks alarmingly like some other weeds.

• 8:37Josh Clark?

  Weed weed.

• 8:38Speaker 02

  Can be tricky.

• 8:39Josh Clark?

  With a capital W.

• 8:41Speaker 02

  Oh, it looks like marijuana?

• 8:42Josh Clark?

  A little bit, from afar.

• 8:45Speaker 02

  Huh.

• 8:45Josh Clark?

  That brilliant red and brilliant yellow. Isn't that what marijuana looks like when it's growing?

• 8:52Speaker 02

  I'm not sure you know what marijuana is.

• 8:53Josh Clark?

  Huh.

• 8:54Speaker 02

  Uh, I'll show you a picture sometime.

• 8:57Josh Clark?

  Okay.

• 8:57Speaker 02

  Okay. Um, it is labeled a whole grain though, because it's actually, it fits the whole grain definition, because it is the whole grain seed which you're eating.

• 9:07Josh Clark?

  Yeah, like when you talk about grains, usually, again, you're talking about these things from grasses like wheat, right?

• 9:12Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 9:13Josh Clark?

  And there's such a thing as whole grain wheat. But once we process something, once we mill it, or um.

• 9:20Speaker 02

  Shell it?

• 9:21Josh Clark?

  Smack it on the bottom, whatever you do to them, you're actually removing certain parts of the grain, right? So with like enriched white flour. That's, you've taken a whole wheat grain and you've removed the bran and the germ. And you've just got yourself the endosperm still. And the endosperm is what's used mostly for, to produce white flour.

• 9:46Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 9:46Josh Clark?

  And that's great. It's full of like quick, easily digestible carbs, but a lot of the nutrients are lost.

• 9:52Speaker 02

  And actually not easily digestible for many people.

• 9:54Josh Clark?

  That's true too.

• 9:55Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 9:56Josh Clark?

  Um, but a lot of the nutrients are lost in the process. So even if you can digest it, no problem, you're not getting most of the nutrients that were there in the first place. With a whole grain, it's got the bran, the germ, and the endosperm. And they're all working together to make you vastly healthier than you would be if you're just eating the endosperm, like you do in white flour.

• 10:16Speaker 02

  Yeah, and quinoa in particular is, it's really weird. When you look at it. It's closer, you wouldn't think so, but it's closer to shard and beets and spinach.

• 10:27Josh Clark?

  Right, the plant.

• 10:28Speaker 02

  Than it is, uh, anything else.

• 10:30Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 10:30Speaker 02

  It's crazy.

• 10:31Josh Clark?

  So imagine if like, from spinach plants, we got not only the leaves, but the also, the seeds turned out to be whole grains. It, that's what's going on. It's a weird plant.

• 10:42Speaker 02

  It is.

• 10:42Josh Clark?

  It shouldn't grow where it grows. It shouldn't be a cereal, shouldn't be a grain. It shouldn't be related to beets.

• 10:49Speaker 02

  It shouldn't be delicious.

• 10:51Josh Clark?

  But it is.

• 10:52Speaker 02

  That's right. Uh, and it's super, super good for you. Like we're saying, it's a super food. And, um, one of the reasons, and another thing that makes it very strange, is that it has a ton of protein, which is pretty unusual for a plant to have this much protein.

• 11:07Josh Clark?

  Yeah, this article made that point, but I wouldn't look, there's a lot of other plants that have pretty good amounts of protein in them.

• 11:14Speaker 02

  What rivals quinoa in amounts?

• 11:17Josh Clark?

  Edamame, black beans, lima beans, chickpeas, all beat it by a mile.

• 11:22Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 11:22Josh Clark?

  I just thought it was weird because not only did this article say it, I ran across it elsewhere too, that they were like, this is, it's amazing how much protein it has in it. It has like a decent amount, especially for a plant, but just not like, eye popping or anything like that, you know?

• 11:36Speaker 02

  You think it's hyperbole?

• 11:37Josh Clark?

  I, I kinda poo-pooed that one.

• 11:39Speaker 02

  Okay.

• 11:39Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 11:40Speaker 02

  Uh, what it does have, unless you think this is not true as well.

• 11:44Josh Clark?

  Well, I'll be the judge of it.

• 11:45Speaker 02

  Uh, ten, at least 10 amino acids, and, uh, that's good, right? Or is it bad too?

• 11:51Josh Clark?

  I guess it's okay.

• 11:53Speaker 02

  No, it's chock full of, uh, amino acids, which is great for your body, uh, because our body cannot make amino acids. So we have to get them from food sources.

• 12:02Josh Clark?

  Well, they, it can't make essential amino acids. It can make essential, non-essential amino acids, but the essential ones we have to get from food. And quinoa is in a very small group of plants that are, um, complete sources of protein, meaning that they have all of the essential amino acids that we need in them.

• 12:24Speaker 02

  Yes.

• 12:25Josh Clark?

  You don't find that in plants very frequently.

• 12:27Speaker 02

  No.

• 12:28Josh Clark?

  That's what helps make it a superfood.

• 12:30Speaker 02

  Exactly. Uh, it's not very high in calorie. No sugar, no cholesterol, no sodium. Uh, what else? Zinc?

• 12:39Josh Clark?

  It's got a lot of zinc, has a lot of potassium too. Apparently it has the most potassium of any food plant that, that is around. Potassium is really good at regulating blood pressure.

• 12:49Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 12:50Josh Clark?

  Cause potassium is in charge of things like fluid retention and electrical conduction throughout cells.

• 12:56Speaker 02

  Um, I think, uh, just compared to grains, there are plenty of other fruits with potassium.

• 13:01Josh Clark?

  Oh, okay. Is that what it was?

• 13:03Speaker 02

  Yeah, like bananas are loaded with potassium.

• 13:05Josh Clark?

  Are they?

• 13:05Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 13:06Josh Clark?

  Or is that the work of Edward Bernays?

• 13:09Speaker 02

  No, bananas are really good for you. Uh, what else? Fiber, magnesium, folate?

• 13:16Josh Clark?

  Yeah, that's-

• 13:17Speaker 02

  Gluten free?

• 13:18Josh Clark?

  Well, that's a big one, man. So it's very commonly touted as a gluten free, um, food, grain. Um, which is good for people who have celiac disease, but apparently they've tested, there's at least, what'd you say? A hundred and twenty, a hundred and fifty varieties?

• 13:35Speaker 02

  Uh, one twenty, yeah.

• 13:36Josh Clark?

  That are in like agricultural production right now.

