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Serves: 4
Prep time: 45 mins
Total time:
Recipe photograph by Rob Streeter
Recipe by Anna Jones
This recipe was inspired by the Persian dish sabzi polo. You can use brown basmati rice instead of white basmati, just top with extra water and cook for 15-20 minutes more
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Mains Vegetarian Gluten-free Rice Middle Eastern Beans Ramadan
Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
486Kcal
Fat
22gr
Saturates
3gr
Carbs
55gr
Sugars
9gr
Protein
15gr
Salt
1gr
Anna Jones
Award-winning food writer Anna Jones is widely credited with introducing Britain to more modern vegetarian dishes.
See more of Anna Jones’s recipes
Anna Jones
Award-winning food writer Anna Jones is widely credited with introducing Britain to more modern vegetarian dishes.
See more of Anna Jones’s recipes
Rate this recipe
Ingredients
- 200g basmati rice
- 200g shelled broad beans, fresh or frozen
- 50g cashew nuts, roughly chopped
- 50g pistachio nuts, roughly chopped
- 25g sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 shallots, peeled and finely sliced
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- a few sprigs each of parsley, dill, mint and coriander
- a pinch of saffron
- 50g barberries*, dried sour cherries or raisins
- about 1 tsp flaked sea salt
- juice of 1 lemon
- natural or coconut yogurt to serve, optional
Step by step
- Soak the rice in a bowl of warm water for 15 minutes. If using frozen broad beans, put them into a bowl, cover in boiling water and leave to sit for a few minutes, then drain and pop out of their skins.
- Meanwhile, warm a large frying pan (one with a lid) over a medium heat and toast the nuts and seeds without oil. Toast, shaking the pan every so often, until they’re golden and fragrant. Tip into a bowl and put the pan back on the heat.
- Add the oil to the pan, then the sliced shallots, turmeric and cinnamon. Fry for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the shallots have completely softened and the spices have released their aromatic oils.
- Pick the leaves from the stems of the herbs and chop the stems finely, then add these to the pan of shallots and cook for a couple of minutes. Put the leaves in a bowl and leave to one side for later.
- Drain the rice in a sieve and run under the tap until the water runs clear. Add the rice to the pan and toast, stirring for a couple of minutes until it crackles and pops. Keep the rice moving to distribute the heat evenly so it doesn’t burn.
- Add the broad beans, saffron and dried fruit. Add a generous amount of salt – I use about a teaspoon. You’re not cooking the rice in stock which adds saltiness, so be brave with the salt as it will help the rice take on flavour from the spices.
- Cover the rice with just enough boiling water to coat (about 400-500ml, depending on the size of your pan). Put the lid on, turn the heat to its highest setting and follow this method: high cook, low cook, no cook. Cook for 5 minutes on a high heat, then turn it down to the lowest heat and cook for 10 minutes, then turn the heat off and, without peeking, leave the lid on for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, roughly chop the herb leaves, then stir them through the rice with the lemon juice and toasted nuts and seeds. Serve immediately and include yogurt for spooning over if you like.
Tip
*Dried barberries are a tart little fruit frequently used in Persian cuisine. Buy online at souschef.co.uk, £3.75 for 75g.
