Category Archives: Rice

Persian Lentil rice with dates

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This is such a good recipe. It’s reminiscent of the Indian khichdi but better !

I modified it from this NYT one. This recipe is for 3-4 people

In a rice cooker , add 1 cup basmati, 1/2 cup small green lentils. Wash and rinse twice and add 3 cups of water, a small cinnamon stick and a pinch of saffron and salt and pepper . Let the rice cooker do its thing

In a pan, heat some oil and fry up one large onion with some salt and pepper till it’s dark brown and a little crispy. This will take about 15 minutes. Make sure it doesn’t burn. Remove onion and in the same oil, fry up 6-7 chopped dates in the oil with some salt and I added Aleppo pepper (about a teaspoon). Next chop up a handful of herbs (mint, cilantro, parsley). Mix all that up

Now layer the rice with the onion-date-herb mixture. Drizzle with ghee (browned butter). Enjoy with salted yogurt on the side. This dish would be great covered with foil and heated just before serving.

Dates

Layered rice bake or rice casserole without the mushiness

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In India- we like our rice to be loose and fluffly (except in khichdi and in kheer). I do like the concept of rice casseroles but the mushiness of the rice and the egg didn’t work for me. This modification of flavoring and layering the rice similar to a biryani and skipping the egg works well for my family. The bottom layer gets a little crispy and the cheese and the flavors permeate the whole dish. This is another no-recipe recipe and prep time is less than 10 minutes (rice in rice cooker, the potatoes boil while  you make the sauce) – use whatever sauce you wish, enchilada sauce goes beaurifully with this too or butter chicken gravy. Use whichever vegetables you have available or even beans.

Layer in a large baking dish

  1. Cooked rice (from 1 cup uncooked rice) with some olive oil or ghee or butter and salt.
  2. Vegetables – I used boiled potatoes, green beans and corn
  3. Sauce- I used my version of a vegetarian gravy- Brown 1 medium red onion with 1-2 tbsp of butter. Add 2-3 cloves of garlic. Add 1 tbsp of flour and brown slightly for 1-2 minutes. While whisking, add 1 cup of vegetable stock. Boil for 2-5 minutes till thickened. Season with salt and pepper and any other flavors (I used dried Italian seasoning and 1 tsp of dried mustard). Add a few tbsp of heavy cream- taste for seasoning again.
  4. Cheese and panko bread crumbs layer (moistened with olive oil and salt and pepper)

Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes covered with foil and then without foil for 5 minutes to crisp the top

Simplest rajma rice : Kidney beans rice bowl

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Rajma (kidney beans) rice bowl: My simplest rajma recipe. In your pressure cooker (electric or otherwise)- sizzle 3-5 cloves of garlic for a minute or two. Add one cup of soaked kidney beans and 3 cups of vegetable stock (I use better than bouillon) and 1 tsp of red pepper flakes. Cook for 15 min on high pressure. Corn: Add frozen corn in a skillet with some butter – cook covered for about 10 minutes till the corn is slightly charred. Top with salt, lots of pepper and 1 tbsp of butter. Make bowl: rice, rajma, corn and pickle.

Marathi Ukad

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When a maharashtrian child is sick, mother makes ukad – it’s a spicy version of baby food and in the same class of comforting chewy rice flour dishes as mochi and rice balls and kadbu but simpler

Step 1: whisk 1/2 cup rice flour, 1/2 cup sour yogurt and 2 cups of water today

Step 2: to 1 tbsp of oil, sputter 1 tsp mustard seeds, add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1/4 tsp turmeric, 2 pinches asaefoetida, 2-3 curry leaves and 1-2 dried red chilies

Step 3: add rice flour mixture, chopped cilantro and 1 chopped jalapeño

Cover and steam on low heat for 10-15 min

Bibimbap

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A rice dish that is mixed up with veggies and other protein – this dish feels so right to my Indian palate – as does most “vegan Korean” cuisine (I know that’s an oxymoron). But this is how I do bibimbap

Rice: in a non stick pan, heat 2 tbsp butter and 1 team sesame oil, add 1 tbsp garlic and 1 tbsp soy sauce- add cooked rice (made from 1 cup of uncooked rice). Mix well and then leave alone for 4-5 min till the bottom rice grains gets toasted

Carrots: roast with olive oil, salt, pepper at 400 F for 10-15 min

Potato wedges: roast potato wedges with oil, salt, pepper, 1 tbsp of corn flour at 400F for 20-25 min

Onions, pepper and tomatoes: from the shakshuka recipe at brunch. Cook 1 diced onion and 1 diced pepper in oil with 1 tbsp cumin seeds till they get brown. Add a 14 oz can of tomatoes, 1 tsp each cumin and coriander powders and gochujang and 1 tsp soy sauce. Heat for 10 min or so and finish with 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar.