• 13:39Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 13:40Josh Clark?

  And, um, somebody tested a bunch of them and they came up with like at least four that created a celiac response.

• 13:46Speaker 02

  Oh, really?

• 13:47Josh Clark?

  Yeah. So you gotta be careful. For the most part, they are gluten free, but they, there are a few varieties out there that can touch off the old celiac response.

• 13:56Speaker 02

  Well, I think one of the deals though is we're not seeing those in the marketplace though. Which is one of the, we'll, we'll get to it, but it's one of the potential problems is we're only eating like three or four-

• 14:07Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 14:08Speaker 02

  Of the hundred and twenty varieties.

• 14:09Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 14:10Speaker 02

  And I think those are for sure gluten free.

• 14:12Josh Clark?

  Okay.

• 14:13Speaker 02

  Like if you go to your grocery store-

• 14:14Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 14:15Speaker 02

  You're not gonna see a hundred and twenty varieties of, of this stuff.

• 14:18Josh Clark?

  I don't know, man.

• 14:19Speaker 02

  You know?

• 14:20Josh Clark?

  Yeah. You're probably right.

• 14:22Speaker 02

  Uh, all right, well, let's take a break and we're gonna get back and talk a little bit about cooking this delicious stuff.

• 14:44Speaker 02

  Hey everybody, I want to talk to you right now about Black Friday deals at Lowe's because you can get Black Friday done at Lowe's before Black Friday. Right now, you can get up to three free select power tools with the purchase of a select DeWalt, Craftsman, or Cobalt battery kit. And get this, you can get your choice of a Holiday Living Greensboro pre-lit artificial Christmas tree, flocked or classic, for just $99. Black Friday deals are on now at Lowe's, in-store and online. Valid through November 18th while supplies last. Free tools vary based on battery kit purchased and location.

• 15:20Josh Clark?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer.

• 15:30Speaker 02

  That's right, make a smart buy on the off-road Ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks, built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventure, and the rugged style for everything in between.

• 15:43Josh Clark?

  Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday. And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus hybrid power on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way.

• 15:58Speaker 02

  That's right, and long after you leave the lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you could trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.

• 16:23Speaker 02

  Here's a question for all you curious people. What's one thing you wish there was an app for? With Base44, you can build it yourself. It might be something simple, like a tool for a task your team does every week. You want the steps, useful links, and everyone's progress in one place.

• 16:37Josh Clark?

  Well, with Base44, describe that in your own words. You don't need to know coding or programming. Then you just keep editing and refining it until it works exactly the way you want. Your build comes headache-free with built-in login, data storage backend, and hosting. So what's the app you wish existed?

• 16:54Speaker 02

  Try it free and upgrade when you're ready. Go to base44.com to get started.

• 17:05Josh Clark?

  Hey everybody. The best pieces in your closet are the ones you can count on. Whether you're heading to work, or going out, or keeping things casual. And this time of year, Quince makes finding something great for everyone else just as easy. This holiday season, it's where you want to shop for yourself and everyone on your list.

• 17:23Speaker 02

  That's right. And you know what? Quince focuses on high-quality staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, 14-karat gold, and Italian leather. All timeless, versatile pieces that feel special to unwrap and become everyday favorites long after the holidays.

• 17:38Josh Clark?

  Yeah, plus, everything at Quince is priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. They work directly with ethical factories and cut out the middlemen, so you can give luxury-quality pieces without the luxury price tag.

• 17:50Speaker 02

  So give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to quince.com, where you can get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK as well. And when Quince asks you where you heard about them, let them know it was stuff you should know. It's the best way to support the show.

• 18:23Josh Clark?

  So Chuck, you were going to lay it on everybody, how to cook quinoa.

• 18:28Speaker 02

  It's easy. If you can cook rice, you can cook quinoa.

• 18:32Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 18:33Speaker 02

  And I would say, well, it's easier than rice.

• 18:35Josh Clark?

  I would say it's easier than rice. It doesn't stick like rice does.

• 18:38Speaker 02

  Yeah, exactly.

• 18:39Josh Clark?

  That's probably rice's biggest downfall.

• 18:43Speaker 02

  The sticky? Yeah.

• 18:45Josh Clark?

  It's also what makes it great, though, too.

• 18:48Speaker 02

  Sure. Depending on what kind of rice you're getting. I eat quinoa at the house, I wouldn't say a lot, but enough. Like, every couple of weeks.

• 18:58Josh Clark?

  Oh, yeah, that's a lot.

• 18:59Speaker 02

  Is it?

• 19:00Josh Clark?

  Yeah, it is to me.

• 19:02Speaker 02

  So what you do is you wanna rinse it.

• 19:05Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 19:06Speaker 02

  Like you will some kinds of rice.

• 19:07Josh Clark?

  The bag you're you're buying is probably going to say pre-rinced or pre-washed or something like that. You wanna rinse it anyway, right?

• 19:14Speaker 02

  Yeah, they had this, um, it's actually really good for you, this coating called, uh, saponin.

• 19:21Speaker 02

  And despite its its great health effects, when you add water to it, it lathers up like a soap.

• 19:28Josh Clark?

  Right, and it's bitter.

• 19:29Speaker 02

  Yeah, and in fact, it it means, uh, it's from the Latin sapo, which is soap. So you don't wanna eat it, even though it's good for you.

• 19:38Josh Clark?

  No, the plant produces it to keep like pests away from it, from eating it.

• 19:42Speaker 02

  Yeah, so you rinse that stuff off, get quinoa, when you, once you see it, it's really tiny. So you wanna get a really fine strainer, not like a colander.

• 19:50Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 19:50Speaker 02

  You get a colander, then all that quinoa is gonna be.

• 19:52Josh Clark?

  Where'd my quinoa go?

• 19:54Speaker 02

  Down the drain.

• 19:55Josh Clark?

  Man, I hate Mondays.

• 19:56Speaker 02

  So get like a sifter, really fine sifter, rinse it real good until it's, uh, the water's running clear. And, um, basically cook it like rice, it's, uh, one part quinoa to two parts water.

• 20:08Josh Clark?

  Or broth?

• 20:10Speaker 02

  Well, that's what I do, I use chicken broth.

• 20:12Josh Clark?

  Sure, you'd be a madman just to use like water and quinoa.

• 20:16Speaker 02

  Or veggie broth if you're, you know, weird.

• 20:20Josh Clark?

  Or off the meat.

• 20:23Speaker 02

  I'm just kidding, um, beef broth if you're gross.

• 20:27Josh Clark?

