My pan of chicken stock has found its way into all sorts of things this week, from an egg drop soup to a stocky pasta (pan of stock, lasagne sheets, lots of lemon and Parmesan) and a risotto with dried mushrooms.
This recipe, where you’ll toast basmati in butter and then cook it in the stock, is so delicate and comforting. You might want a bowl of seasoned yoghurt alongside the rice and carrots, and if you have a hankering for some meat with it, pop a few lamb cutlets under the grill.
Timings
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 500g carrots
- Olive oil
- 2 tsp honey
- 1 tsp harissa
- 2 tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- 1 tbsp butter
- 300g basmati rice
- 800ml hot chicken stock
- 4 plump dates, roughly torn
- 100g feta, crumbled
- A small bunch of dill, chopped
- A pinch of sumac
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180C/gas 4.
- Take the root end off the carrots and cut them lengthways – depending on how chunky they are, either halve them or quarter them. You want them relatively skinny. Toss in a little oil and salt. Tumble onto a baking tray and roast for 25 minutes.
- While they’re roasting, mix the honey and harissa. Spoon over the carrots after 25 minutes, toss and sprinkle over the cumin seeds and allspice. Roast for another 10 minutes.
- While the carrots are cooking, get the rice on. Wash the rice in a sieve. Set a large pan with a lid over a medium heat with the butter. When melted, toast the rice in the butter for a minute. Pour over the hot stock and a big pinch of salt. Turn the heat right down, cover and cook for 15 minutes. Then turn the heat off, cover the pan with a clean tea towel and pop the lid back on. Leave for five minutes.
- To serve, tumble the rice onto a large warm serving dish. Top with the carrots, and finish with the dates, crumbled feta and dill. Finally, sprinkle a little sumac over everything.