Basmati & Wild Rice with Chickpeas, Herbs & Fried Onions

The latest from Jerusalem, the best cookbook I've never owned.

I have problems cooking rice. Seems so simple “follow package directions”. Never fails, it’s usually undercooked and burning to the bottom of the pan before it’s done…just a whisper of a flame and I still end up with scorched rice.
Add more water and I end up with clumpy moist rice. Not good either. Then I came across Jamie Oliver’s method of boiling, draining & steaming rice, now this is how I cook all my grains. This requires a little more attention & the use of a couple of tools but it results in more control and a grain that ideally suits it's final purpose.


The Jamie Oliver Method of cooking white rice:


Get a large pot of salted water boiling.
Add 1 1/2 cups of well-rinsed rice (in a mesh strainer-run it under cold water for about a minute-until the water runs clear)_
when the rice starts dancing around, boil for 5 minutes** from that point on.
Strain the rice in a colander and cover with aluminum foil, pressing it down onto the surface of the rice. Add an inch of water back into your original pot and bring that back to a boil.
Reduce the heat to a simmer and place your colander of foil-covered rice back into the pot and place the pot cover back on as well.
Let it simmer and steam for 10** minutes.


**These times will vary depending on the grain-white rice being the quickest cook and farro taking the longest. At the first point, you're looking for the grain to be chewy but still slightly underdone. The grain is finished when you think it's finished-the simmer & steam time can take up to 30 minutes depending on the grain. Taste it every 10 minutes & check that the water hasn't boiled away.


This dish has two different types of rice which require preparation separately. You can choose to go with one type if you want but what works here is the two different textures that are going on. Basmati is lighter & fluffier while the wild rice is firmer.

As I sit here and eat this I’m struck by two things: It’s beautiful to look at, I hope my pictures do it justice. The rice is yellowed from the curry and flecked with loads of fresh bright green herbs and the deep red from the dried cranberries and finally the crispy brown of the fried onions. Ottolenghi loves his fried onions for good reason. They add a level of crispiness and savory complexity. I added a bunch of chives I’d just trimmed the flower off. They were teetering on the edge of the compost bin.

Basmati & Wild Rice with Chickpeas, Herbs & Fried Onions

adapted from Jerusalem the Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi & Sami Tamimi

⅓ cup wild rice

2 ½ tablespoons olive oil

2 ¼ cups basmati rice
boiling water
2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1½ teaspoons curry powder
1 ½ cups cooked and drained chickpeas (canned are good)
¾ cup sunflower oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 ½ teaspoon all-purpose flour
⅔ cup currants

2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley

1 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 tablespoons chopped dill
I added about 2 tablespoons fresh chives-just what I had on hand and not be wasteful=)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

Rinse the wild rice in a mesh strainer and place in small sauce pan. Fill with water and bring to a boil. Continue to boil until the rice is chewy then transfer to a mesh strainer or small colander and steam it (as directed above) to it's finish.

To cook the basmati rice, pour 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into a medium saucepan with a tightly fitting lid and place over high heat. Add the rice and ¼ teaspoon salt and stir as you warm up the rice. Carefully add the boiling water filling the saucepan about 3/4 full, once the rice is boiling and dancing around, continue to boil for 5 minutes, then transfer into a colander and simmer & steam to it's finish. Turn off the heat, remove the foil and place a clean tea towel over the pot and place the lid back on. Let it sit for 10 minutes.

While the rice is cooking, prepare the chickpeas. Heat the remaining 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil in a small saucepan over high heat. Add the cumin seeds and curry powder. Wait for a couple of seconds, and then add the chickpeas and ¼ teaspoon salt; make sure you do this quickly or the spices may burn in the oil. Stir over the heat for a minute or two, just heat the chickpeas then transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Wipe the saucepan clean, pour in the sunflower oil, and place over high heat. Make sure the oil is hot by throwing a small piece of onion; it should sizzle vigorously. Use your hands to mix the onion with the flour to coat it slightly. Take some of the onion and carefully (it may split) place it in the oil. Fry for 2 to 3 minutes, until golden brown, then transfer to paper towels to drain and sprinkle with salt. Repeat in batches until all the onion is fried.
Finally, add both types of rice to the chickpeas and then add the currants, herbs, and fried onion. Stir, taste and add salt and pepper as you like. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This makes a lot of rice. Perfect for leftovers and cookin’ up for a morning fried rice.

This is really, really good.

brown rice with toasted chickpeas and fried onions

brown rice with toasted chickpeas and fried onions, originally uploaded by riptideredsf.