  That doesn't pair well with quinoa, I could see it not.

• 20:30Speaker 02

  I'm just not a big beef broth guy.

• 20:32Josh Clark?

  I love.

• 20:32Speaker 02

  I might've said beef.

• 20:34Josh Clark?

  You did.

• 20:34Speaker 02

  With a T H.

• 20:35Josh Clark?

  Yeah, it was kinda cute.

• 20:37Speaker 02

  Beef broth.

• 20:39Josh Clark?

  Beef broth, says barf.

• 20:41Speaker 02

  But I use chicken, I use like half, so if I do the two cups of water, I'll do one cup water, one cup chicken broth.

• 20:48Josh Clark?

  Oh, you cut your chicken broth?

• 20:50Speaker 02

  Yeah, I just kinda do half and half.

• 20:51Josh Clark?

  I got you, you stomp on it?

• 20:53Speaker 02

  Yeah. So then you cook it like rice, like I said, you're gonna boil it and then once it gets to a boil, cover it up, turn it down low and wait and let it simmer until it's all soaked up.

• 21:03Josh Clark?

  Yeah, and then this article, I'm not as acquainted with cooking quinoa as you are, but this article says that you wanna look for the spirals, the seed spirals to be prominent. What's the deal with that?

• 21:15Speaker 02

  You'll see when you look at it, like before you cook it, it looks different than afterward. And that's the easiest way to say it. Like, once you look, it's almost like they pop open or something. And it's just quite obvious. It's just big and light and fluffy. You see the little seed spiral.

• 21:30Josh Clark?

  What's neat is, and we kinda walked past it, but you said it a couple of times, that that saponin is good for you?

• 21:37Speaker 02

  Really good for you.

• 21:37Josh Clark?

  Yeah, it has some amazing properties, like it's anti-tumor, anti-ulcer, anti-inflammatory.

• 21:44Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 21:45Josh Clark?

  And so you have to imagine, like, again, that this plant is growing in this random place where plants aren't really supposed to grow, and it thrives there, and it's full of all these nutrients, and the outer coating is an anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor agent.

• 22:00Speaker 02

  Yeah, that you wash away.

• 22:02Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 22:03Speaker 02

  It's kinda sad.

• 22:04Josh Clark?

  Well, you could save it, sip on it later. I wonder what would happen, like, how would you have to ingest it, you think? Like, would it have any anti-inflammatory properties if you, like, drank saponin? You think? Or do you need to, like, inject it into your eye?

• 22:19Speaker 02

  I don't know, or mix it into a salve.

• 22:21Josh Clark?

  Maybe.

• 22:22Speaker 02

  Rub on your skin.

• 22:23Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 22:23Speaker 02

  I'm not sure. It's a good question. I bet people know. We'll hear about that.

• 22:27Josh Clark?

  Up in Bolivia, they know.

• 22:29Speaker 02

  So you can eat it in a variety of ways. You can just eat it as a side dish, like you would with rice, or couscous, or whatever, mashed potatoes.

• 22:39Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 22:39Speaker 02

  Although I would eat the mashed potatoes.

• 22:41Josh Clark?

  You could mix it with mashed potatoes, right?

• 22:43Speaker 02

  No, I wouldn't do that.

• 22:45Josh Clark?

  One, one thing that the author of this article, I think it's Leah Hoyt, she said that she likes to mix it in, instead of breadcrumbs, into, like, meatballs or burgers.

• 22:56Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 22:57Josh Clark?

  Why not?

• 22:58Speaker 02

  Yeah, a good quinoa burger. Yeah.

• 23:00Josh Clark?

  So is there such a thing as a quinoa burger that's just quinoa? Could you make that or do you need something to bind it?

• 23:06Speaker 02

  I think you probably need binding agents.

• 23:08Josh Clark?

  Or beef.

• 23:09Speaker 02

  Yeah, beef broths.

• 23:12Speaker 02

  Or I don't know, I've never made a quinoa burger. And I don't make any kind of veggie burger by, like, in my home.

• 23:18Josh Clark?

  Oh, really?

• 23:19Speaker 02

  So I wouldn't really know how to go about that.

• 23:21Josh Clark?

  What do you do, turkey burgers or?

• 23:23Speaker 02

  I do turkey.

• 23:24Josh Clark?

  Turkey burgers are pretty good. Depending on the brand, some are just like, what is this texture?

• 23:30Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, I make them myself with my own little recipe.

• 23:32Josh Clark?

  Oh.

• 23:33Speaker 02

  But um, that's just because Emily doesn't eat beef, beef. So uh, I've gotten so into the turkey burger that

• 23:40Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 23:41Speaker 02

  I don't even really, I mean, I'll like, I'll have a beef burger out.

• 23:44Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 23:45Speaker 02

  Never at home.

• 23:45Josh Clark?

  You and I are simpatico on the home burger cooking tip.

• 23:50Speaker 02

  Yeah. Do you grill or do you skillet?

• 23:52Josh Clark?

  Form and grill.

• 23:53Speaker 02

  Oh.

• 23:54Josh Clark?

  Yeah. It's pretty great.

• 23:56Speaker 02

  That's a buzz market in half.

• 23:57Josh Clark?

  Watch uh, you watch that grease drip out of the front?

• 24:01Speaker 02

  Uh huh.

• 24:02Josh Clark?

  And I've noticed many times, like, I will just be zoned out drooling.

• 24:07Josh Clark?

  Grease out of my mouth.

• 24:09Speaker 02

  Uh, so here's my favorite quinoa dish, and I got it from a restaurant in New York uh, that I can't remember. But there are all kinds of variations, but I have it um, I cook it and then put it in the fridge and chill it, like overnight.

• 24:22Josh Clark?

  Okay.

• 24:22Speaker 02

  So in the summer, I will get that cold quinoa and then dice up like some cucumber and some red onion.

• 24:30Josh Clark?

  Okay.

• 24:30Speaker 02

  And, I mean, kind of anything you want, like, that fits a salad, summer salad.

• 24:36Josh Clark?

  Okay.

• 24:36Speaker 02

  Like orange pepper, like crunchy green pepper, or roasted red pepper.

• 24:40Josh Clark?

  Oh yeah, that's good.

• 24:41Speaker 02

  Garlic, throw some pine nuts in there.

• 24:44Josh Clark?

  I wish it were summer right now.

• 24:45Speaker 02

  Like, you get some basil, some fresh herbs.

• 24:48Josh Clark?

  That's the way to go, man.

