Tuesday 11 October 2011

Spicy Rice with Pumpkin, Broccoli and Fresh Peas


The chilli in this might not be to the taste of everyone but if you like things milder just add less or no chilli and you'll find it is still very delicious.

Ingredients:
1 onion, diced finely
2 cloves garlic, chopped or crushed
1.5 litres vegetable stock
250g pumpkin, cut into small cubes
3 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp ground Peri Peri (or if you don't have Peri Peri substitute Cayenne Pepper or chilli powder)
1 thing (someone tell me what the measure word for broccoli is??) broccoli, cut into florets
2 cups basmati rice, uncooked
1 tin diced tomatoes
1 cup fresh peas
1 tbsp soy sauce

To Make:
1. Heat a drizzle of oil or 2-3 tbsp water in a wok or large non-stick saucepan (I say nonstick because rice is VERY prone to stick to the bottom and if you don't use nonstick I predict you will be going at your saucepan with some serious steel wool at the end of this cooking process). Add the onion and garlic and sauté til transparent. 
2. Add 2 cups of the vegie stock and the pumpkin and simmer until the pumpkin is soft, about 15 minutes (you may need to cover it). 
3. Then add the rest of the stock, the spices, the tinned tomatoes, the broccoli and the rice. Stir well and bring to a simmer.
4. Simmer, mixing VERY often until the rice has absorbed all the liquid, probably about 15 mins again. At this point test the rice to see if it is cooked. If not, add a couple of more cups of water and simmer again until all the liquid is absorbed. Keep doing this until the rice is cooked.
5. About 5 minutes before the rice is finished cooking add the fresh peas.
6. Once you have got the rice cooked to the right consistency turn off the heat a stir through the soy sauce. Serve immediately (if you leave it for a while you'll end up with a large rice cake stuck in your saucepan, however, if you do this then just add another half a cup of hot stock just before serving and mix well to loosen it up a bit.).

Serves 4 easily.

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