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Tuesday, March 06, 2007

Cumin Rice with Eggplant and Peas

Well, it may not be the most beautiful dish in the world, but my whole family liked this cumin-filled rice, adapted from a recipe by Deborah Madison. It even had E. eating eggplant without even realizing it!

It's based on the recipe "Cumin Rice with Eggplant and Peppers" in The Savory Way. Since it's not a vegan book, Madison suggests adding cheese, but I opted to use peas instead. (Hey, at least it rhymes!) The seasonings are mostly the same, but I removed the oil and butter, omitted a red or yellow pepper that I did not have, and used an undrained can of diced tomatoes instead of fresh. The results were delicious. My only regret is that I did not wait until it came out of the oven to add the peas--after 50 minutes of baking, they're not very green anymore. Oh well. They were still tender and tasty, but I'm instructing you to add them at the end. The heat from the rice will cook them enough and they'll retain more of their spring-like taste and color.

Cumin Rice

Cumin Rice with Eggplant and Peas
(click for printer-friendly version)

1 1/2 cups brown rice
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium onion, diced
1 green, yellow, or red bell pepper, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes (fired roasted would be nice)
4 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne or red chilli pepper
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 cups water
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen (thawed) green peas

Preheat oven to 375 F. Put the rice in a bowl and cover it with water. Set it aside to soak while you cook the vegetables.

Lightly spray a large non-stick skillet with oil or cooking spray. Add the eggplant and onion, salt them lightly, and cook, covered, over medium-high heat, stirring often. When the eggplant is soft but not mushy (about 5 minutes) add the peppers, tomatoes, seasonings, parsley, and more salt to taste. Combine well. Drain the water from the rice and add the rice to the pan along with 3 cups water. Increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.

When it reaches a boil, transfer it into a large baking dish. (Madison suggests a large earthenware gratin dish, but I used a deep lasagna dish.) Place a piece of parchment paper over the rice and then cover tightly with foil. Bake until the rice is tender, about 50-55 minutes. Stir in the peas and allow the dish to set for 5 minutes before serving.

Makes 4-6 servings. 1/6th of the recipe provides: 254 Calories (kcal); 2g Total Fat; (7% calories from fat); 8g Protein; 53g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 59mg Sodium; 6g Fiber

Suggested accompaniment: Asparagus is back in season, so I served this with a whole lot of simple roasted asparagus. Preheat the oven to 400F. Place trimmed asparagus in a large, oiled baking dish and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Roast, stirring every 5 minutes, for 10-15 minutes, until asparagus are just starting to brown. Heaven!

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18 Comments:

Blogger Linda said...

this look so hearty and perfect for this FREEZING day! we have been soo teased with the weather lately. hearty soups or fruit salad... i can't make up my mind anymore with this weather!

love the photo. the colors really pop! makes me want to eat it right out of that huge pan!

1:52 PM, March 06, 2007  
Blogger Amy said...

Hi Susan, Just wanted to say thank you SO MUCH for all your work on this site, the recipes and pretty pictures, printer friendly versions, and the nutrition info. I've already made a few recipes which have been great and this eggplant one looks good too. Seems like eggplants are cheap lately, too. Again, thank you.

2:31 PM, March 06, 2007  
Anonymous Scott Hughes said...

I'm a fan of rice, so I'm going to try this dish. Thanks!

You might like the Vegan Forums.

3:50 PM, March 06, 2007  
Blogger Catherine said...

I bet this is wonderful. You are the eggplant queen!

4:03 PM, March 06, 2007  
Blogger Sera said...

I've been making this recipe (without even knowing it!) except I use spaghetti squash instead of rice. Yum! :)

10:09 PM, March 06, 2007  
Blogger Pille said...

I bought a large bag of cumin recently, only realising afterwards, that I had a full jar at home already:) So any recipes using this potently fragrant spice are much appreciated at the moment:)

1:13 AM, March 07, 2007  
Blogger Melody said...

Yum! I LOVE eggplant so much and I'm sure that both the cooking methods make it so delicious and tender.. It kind of reminds me of the jolof rice I make.. although, I don't bake that.

I am going to make your carrot muffins soon and when I do, I'll let you know.. I'm sure they are delicious.

11:24 AM, March 07, 2007  
Anonymous christine said...

Hi Susan!! I just have to let you know how much I love your blog. The recipes, the pictures, the commentary -- it's all great! I love to cook but I'm in college and living in a dorm, so it can be pretty difficult to use our "kitchen."
That doesn't keep me from adoring your site, though.

It's midterm time and I've had a fairly stressful week, so this weekend I'm going to relax by making some of your recipes; this one will definitely be on the list. I love eggplant (and asparagus); thank you so much for everything, I love to check your site with hopes of a new post!

ps, great new pic at the top of your blog

4:37 PM, March 07, 2007  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Like Christine (above), I'm a college student and adore your site. My NYC kitchen isn't very big, but I've made several of your recipes for me and my suitemates (none of whom are vegan), and they love them! Spring break next week = finishing my senior thesis and cooking lots of your recipes! Thanks, Susan!

-Evan

PS New pic and "take a bite" are terrific.

5:27 PM, March 07, 2007  
Blogger scottishvegan said...

Maybe it isn't the most beautiful dish in the world, but as usual you manage to make it look amazing and delicious!

5:58 PM, March 07, 2007  
Blogger maybepigscanfly said...

I was wondering when the next eggplant recipe was going to come around...haha. I just adore eggplant, and am excited to try out this recipe. I love how you always find ways to sneak E. into eating eggplant (I think that she actually likes it, but just doesn't want to admit it). As always I'm enjoying your amazing blog.

Teresa
... I made the carrot spice muffins this weekend and will blog about them soon!

6:33 PM, March 07, 2007  
Anonymous Kim said...

I don't care if it's not the most beautiful dish in the world, it still looks very appetizing! I'm also a sucker for rice casserole types of dishes. They are so easy to just throw together and the results are always satisfying! I can't wait to make this one. Cumin is fantastic in rice. Thanks for sharing!

6:36 PM, March 07, 2007  
Blogger bazu said...

I've been on quite the eggplant bender myself lately. I think we both love them obsessively!

I made your carrot muffins the other day, and they are so good and moist. They won't last long around here!

10:32 PM, March 07, 2007  
Anonymous Frances said...

Hey, I love the new banner!

12:55 AM, March 08, 2007  
Blogger tamara said...

wow, this is one of my favorites :)

11:02 AM, March 09, 2007  
Blogger BeaDreams said...

Yummmmy

4:21 PM, March 15, 2007  
Anonymous Bathsheba said...

I made this tonight and it was delicious. I'm forcing myself to honour the "6 portion" suggestion- it helps that it's so satisfying. Very easy too. I used red capsicum (Australian for "peppers") because i was thinking i might enjoy the sweetness and colour. But the peas give enough of that, so next time i might try it with green capsicum, as you do in your photo. -thanks

3:35 AM, March 17, 2007  
Anonymous Mary Frances said...

I can always count on you for eggplant recipes! We really enjoyed this - I had the munchies later that evening and ended up finishing off all of the leftovers.

As I was reading thru the recipe later I realized that you used uncooked rice. In my hurry (probably due do screaming infant), I didn't read the instructions and used leftover brown rice from the night before. It worked really well and cut the baking time down to about 15 minutes.

Mary Frances

10:32 PM, June 26, 2007  

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