• 24:49Speaker 02

  Yeah, like, anything that strikes your fancy, maybe a little lemon juice, a little apple cider vinegar.

• 24:54Josh Clark?

  But the base of it is uh, quinoa.

• 24:56Speaker 02

  Yeah, and you just mix up anything that you kinda, you know, might add some texture, like that crunch. And um, and serve it alongside like a burger instead of fries.

• 25:07Josh Clark?

  Oh, yeah.

• 25:07Speaker 02

  It's really, really good.

• 25:08Josh Clark?

  Sounds nice.

• 25:09Speaker 02

  And you know me, I'm not, I'm not into healthy foods like that a lot.

• 25:13Josh Clark?

  Right, which means it's good.

• 25:15Speaker 02

  Which means it's really good, yeah.

• 25:18Josh Clark?

  And packed with protein, don't forget.

• 25:19Speaker 02

  That's right.

• 25:20Josh Clark?

  And it's a complete source of protein.

• 25:22Speaker 02

  So that's my, or maybe some dried cranberry or golden raisins.

• 25:25Josh Clark?

  I'm not big on that kind of stuff in a salad.

• 25:28Speaker 02

  Oh, yeah?

• 25:28Josh Clark?

  I know a lot of people like it, not me.

• 25:30Speaker 02

  Yeah?

• 25:31Josh Clark?

  No.

• 25:32Speaker 02

  I don't love the golden raisins, but I do like the cranberry.

• 25:34Josh Clark?

  Do you?

• 25:35Speaker 02

  Yeah, yeah. I think it's nice. Uh, all right, so that's Chuck's recipe of the week.

• 25:39Josh Clark?

  That's pretty good.

• 25:40Speaker 02

  We'll do that every week, no matter what the topic is.

• 25:43Josh Clark?

  What are you gonna come up with for the tartar grade episode?

• 25:46Speaker 02

  Oh, just you wait.

• 25:50Speaker 02

  So, here's the deal with quinoa. It's gotten really trendy. So, in 2007, the United States was importing, uh, 7.3 million pounds of quinoa.

• 26:01Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 26:01Speaker 02

  2012, they were imported 57 million pounds. And who, God knows what it is this year.

• 26:09Josh Clark?

  You know, a lot of that was the direct result of a single person. Of what? Of Oprah, yeah. It all comes down to Oprah. No, there was this dude. He was a UN development worker from Bolivia who'd moved to California. And, um, he had, obviously, grown up, at least familiar with quinoa, if not eating quinoa. Uh, his name was Sergio Nunez Diarco. And he, he saw that quinoa was starting to catch on a little bit. I guess he saw that episode of Oprah.

• 26:41Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 26:42Josh Clark?

  So he went back to Bolivia and he found that there were only a few indigenous producers who were putting out, like, retail-sized bags of quinoa.

• 26:51Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 26:51Josh Clark?

  So he went around and he basically created a co-op out of all the indigenous farmers who create, who grow quinoa in Bolivia.

• 26:59Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 27:00Josh Clark?

  And made the supply from them reliable enough and big enough to, to supply industry abroad, around the world. This guy almost, basically was the flashpoint for the quinoa explosion. He helped it happen.

• 27:14Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 27:15Josh Clark?

  And he made sure that it was based on the work of the people who were originally cultivating quinoa.

• 27:22Speaker 02

  Right.

• 27:22Josh Clark?

  Yeah, which is a big one.

• 27:23Speaker 02

  Yeah, he went from, in 2005, he sold $25,000 worth, uh, through his company. And these days, he's selling about $26 million worth annually from his own facility and about 40 million from other facilities.

• 27:38Josh Clark?

  Yep.

• 27:39Speaker 02

  So he basically went around to them and said, "Hey, these weekend farmers markets are cute." But how would you like to be a part of the industrial food supply?

• 27:47Josh Clark?

  Yeah, you put down that pan flute. We're talking business here.

• 27:50Speaker 02

  They play the pan flute?

• 27:52Josh Clark?

  Yeah, those Andean Highlanders, they love that.

• 27:54Speaker 02

  They love that junk?

• 27:55Josh Clark?

  Mm-hmm.

• 27:56Speaker 02

  Is that where Zamfear is from?

• 27:58Josh Clark?

  No, I think Zamfear is... I think he's Mediterranean.

• 28:02Speaker 02

  I wanted to say Greek.

• 28:03Josh Clark?

  Yeah, I'm pretty sure.

• 28:05Speaker 02

  Okay. I don't know if I'm getting he and Yanni confused, though.

• 28:08Josh Clark?

  Oh, yeah, maybe we are.

• 28:09Speaker 02

  They seem like they probably at least go bowling together.

• 28:12Josh Clark?

  Yanni didn't play the pan flute, though, did he?

• 28:14Speaker 02

  No, no.

• 28:15Josh Clark?

  Okay. Zamfear is definitely master of the pan flute.

• 28:18Speaker 02

  Well, of course. You can't call yourself that on a CD unless Oprah has said so.

• 28:22Josh Clark?

  Right. And it has the stamp of approval.

• 28:25Speaker 02

  So, um, the price has really gone up, too, as a result, and it was not small. For a lot of years, one metric ton was about $500, and in 2010, that was $1,300. So that's almost threefold. And again, that was six years, almost seven years ago.

• 28:43Josh Clark?

  Yeah, it kept going up, too. I think it peaked in 2012.

• 28:46Speaker 02

  Really?

• 28:46Josh Clark?

  Yeah, it was... The price went up quite a bit.

• 28:49Speaker 02

  So you'd think that's great. These farmers are making a ton of money now, right?

• 28:53Josh Clark?

  Yes. Apparently, I don't know where it started, but somebody created, um, some... I guess somebody wrote an article or started digging around, and they said, "Hey, everybody, you guys are eating all this quinoa. Guess what you did? You drove up prices so much that the very indigenous people who have been cultivating this for thousands of years can't afford it anymore. So suck on that, hipster."

• 29:19Speaker 02

  Right. Like, the people of Fiji are exporting Fiji water, but they're all... don't have clean drinking water themselves. That kind of same thing, right?

• 29:29Josh Clark?

  It's basically an American pastime to take hipsters down a peg, isn't it?

• 29:33Speaker 02

  Is it?

• 29:34Josh Clark?

  It seems like it. Anything hipsters like, everybody goes to a lot of trouble to dig around and find what's wrong with it.

• 29:41Speaker 02

  Yeah, like the one thing they can trace back. There's gotta be blood on the hands somewhere.