Protein: I used some spiced tofu nuggets that I fried up with a tiny bit of oil

Sauce: 2 tbsp gochujang, 1 tbsp sesame oil, 1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds, 1 tbsp water, 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp minced garlic and 1 tsp rice wine vinegar

Another sauce (for your annoying 10 year old who doesn’t eat spice): 2 tbsp soy sauce,2 tsp toasted sesame seeds, 2 tsp sugar, 1 tsp sesame oil and 1/2 tsp minced garlic

Top with chopped scallions, avocado, a fried egg if you wish and chopped vegan kimchi if you have it (I didn’t today)

Sauce recipes from this websitehttps://mykoreankitchen.com/bibimbap-sauce/

This one makes great leftovers too

Tomato Risotto with fire roasted corn

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I read a recent recipe for risotto with garlic broth, also I had some left over wine, which led to the development of this recipe. Adding flavor to the broth really appealed to me- so I decided to do a spicy tomato garlic broth- something delicious enough to drink as a soup and then make a risotto with it. I added some fire roasted corn – I used frozen (it is November in the mid west) but feel free to grill some corn and remove the kernels or regular boiled corn kernels would work as well but wihtout the smoky flavor that goes so well with the spicy broth. This is a superlative fall dish, the flavors are well developed and harmonious- a dish worthy of a thanksgiving table.

Broth: 1 tbsp of oil, add 7-8 cloves of garlic till they barely start getting color, add 1 small can of tomatoes (14 oz) blitzed through the blender with 4 cups of vegetable stock (I used better than boullion vegetable base). Add 1 tsp of dried thyme and 1 tsp of red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and then simmer. Taste and adjust flavorings if needed- it should be delicious enough to drink as a brothy soup.

Risotto: Meanwhile- to 1 tbsp of olive oil and 1 tbsp of butter- add half a large onion (about 1 cup diced) and some salt and pepper- cook till golden – about 5-6 minutes. Add 1.5 cups of arborio rice unrinsed. Cook in the fat and onions for 2-3 minutes. Add 3/4 cup of white wine, cook for 2-3 minutes till the wine is mostly evaporated. Add ladlefuls of hot broth and stir every 5 mintues. You can add a lot of broth at once- the stirring is unfortunately non-negotiable (the rice sticks to the botton of your pan if you don’t stir) . After 20-25 minutes, you should have risotto. Add the corn and 1 tbsp of butter on top. Season with salt- the broths often have a fair bit of salt, so wait till the end. Add 1/2 cup of parmesan and stir.

 

Sheet Pan Fried Rice

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Without the necessary BTUs- I have found it impossible to achieve the fried rice of my dreams. Wok-kissed, each grain glistening with fat and flavor- the kind of fried rice served in Chinatowns everywhere.

Until I found this recipe! Fried rice in the oven- with high heat from all side- it is a brilliant idea and works like a charm.

Rice: I cooked 1.5 cups of white rice in the rice cooker and then cooled the rice on a baking sheet

Vegetables: I used a blend of frozen peas, corn and beans – defrosted in the microwave

Protein: I used trader joes meatless meatballs- heated in a pan with some oil for 5-10 minutes

Sauce: 1 tbsp gochuang (from whole foods), 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tbsp oil

Technique- mix all- set in oven at 450 F for 10-15 minutes till rice grains get slightly charred on top- add salt if needed

Top with sliced scallions and some chilles in vinegar ( chillies sliced, vingegar, salt, sugar)

This one is a weeknight keeper- total prep time is less than 10 minutes (slice scallion while defrosting stuff). The NYT recipe has fresh veggies in it- which I’m sure will also be delicious.