I get a lot of satisfaction from multi-tasking, especially if it doesn't feel like it. Like riding my bike to work. I get my daily work out whilst I commute. There's only one other thing that makes me feel even more accomplished and smug: cooking in my sleep. I ALWAYS cook beans overnight in the slow cooker. It always used to be black beans I'd cook with the most frequency but I've been on a chickpea bender of late. They are just sooooo freakin' good. I cook them in chicken bouillon seasoned water with either a big sprig of thyme or rosemary. In the wee hours of the morning, I'm momentarily disoriented by the amazing aromas wafting through the room, wondering which evil neighbor tortures me with their enticing feats of cookery. I love that!

This  is a riff on a recipe I found in Jerusalem, the new and brilliant cookbook from London Chefs/Restauranteurs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi.

I usually cook off a big pot of rice on Sunday to have on hand through out the week so I can make fried rice--my favorite and off-the-hook delish, refrigerator rescue.

This is where that jar of caramelized onions comes in handy-- you know, that one you made yesterday.

Toasted breadcrumbs are another great make-ahead.

Ottolenghi uses a combination of basmati and wild rice (much more attractive and I'm thinkin' much more flavorful in the finished dish) but I didn't have any on hand. He also finishes with fresh dill and oregano-didn't have any of that either, so I used dry. I truly believe that my sub-par substitions were off-set by the brilliance of the caramelized onions-the link below will take you to my method of preparation. You're going to want to make these onions ahead of time, in fact everything here can be made ahead and then tossed together and warmed in the oven or tossed in a skillet to heat everything through.

Brown Rice with Toasted Chickpeas and Fried Onions
adapted from Jerusalem

2 cups of cooked rice

Caramelized Onions
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 large onions, sliced about 1/4 inch thick
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Toasted Chickpeas
2 cups of cooked or canned chickpeas
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 tablespoon za'atar
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
a few grinds of pepper

Toasted bread crumbs
4-5 slices of day old bread
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper-about 4 turns of the grinder
2 teaspoons za'atar

Fried Onions
1 medium onion sliced thinly
2 teaspoons flour
2/3 cup vegetable oil

2 cups cooked rice

1 tablespoons chopped flat leaf Italian parsley

Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees.

Tear up the bread and pulse in the food processor 4-5 times until the largest crumbs are about the size of a large crouton. Transfer to a medium sized bowl and drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat, sprinkle the salt all over, grind the pepper all over and sprinkle the za'atar all over and toss. spread the crumbs onto a large baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes, toss and redistribute the crumbs on the baking sheet and bake for another 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the crumbs cool on the sheet pan. Transfer the crumbs into a bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl, toss the cooked chickpeas with olive oil, salt, za'atar, cumin, paprika and pepper then spread them out on a large sheet pan, being careful not to crowd them or else they'll steam and not crisp well. Bake for 10 minutes, shake the baking sheet to move the chickpeas around a bit and bake for 10 more minutes, until they're slightly crispy. Remove from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet.

In a medium bowl, toss in your sliced onions and sprinkle flour over top and toss lightly. Heat up the oil in a medium sauce pan over high heat. Drop a piece of the onion in. It should sizzle and bubble vigorously. Working in batches cook the onion until it browns, 3-4 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate and sprinkle with salt.

In a large bowl, add the warm rice, chickpeas, caramelized onions and fried onions. Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of za'atar over the surface and mix in. The za'atar can also be added after the rice is served.

Top with toasted breadcrumbs.

Hummus

Hummus, originally uploaded by riptideredsf.

All I can say is "Wow!"

This "ethereally smooth hummus"came my way via Smitten Kitchen who got it from Ottolenghi's new cookbook Jerusalem, which I just happen to have in my possession for the next couple of weeks thanks to my local library. Double Wow! This hummus is so amazingly smooth and flavorful and could not be more simple. Well, I lie. It could be more simple. Smittens key to it's ethereal smoothness is to peel the cooked chickpeas. Crazy? perhaps. Obsessive? no doubt, but it's seriously worth the added effort and it's a fine task to occupy my hands whilst watching Downton Abbey. I pack it in my lunch and make my co-workers dizzy with envy. Sometimes I share. They like that.

My only adaption is how I prepare the dry beans. I cooked the beans the way I always cook dry beans: in a low, slow-cooker overnight in 4 times their volume of water seasoned with vegetarian fake chicken seasoning and a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme. I pick over and rinse the dried beans but I don't soak them. I've never had a problem with that.

I had a massive stack of whole grain tortillas, flecked with all sorts of healthy bits, in the freezer from the time I tagged along with Sheena to Costco months back. Those tortillas-as it turned out-didn't really gel with my breakfast burrito plan. They were like cardboard, but with all due kitchen diligence, they turned out the perfect cracker. I brushed them with a little olive oil and sprinkled on some salt and za'atar (a middle eastern herb blend of marjoram, oregano, thyme, sesame seeds, salt and sometimes dried sumac), and baked them on a baking sheet for 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

This goes in the keeper file.