Chickpea and wild rice pilaf

Depending on the type, it is not always as easy to get dry rice, with the separate grains that is best for a pilaf with brown rice, but I much prefer it to white. However, if you use brown basmati rice, you will get perfect results.

 

In this recipe, I use 30% wild rice. I’m sure you could use 100%, but suspect that it would be a little overpowering, to say nothing of being wildly extravagant. This pilaf usually seems popular and to me, has an "authentic" taste (although I doubt it has!). Don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients: it’s actually very straightforward to make and even good enough for entertaining!

 

Serves 2

 

Ingredients

 

8 dried apricots

6 dates

2 tbsp raisins

1 onion

2 garlic cloves

1/2 cup brown (basmati) rice

1/4 cup wild rice

6 cardamom pods

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp cinnamon/1 ½ cups water

3 tbsp pine nuts

1/4 cup boiling water

1 red pepper, chopped

1/2 tsp dried mint

1/2 cup chickpeas, soaked and cooked

salt and pepper

 

Method:

• Slice the apricots and chop the dates. Put them in a bowl with the raisins and pour over 1/4 cup boiling water. This will make them plump up.
• Slice the onion and then cut the slices in half; chop the garlic.
• Put them into a saucepan, together with the rice, seeds from the cardamom pods, cumin, coriander and cinnamon.
• Pour in the water. (If your lid doesn’t fit very well, add an extra 1/2 cup.)/Bring to the boil and then turn down the heat; leave it simmering for 40 minutes. Toast the pine nuts in a dry frying pan, under a grill, or on a tray in the oven. Keep an eye on them : they burn very easily.
• When the rice is almost cooked, add the dried fruit and any liquid, along with the red pepper, mint and drained chickpeas. If it all looks too dry, add a little more water.
• Cook until everything is heated through and the flavours have combined.
• Serve sprinkled with the pine nuts.

Variations:

• Instead of pine nuts, you could use either chopped cashews or almonds. If you can’t afford any of them, the pilaf will still taste fine.
• If you can lay hands on a bunch of flat-leaved parsley, add a generous amount of this, roughly chopped, right at the end of the cooking time. Don’t be tempted to substitute fresh coriander – it will tend to overpower the rather delicate flavour of this pilaf.
• Use the chickpeas to make falafel (either the 'real way', with ground soaked chickpeas, or the phoney way, with cooked ones) and serve these on top of the pilaf, perhaps with some yoghurt or tahini sauce.

You will find many more rice recipes here