• 29:45Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 29:46Speaker 02

  Uh, all right, well, let's take a break. We'll talk a little bit about what this all means and whether or not that's even true, right after this.

• 30:07Speaker 02

  Hey everybody, I want to talk to you right now about Black Friday deals at Lowe's because you can get Black Friday done at Lowe's before Black Friday. Right now, you can get up to three free select power tools with the purchase of a select DeWalt, Craftsman, or Cobalt battery kit. And get this, you can get your choice of a Holiday Living Greensboro pre-lit artificial Christmas tree, flocked or classic, for just $99. Black Friday deals are on now at Lowe's, in-store and online. Valid through November 18th while supplies last. Free tools vary based on battery kit purchased and location.

• 30:43Josh Clark?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability. And it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer.

• 30:53Speaker 02

  That's right. Make a smart buy on the off-road Ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks, built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventure, and the rugged style for everything in between.

• 31:06Josh Clark?

  Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday. And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus hybrid power on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way.

• 31:21Speaker 02

  That's right. And long after you leave the lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value. So you could trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota. From a great deal today to a great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.

• 31:46Speaker 02

  Here's a question for all you curious people. What's one thing you wish there was an app for? With Base44, you can build it yourself. It might be something simple like a tool for a task your team does every week. You want the steps, useful links, and everyone's progress in one place.

• 32:00Josh Clark?

  Well, with Base44, describe that in your own words. You don't need to know coding or programming. Then you just keep editing and refining it until it works exactly the way you want. Your build comes headache-free with built-in login, data storage, backend, and hosting. So what's the app you wish existed?

• 32:17Speaker 02

  Try it free and upgrade when you're ready. Go to base44.com to get started.

• 32:28Josh Clark?

  Hey everybody. The best pieces in your closet are the ones you can count on. Whether you're heading to work, or going out, or keeping things casual. And this time of year, Quince makes finding something great for everyone else just as easy. This holiday season, it's where you want to shop for yourself and everyone on your list.

• 32:46Speaker 02

  That's right. And you know what? Quince focuses on high-quality staples made with premium materials like 100% Mongolian cashmere, 14-karat gold, and Italian leather. All timeless, versatile pieces that feel special to unwrap and become everyday favorites long after the holidays.

• 33:01Josh Clark?

  Yeah, plus, everything at Quince is priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. They work directly with ethical factories and cut out the middlemen, so you can give luxury-quality pieces without the luxury price tag.

• 33:13Speaker 02

  So give the gift of quality this holiday season. Download the Quince app for app-exclusive offers, or go to quince.com, where you can get free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Now available in Canada and the UK as well. And when Quince asks you where you heard about them, let them know it was stuff you should know. It's the best way to support the show.

• 33:45Speaker 02

  All right, so if it's being produced in the Andes and prices are going up, you would think that at some point, people in the United States might try and take a stab at it. And that's exactly what happened, and is happening. And you sent this great article, "Is Quinoa, California Farmers A New Kale?" Because kale had a similar explosion in popularity, you know, over the past few years.

• 34:10Josh Clark?

  Kale's so hot right now.

• 34:11Speaker 02

  Yeah, I think kale is out now.

• 34:14Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 34:15Speaker 02

  Or at least made fun of. For being too hipstery and hot.

• 34:20Josh Clark?

  Yeah, I think the hipsters kind of chewed that up and spit it out. It's still great.

• 34:26Speaker 02

  I know. People just, I hate all that stuff.

• 34:28Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 34:29Speaker 02

  You know?

• 34:30Josh Clark?

  Really?

• 34:30Speaker 02

  Just like, what's trending and what's not, and what we think is cool, let's write about it.

• 34:35Josh Clark?

  Right, and I read this really interesting article, I think it was a Mother Jones writer, like a Mother Jones ag writer, who basically said like, hey dudes, all of this stuff that, you know, is suddenly like the hot new superfood.

• 34:47Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 34:47Josh Clark?

  It's niche food marketing. It's the same thing as like Oreos coming out with a new flavor every like couple of months that you gotta go try or something like that.

• 34:59Speaker 02

  Yeah, like you're just a sheep for kale.

• 35:01Josh Clark?

  But, but yeah, but geared toward people who don't eat junk food, but it's the same exact thing. So don't be a chump.

• 35:07Speaker 02

  Yeah, or at least don't get on your high horse about the other stuff.

• 35:11Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 35:12Speaker 02

  Mass marketed stuff.

• 35:13Josh Clark?

  Or being eaten by idiots and saps and simpletons.

• 35:17Speaker 02

  Right.

• 35:17Josh Clark?

  So, the thing is, the thing that made it even, even worse though, was the idea that like the huge demand in the expanded market for quinoa that was largely found in the United States was directly responsible for pricing indigenous farmers who were growing that quinoa out of it.

• 35:37Speaker 02

  Right.

• 35:38Josh Clark?

  So they weren't even eating it was the problem.

• 35:40Speaker 02

  And, well supposedly.

• 35:42Josh Clark?

  Right, and, and what they found was that, one, they, they couldn't afford it, they'd been priced out.

• 35:47Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 35:49Josh Clark?

  Or they were making the decision to where, yeah, they're making more money now, but they would rather sell all their quinoa and buy less expensive, less nutrient-dense food for their families.

• 36:01Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 36:01Josh Clark?

  So the, the very people producing quinoa were not only couldn't afford it, they also were being malnourished as a result of this quinoa explosion.

• 36:10Speaker 02

  Right.

• 36:11Josh Clark?

  So, it was a big deal. It made a lot of people second guess it, feel pretty bad about themselves. And I also guarantee it had a, a negative impact on the quinoa market as well.

• 36:22Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 36:22Josh Clark?

  Which would directly affect the farmers. But what you dug up though, on this, um, NPR's The Salt.

• 36:30Josh Clark?

  I guess blog? Their food blog?

• 36:33Speaker 02

  Yeah, there was a story about it, attached to it as well.

• 36:35Josh Clark?

  It was pretty eye opening.

• 36:37Speaker 02

  Yeah, these dudes got together and they were trying to get to kind of the root of all this. And so they got a data source, ENAHO. It's the National Survey of Peru that they carry out every year. About just Peruvian households and all kinds of stuff, data that they're collecting. But one of them is food. And there are 22,000 randomly selected households. So they got 10 years worth of this data covering from before the quinoa boom.

• 37:06Speaker 02

  A few years before through the quinoa boom, so they could kind of do a good comparison.