 

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Green Persian Pilaf

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Persian Pilaf is a delicious  Middle Eastern combination of vermicelli and rice, sometimes with add-ons like garlic or fried onions. The textural contrasts between the rice and the browned nutty vermicelli make this dish sing. I combined the pilaf with raw greens and herbs and raw garlic inspired by a Sarah Copeland recipe for the NYT that I have written about before. The trick is to brown the vermicelli (but not burn it) and make sure the rice and vermicelli is hot before adding the garlic. The steam gently cooks the garlic and the greens for a delicious fresh flavor.

Ingredients:

1 cup basmati rice and 1 cup wheat vermicelli

5 oz spinach shredded in the food processor (pulse it, stop before it becomes a paste)

1 cup parsley and cilantro (I used half and half) also shredded in the food processor (pulsed 5-6 times)

3-4 cloves garlic finely chopped and 1-2 jalapenos finely chopped

2-3 tbsp brown butter or ghee

Methods:

Add 1 tbsp of butter to your rice cooker insert on the stove or on the saute setting if you have it. Brown the vermicelli (less than 2-3 min, this burns very fast). Add rice and 3 cups of water. Press cook on your rice cooker or cook rice on stovetop.

Once rice is done, mix the greens, the ghee and as much garlic and jalapenos as you wish. Salt generously (1 tbsp or so)

Serve with a fried egg or a soft boiled egg.

 

Green Garlic Rice and Eggs

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Raw garlic is spicy and acrid in a very pleasant way. The trick to this dish is mixing the greens, raw garlic and jalapeños with the hot rice directly from the rice cooker. The steaming rice gently cooks the garlic and the greens. The flavors are surprisingly delicate and go extremely well with the unctuousness of the egg.

Inspired by this NYT recipe

Rice: cook 1.5 cups of basmati rice

Greens: finely chop 5 oz of spinach (about 2-3 cups), 1 cup of cilantro and 1 cup of parsley. I used my food processor, the measures are for the unchopped greens

Finely dice 4 cloves of garlic and 2 jalapeños (add some salt to the jalapeños for a half hour before using to draw out the painful bite of the chilli pepper)

Just after the rice is cooked, add 2 tbsp of ghee or butter and all the greens. Start slow with the garlic and jalapeño and add to taste (I used all of it). Squeeze some lemon on the rice.

I served this with a fried egg and roasted carrots (roast at 400 F for 30 min with salt,pepper, olive oil and coriander powder)

My husband said he could eat this rice everyday

A Brothy Rice Bowl

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Part soup, part rice bowl, with a different flavor in each bite, the ingredients make fantastic leftovers. The chickpeas were from dinner the day before. The rest of the meal prep and cooking took less than half hour.

The broth is inspired by a Spanish garlic soup recipe, the bean broth and the garlic and vegetable base make for a very unctuous broth- this is equal to chicken stock in flavor and consistency- very good. The toppings are inspired by the Korean bibimap- I kind of like the idea of everything in one bowl rather than the Indian way of keeping all your food items separate.

This is a no-recipe recipe.

Rice: Mixed brown and black rice

Broth: Heat 1 tbsp olive oil, add 5 large garlic cloves, add 1 cup of soaked red kidney beans (soaked for 24 hours) and add water to your pressure cooker 1-2 inches above the soaked beans. Add 1-2 tsp of better than bouillon vegetable stock base. Pressure cook for 15 minutes on high

Chickpeas: Pressure cook 1 cup of soaked chickpeas wiht 1/2 tsp of baking soda for 15 minutes on high. Drain chickpeas, add tahini sauce (1 clove crushed garlic, 3 tbsp tahini, juice of 2 limes, 4-5 tbsp olive oil, salt), crush slightly with back of spoon. Add some chickpea cooking liquid. The chickpeas need to be very very soft for this dish to work . This is basically whole-chickpea hummus.

Green beans: Heat 1 tbsp oil, add 1 tsp cumin seeds, 1 dried red chilli. Add green beans, add a it of water, cook till tender (around 6-7 minutes). Salt.

In a bowl, add some rice, ladle some broth and beans  add green beans and chickpeas. Enjoy