Fragrant Chickpea Rice Pilaf
A very simple, delicately fragranced chickpea rice that is simple to make with minimal prep - no chopping! The addition of herbs, sultanas and crunchy pieces of shallots make this really special. I love this dish so much I can eat it plain - it certainly has plenty of flavour. It only needs to be accompanied with a simple piece of grilled fish or roasted vegetables and you have yourself a complete, satisfying, wonderful meal.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Basmati rice
- 1 cup uncooked basmati rice (or long grain or wild rice)
- 1 1/2 cups water (Note 2)
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
Spiced chickpeas
- 1 1/2 tins (21 oz / 600g) chickpeas , drained, but still wet
- 1/4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp garam masala (Note 1 for substitutions)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup parsley leaves
Add-ins
- 1/4 cup coriander / cilantro leaves
- 1/4 cup sultanas or currents
- Black pepper
- 1/2 cup fried shallots , store bought (Note 3)
Instructions
- Steam rice - Combine rice, water and 1/2 tsp salt in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil (without the lid), then put the lid on and immediately turn the heat down to medium low (or low, for large burners). Simmer with the lid on for 12 minutes or until the water is absorbed. No stirring, no peeking! Remove from the heat (lid still on) and let it rest for 10 minutes - it will absorb the remaining water.
- Spiced chickpeas - While rice is cooking, combine chickpeas, 1/4 tsp salt, cumin and garam masala in a bowl, toss to coat. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in large pan over high heat, add the chick peas and shake the pan every now and then for 1 minute. Alternatively, you can roast them in the oven at 350F/180C for 5 minutes. Set aside - you can leave them in the pan if you want.
- Toss - After the rice has rested, combine with the chickpeas, parsley, coriander and sultanas, and a grind of black pepper. Some of the spice on the chickpeas will come off and disperse throughout the rice - this is supposed to happen. Adjust salt if necessary.
- Lastly, toss through the crispy shallots. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
1. You can substitute the garam masala with curry powder, or as a last resort, coriander + all spice.
2. Always refer to the rice package instructions for exact water-rice ratios. 1 cup of rice to 1 1/2 cups of water is generally the rule of thumb, but different brands and different types of rices can differ.
3. Fried shallots are store bought and found in the asian section of supermarkets. The salty, crunchy, oily bits are what takes this dish to the next level. Store bought fried shallots are so tasty and it saves so much time (and oil…) rather than frying your own onion.