• 37:10Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 37:11Speaker 02

  And they split the households into three groups. Those who grow and eat quinoa, those who eat it but don't grow it, and those who neither grow it nor eat it.

• 37:21Josh Clark?

  They say, bleh.

• 37:22Speaker 02

  Yeah, I guess there's the final household is people that pronounce it quinoa. There's like one household in Peru. It's like, what is this stuff? And they all three showed a clear rise in their welfare, which they measured as a total value of goods consumed as that price of quinoa rose.

• 37:42Speaker 02

  And apparently that reflected in the increased living standards in Peru as a whole, too.

• 37:47Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 37:48Speaker 02

  So at the height of that boom, the welfare of the growers increased more rapidly than the other two groups, though.

• 37:53Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 37:53Speaker 02

  Which you would, you know, that makes sense.

• 37:55Josh Clark?

  Yeah, and so you can, they, they basically tracked a direct correlation between the quinoa boom around the world and a rise in the household welfare of quinoa farmers back in Peru. So they conclusively proved pretty much that there, there was no, that these farmers weren't too poor to afford quinoa. But the other one was still left standing, right?

• 38:23Speaker 02

  Right.

• 38:24Josh Clark?

  The idea that they were selling all their quinoa, but then they were still malnourished because they were buying less nutritionally dense food.

• 38:32Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 38:33Josh Clark?

  And that apparently they managed to disprove as well.

• 38:36Speaker 02

  Yeah, at least that's what they're saying in this paper. I mean, we're not saying this is 100%. Evidence, but at least this is what they dug out after poring over these 10 years' worth of of studies.

• 38:47Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 38:48Speaker 02

  Uh, they said this guy Andrew Stevens, a doctoral candidate, um, focused on specifically the Puno region in the Andes, which grows about 80% of all the quinoa in Peru.

• 38:59Josh Clark?

  Mm-hmm.

• 39:00Speaker 02

  And he said, this is a, it's a cultural and nutritionally important food, but it's not, I think the gist was people are trying to make it out to be like, this is what they subsist on every day and they can't afford to eat it.

• 39:13Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 39:14Speaker 02

  And he said, this is actually a pretty small part of their diet overall. And they're actually eating more quinoa than ever before.

• 39:21Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 39:22Speaker 02

  In that region that grows the most.

• 39:24Josh Clark?

  That was pretty surprising.

• 39:25Speaker 02

  So, uh, it said they did not come, uh, cut back their consumption between 2004 and 2012 despite a fourfold price increase. They see no signs of change in calories, proteins, or carbohydrates in the diet across Peru as a whole.

• 39:39Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 39:40Speaker 02

  So they kind of debunked it.

• 39:41Josh Clark?

  Yeah. Pretty cool.

• 39:43Speaker 02

  Hipsters rejoice.

• 39:44Josh Clark?

  They, they shall rejoice, but, um, there are still some outstanding problems, right?

• 39:50Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 39:50Josh Clark?

  So like you said, it was a, you said that guy mentioned it was a culturally important food, so much so that Bolivia, um, in its drafted 2009 constitution, enshrined quinoa as part of their, um, food sovereignty, which is their right to protect culturally important food.

• 40:09Speaker 02

  Yeah, like, hey, you're coming in here and you're basically taking this and now you're going to grow it all over the world.

• 40:14Josh Clark?

  Right, and they recognized the importance of quinoa for a very long time. There was apparently a Colorado researcher who went to Bolivia in 1986 and was shot dead trying to smuggle quinoa seeds out of the country.

• 40:29Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 40:30Josh Clark?

  And I guess somebody from Colorado eventually got them out because Colorado State University patented a hybrid quinoa in 1994 based on Bolivian seeds. And the government of Bolivia called them bio pirates.

• 40:45Speaker 02

  Whoa.

• 40:46Josh Clark?

  Yeah, that's not something you want leveled at.

• 40:47Speaker 02

  No.

• 40:48Josh Clark?

  Not by Bolivia.

• 40:50Speaker 02

  Uh, the other thing too, and I think you sent me this, was that, um,

• 40:56Speaker 02

  Because there's more, basically, there's sort of a land grab going on.

• 41:00Josh Clark?

  Yeah, this is where I was going.

• 41:01Speaker 02

  In Peru, where all of a sudden, they realize that, you know, before, when it wasn't worth that much money, they, I mean, sure, they were producing it, but it wasn't like it is now. So, all these people are saying, wait, this, this land that was once unused, like, is anyone claiming it? And there's sort of a rush to claim these lands.

• 41:18Josh Clark?

  Well, there was.

• 41:18Speaker 02

  And fighting going on.

• 41:19Josh Clark?

  Yeah, there was violence that broke out in February of, I think, 2015, maybe 14, sorry, 2014, where one guy got his arm blown off by dynamite.

• 41:30Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 41:30Josh Clark?

  During this battle among hundreds of farmers for some land that had been sitting there abandoned for, like, decades. And part of the problem is, is when you're doing good agricultural practices, what do we talk about no-till farming in?

• 41:46Speaker 02

  Oh, man, I was thinking that, too. I can't remember.

• 41:48Josh Clark?

  Well, we've definitely talked a lot about that.

• 41:50Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 41:50Josh Clark?

  And when you're using good agricultural practices, one of the main things you want to do is let fields lay fallow for a year or a season at a time.

• 42:00Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 42:01Josh Clark?

  And they're not doing that anymore in the Andes. And again, this is really, really fragile cropland that they're growing this stuff in, so they're not letting it lay fallow any longer. And they're also using llamas less.

• 42:14Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 42:15Josh Clark?

  And llamas and quinoa go together like rice and beans, which, by the way, is another complete protein food, but it's not just a single food, so you can't really call it a superfood.

• 42:26Speaker 02

  Right.

• 42:26Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 42:27Speaker 02

  Yeah. Man, what was that episode?

• 42:29Josh Clark?

  I don't know.

• 42:30Speaker 02

  It's totally on the tip of my tongue.

• 42:31Josh Clark?

  We talked a lot about no-till, no-till farming.

• 42:35Speaker 02

  I can't remember. I want to say it had something to do with the Dust Bowl, but we didn't do one on the Dust Bowl yet.

• 42:41Josh Clark?

  We did. We did one on the Dust Bowl and desertification. Maybe it was the Dust Bowl.

• 42:45Speaker 02

  Was it?

• 42:46Josh Clark?

  Yeah, good one.

• 42:48Speaker 02

  Yeah, so the llamas, that's one of the big issues, right, is that they're not letting them poop everywhere.

