Quinoa is a Chenopodiaceae plant. Originated in mid-high altitude mountainous areas such as Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in the Andes of South America. It has certain drought tolerance, cold tolerance and salt tolerance, and its growth range is from sea level to plateau at an altitude of about 4500 meters. The nutritional value of quinoa exceeds that of any traditional food crop. Quinoa is a whole grain, full nutrition, full protein and alkaline food, which has the functions of alleviating hunger, supplementing nutrition and regulating immunity.

Quinoa is a traditional staple food for Indians. It was tamed almost at the same time as rice and has a history of planting and eating for more than 6000 years. The nutritional components of quinoa are quite comprehensive, and the taste of quinoa is easily accepted by people. Under the nourishment of quinoa, a nutritious food, the Indians in South America created a great Inca civilization, and the Incas revered quinoa as the mother of food.

Morphological characteristics of quinoa

Quinoa plants are broom-shaped, with a plant height of 60-300 cm and upright stems and branches. The stems are colorful, which varies from species to species. The leaves are wide and take on various shapes. The upper leaves of the plant are willow-like, and the middle and lower leaves are oval, triangular or oval. Young leaves are green, old leaves are yellow, purple or red, and so on. Inflorescence is conical with many branches.

The fruit ear of Chenopodium album can be red, purple and yellow, and the plant shape is similar to gray vegetables, and the ear is similar to sorghum when it matures. Plant size is greatly influenced by environmental and genetic factors, ranging from 0.3 meters to 3 meters. The stem is hard and can be branched or unbranched. Simple leaves alternate, the leaves are duck's paw-shaped, and the leaf margin is divided into full-edge type and sawtooth-edge type. The root system is huge but shallow, and there are many fibrous roots on the root, which has strong water absorption ability. The flowers of quinoa are bisexual, the inflorescence is umbrella-shaped, spike-shaped, conical, and the seeds are small, showing small round medicinal tablets.