• 42:54Josh Clark?

  Well, they're not, they're not llama farming like they used to. Llamas use a lot of grazing land and they're like, we can use that instead to grow quinoa.

• 43:04Speaker 02

  Cause quinoa's more valuable than llamas.

• 43:06Josh Clark?

  Right, but llamas again, and quinoa go together like rice and beans and llama poop is almost like it's designed or tailored to fertilize quinoa. They started to use sheep poop instead, I guess imported sheep poop, and it allows a lot more pests and invasive weeds than llama poop does.

• 43:27Speaker 02

  Right.

• 43:27Josh Clark?

  When llama poop is fertilizing. So the whole ecosystem is definitely being.

• 43:32Speaker 02

  Altered.

• 43:33Josh Clark?

  Yeah, and not necessarily in good ways because of this huge demand and this huge influx of cash. It's basically more money, more problems.

• 43:42Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 43:42Josh Clark?

  The, the Altoplatos people are finding out.

• 43:46Speaker 02

  It's so weird. Or not weird, but kinda sad that you can't, you know, it can't just be a success story.

• 43:52Josh Clark?

  Never is.

• 43:53Speaker 02

  You know?

• 43:54Josh Clark?

  Gotta have the good with the bad, I guess.

• 43:56Speaker 02

  In the long run, they're also worried that, I was talking about all those different varieties.

• 44:02Speaker 02

  I saw the 120, but it says here there could be up to thousands of different varieties.

• 44:07Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 44:08Speaker 02

  And farmers are abandoning most of these to concentrate on the ones that they can sell to, you know, ship out to export to American markets.

• 44:16Josh Clark?

  Right.

• 44:16Speaker 02

  Or I guess just, you know, not just America. I think Europe has eaten this stuff like crazy too.

• 44:22Josh Clark?

  Are they?

• 44:23Speaker 02

  Yeah, but it says that those varieties are, this guy says that they're the future of quinoa. Because they can adapt to things like climate change and if you narrow the varieties down to a certain few and they don't adapt, then you're kinda screwed.

• 44:37Josh Clark?

  Yeah, you're SOL. If you have 3,000 to choose from to try to adapt to, to changing climate, then yeah, you're way better off. So crop diversity is pretty important, but yeah, that's getting erased as well.

• 44:50Speaker 02

  Yeah, well, they're trying to encourage it with these Andean farmers at least. They are working with Bolivia and Peru to develop internal markets for these threatened varieties, like with school food programs and stuff.

• 45:03Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 45:03Speaker 02

  Like not necessarily to sell, but to use like within the country at hospitals and schools. They said they've been fairly successful with some of that stuff. So. Hopefully that continues.

• 45:14Josh Clark?

  See, that to me, that's what government subsidies are for. Stuff like that. For like, small indigenous farmers who are protecting a thousand-year-old varieties of crops that are part of the cultural

• 45:32Josh Clark?

  fabric of a country.

• 45:33Speaker 02

  Yeah, and for the future, for all.

• 45:36Josh Clark?

  Sure.

• 45:37Speaker 02

  They are growing it in California, though. That article you sent, this dude is growing it in...

• 45:42Josh Clark?

  In the Sonoran Desert.

• 45:43Speaker 02

  Crazy, in the Imperial Valley, below sea level.

• 45:46Josh Clark?

  Mm-hmm.

• 45:47Speaker 02

  In like, one of the hottest places in North America.

• 45:49Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 45:50Speaker 02

  They're growing quinoa.

• 45:51Josh Clark?

  Yeah, and well, part of the problem is, quinoa is very closely related. I think it's in the same genus as something called lamb's quarters.

• 45:58Speaker 02

  Yeah, that's the weed.

• 45:59Josh Clark?

  Which doesn't really matter up in the Altoplano. But in California, lamb's quarters is a toxic, toxic plant to livestock, which might accidentally graze on it.

• 46:11Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 46:12Josh Clark?

  They're not thinking about that kind of stuff. And then it also carries a virus that kills alfalfa, which is very much grown in California, to feed that livestock.

• 46:22Speaker 02

  Man.

• 46:22Josh Clark?

  So there's, it's weird. It's a complex, amazing plant that shouldn't exist. Quinoa.

• 46:30Speaker 02

  Yeah, maybe that'll be the title. Quinoa, colon, complex, more complex than you think.

• 46:36Josh Clark?

  Oh, that's a good one.

• 46:38Speaker 02

  Or maybe it should say, well, never mind. I'll figure that out. Or should we just brainstorm some more on show titles?

• 46:45Josh Clark?

  Let's do it.

• 46:46Speaker 02

  Are we gonna try the Soylent?

• 46:47Josh Clark?

  Yes, let's.

• 46:49Speaker 02

  And then do listener mail?

• 46:50Josh Clark?

  Yeah, let's do that.

• 46:51Speaker 02

  All right.

• 46:55Josh Clark?

  So, here we are. We're gonna try this.

• 46:58Speaker 02

  Yeah, Soylent. It's in a white bottle.

• 47:01Josh Clark?

  We caught a lot of flak about not having tried it and still done something. I'm like...

• 47:06Speaker 02

  Well, here we go, then.

• 47:07Josh Clark?

  I'm not iridescent, but I've done an episode on iridescent. Give me a break, people.

• 47:13Speaker 02

  I think you should probably shake well, right?

• 47:15Josh Clark?

  I think so. I don't know, we gotta go back and listen to the episode again. It's been a while.

• 47:19Speaker 02

  People also thought that that was a sponsored episode by Soylent. And I was like, I think we said enough bad things about the taste that they should have figured out that it was not.

• 47:30Speaker 02

  All right.

• 47:31Josh Clark?

  Here we go. So this is us trying Soylent. We also want to say thanks again to Don Kent for sending this in.

• 47:37Speaker 02

  It smells like a-

• 47:38Josh Clark?

  Oh, that's a nice, kind of a nice smell.

• 47:41Speaker 02

  What does that smell like? It smells like cereal milk.

• 47:43Josh Clark?

  We got that a lot. A lot of people said it smelled like, or it tastes like Cheerios milk.

• 47:48Speaker 02

  That's totally what it smells like.

• 47:49Josh Clark?

  Can we say Cheerios, or is this an episode for Cheerios now?

• 47:52Speaker 02

  All right, I'm gonna, should we do it at the same time?

• 47:54Josh Clark?

  Three, two, one.

• 48:00Josh Clark?

  I thought we were chugging the whole thing.

• 48:01Speaker 02

  No.

• 48:03Josh Clark?

  Oh, that's, that's not bad. It is-

• 48:04Speaker 02

  It's not bad at all.

• 48:05Josh Clark?

  100% Cheerios cereal milk.

• 48:08Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 48:08Josh Clark?

  I think I would have come up with that even if somebody hadn't said it. This is good.

• 48:14Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, it's sort of bland.

• 48:16Josh Clark?

  Oh, it's definitely bland.

• 48:17Speaker 02

  It's not nearly as sweet. It's not like a Honey Nut Cheerios milk.

• 48:21Josh Clark?

  No, that's true. Or Cinnamon Toast Crunch milk.

• 48:23Speaker 02

  That's not bad. I was dreading this. I thought it was gonna be awful from all the comments, but it's not bad at all.

• 48:29Josh Clark?

  I like it. I can see how you would kind of start to crave it, because it's got that, like, almost a fatty mouth feel to it, you know what I mean?

• 48:37Speaker 02

  Yeah.

• 48:38Josh Clark?

  Like, it really gets on the tongue.

• 48:40Speaker 02

  Huh. All right. Well, there it is.

• 48:44Josh Clark?

  I should probably stop. It's pretty, it's got a lot of calories in it.

• 48:47Speaker 02

  Yeah, I mean, that's 20% of your daily nutrition.

• 48:49Josh Clark?

  Well, thanks again to Don Kent. Thanks again to everybody who wrongly called us out for doing an ad for Soylent.

• 48:56Speaker 02

  The aftertaste is a little bit like milk of magnesia.

• 48:59Josh Clark?

  I'm not getting that.

• 49:00Speaker 02

  Like Mylana?

• 49:01Josh Clark?

  Yeah, no, I know what you mean.

• 49:02Speaker 02

  Kind of chalky.

• 49:03Josh Clark?

  I don't have that.

• 49:07Josh Clark?

  Oh, if you want to know more about Soylent, go listen to the Soylent sub. In the meantime, if you want to know more about Quinoa, type that word, Q-U-I-N-O-A, into the search bar at HowStuffWorks.com. And since I said "search bar," it's time for more Soylent. I mean, it's time for listener mail.

• 49:27Speaker 02

  All right, I'm gonna call-- yeah, I definitely don't like the aftertaste. It's sort of chalking up on my throat and tongue.

• 49:33Josh Clark?

  I kinda like this stuff. I like food more, but that's not bad.

• 49:37Speaker 02

  Sure.

• 49:38Josh Clark?

  Like, if somebody said, "Should I drink soilite?", I'd say, "Why not?"

• 49:43Speaker 02

  All right, I'm gonna call this, uh... Just a nice email from this lovely Australian woman. "Hey, guys, been a longtime listener, first-time writer. Currently living in Sydney, Australia, though I grew up in Tennessee. And now I'm a Florida resident."

• 49:59Josh Clark?

  All over the place.

• 50:00Speaker 02

  Wow, so maybe she's not Australian. "I've been listening to y'all, y'all, since I was in college at UTK. Go Vols. And I even brought you along with me while spending a year living in France. If you do end up reading this on the air, which I don't expect, I would be so thrilled if you gave a shout-out to my little sister, LB, currently in Portland."

• 50:20Josh Clark?

  All right.

• 50:21Speaker 02

  What's up, LB?

• 50:21Josh Clark?

  She just used a little reverse psychology on you there.

• 50:24Speaker 02

  Yeah, she did. "Anytime we make a road trip, we put on Stuff You Should Know, which insights a groan from her every time. It's the chit-chat that bugs her." We just gave her a shout-out.

• 50:35Josh Clark?

  Yeah. Well, she's not... She's not the only person to feel that way.

• 50:40Speaker 02

  All right, to get to the point, I was listening to the dictators' episode and was so excited to hear you talking about Lucius Cornelius Sulla. In fact, that's my grandmother's maiden name. We pronounce it Suella, but whoever knows if that's the true pronunciation. Her family is from southern Italy and immigrated from Naples. About 100 years ago, she recently went on a trip to Italy and studied up on her ancestor, Sulla, and even visited a lot of the sites inscribed with his name.

• 51:08Josh Clark?

  That's pretty cool.

• 51:09Speaker 02

  "It's amazing to see a piece of your family history show up on your favorite podcast, even if it is about dictators. It gave me a chuckle. Thanks for keeping me entertained. Just recently caught up to all the episodes on iTunes. I know, I know, there are much more..."

• 51:23Josh Clark?

  Yeah.

• 51:24Speaker 02

  "...on your... many more on your website."

• 51:25Josh Clark?

  Wow, she is a listener, huh?

• 51:27Speaker 02

  She is, and that's Sarah right now in Sydney.

• 51:29Josh Clark?

  Thanks a lot, Sarah. Appreciate that. So, wait, is she from Australia or she's just living in Australia now?

• 51:36Speaker 02

  I think she's just living there.

• 51:37Josh Clark?

  Okay, got it. If you want to let us know about your world travels and all that jazz, like Sarah did, you can send us an email to [email protected]. And as always, join us at our home on the web, stuffyoushouldknow.com.

• 51:55Speaker 03

  Stuff You Should Know is a production of iHeartRadio. For more podcasts, MyHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

• 52:11Josh Clark?

  Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it starts with a great deal on an off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's longest-lasting trucks, combining power for work, tech for adventures, and style in between. And they're built on a reputation for quality and reliability, which is why Toyota trucks are known for holding their value, which could mean big savings when it's time for your next Toyota. So get a great deal today and a great value tomorrow. Shop toyota.com for more. Toyota, let's go places.

• 52:42Speaker 04

  Do you ever feel like your computer is tracking you? Well, it's not. It's your browser following you. But not if you come back to Firefox. Firefox blocks the trackers automatically, doesn't follow you from site to site, and supports the ad blockers other browsers dropped. Plus, you can switch AI on or off when its intelligence is acting too artificial. And switching? Totally painless. Your bookmarks, passwords, and browsing history come right with you. Come back to Firefox. Visit firefox.com.

• 53:12Josh Clark?

  Curious people ask great questions, and here's one. What's something you wish there was an app for? Well, with Base44, you can build it yourself. Maybe it's a tool to organize a project, or track a hobby, or share knowledge, or solve a problem that's always bugged you. Just describe what you want in your own words. No coding required. Base44 handles the database, login, backend, and hosting. Try it for free. Go to base44.com to get started.

• 53:38Speaker 00

  This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human.