Vegetable Biryani
This dish makes a stunning entry to any table. The steps are not hard, but because it uses quite a few baking sheets, pots, and pans, as well as a food processor, it might be best left as a weekend treat. (A lot of dishes to clean!) Don't be deterred though, it is delicious! Plus, did I mention it is impressive looking?.I adapted this recipe from Meera Sodha's Fresh India. Her recipe used sweet potato and beet only. I added green beans because I was thinking of a good friend, Ensie, who is Persian and cooks these fabulous Persian rice dishes. One of them, my favorite, has loads of green beans in them. You can skip it if it isn't green bean season and just substitute with some other seasonal vegetable/root - say kabocha squash in the fall or turnips in winter.
2 cups Basmati Rice
1 lb sweet potato (purple is pretty) or 1 lb beet
1 lb green beans
1 lb tomatoes (ripe and sweet)
2 cups cooked chickpeas
8 oz paneer or, preferably, Halloumi Cheese (Trader Joe's sells a good one).
Vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)
1 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 1/4 tsp garam masala
2 tbs lemon juice
2 large onions, finely sliced
optional: 2 shallots, sliced
1 egg
1 ready rolled puff pastry
1 x 400 ml can of coconut milk
4 oz of coriander, roughly chopped
6 cloves of garlic
2" ginger, peeled
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbs lemon juice
optional: if not feeding children or if you like your food hot spicy, add a green jalapeño.
You will need an oven safe casserole dish (or pot) about 11 inches across and 3.5 inches deep.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line two baking sheets with foil. Oil lightly.
Wash the rice in a few changes of water. Let soak if your rice is very old.
Cut the sweet potato or beets into 1/2 inch by 1 inch chunks. Place them on a baking tray. Cut the tomatoes into wedges (6 to 8 per tomato, depending on the size of the tomato. Don't make them too small, they will reduce). Cut the paneer/halloumi cheese into cubes. Place the tomatoes, chickpeas and paneer/halloumi cheese on the second tray.
Put 8 tbs of oil into small bowl. Add 1 3/4 tsp salt, the cayenne pepper, cumin, garam masala and lemon juice. Mix well and spoon over the vegetables, adding more to the tomato-chick pea-paneer/halloumi tray. Toss with hands and make sure everything is coated. Put tray with the cheese on top shelf and the beet/potato on the lower shelf in the oven. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, check and stir after 20.
While waiting for the vegetables to roast, add 5 tbs of oil to a frying pan and turn on heat to medium. When hot, add the onions (and shallots, if using) and fry till the mixture is caramelized (patience needed here - slow heat and stirring helps). Turn off heat when done.
Wash and trim the green beans, cut into 1.5" lengths (or thereabout). Bring a medium pot of water to boil (or use the larger pot we will use to cook rice and fill part way). When it comes to boil, throw in the beans and boil for five minutes. Drain and give it rinse of cold water to stop the cooking process.
Fill a large pot and fill to the top, leaving 2 inches. Add a tablespoon of salt or so. Bring to boil and then add the rice (drain soaking water first if you decided to soak the rice). Boil for five to six minutes. When the timer goes off, drain the rice into a colander.
While waiting for big pot of water to boil, place all the ingredients for the coconut and coriander sauce into a blender and blitz till you have a sauce of fine consistency. Pour it into a frying pan/pot and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Stir every now and then. When done, take off heat.
Now you are ready to layer your biryani. Start out by putting half o f the chickpea-tomato-paneer/halloumi mixture into the bottom of you casserole dish. Follow with a quarter of the rice and a quarter of the onion mix. Then add half of the coconut and coriander sauce and half of the beet/potato and green bean. Then add rice, then the rest of the chick peas-tomato-paneer/halloumi mixture, rice, potato/green bean, sauce. You just have to make sure you finish with a final layer of rice and onions.
Put puff pastry over your casserole dish. Working quickly, press down around the edges of the pot and brush with beaten egg (don't use all - this is just for glaze. You don't want to make it soggy).
Bake in 400 oven for 25 minutes. Remove from oven carefully and serve!
Minus the puff pastry that doesn't store well (no chance of leftover for that anyways), the rice tastes really yummy.
2 cups Basmati Rice
1 lb sweet potato (purple is pretty) or 1 lb beet
1 lb green beans
1 lb tomatoes (ripe and sweet)
2 cups cooked chickpeas
8 oz paneer or, preferably, Halloumi Cheese (Trader Joe's sells a good one).
Vegetable oil (I used avocado oil)
1 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
2 1/4 tsp garam masala
2 tbs lemon juice
2 large onions, finely sliced
optional: 2 shallots, sliced
1 egg
1 ready rolled puff pastry
1 x 400 ml can of coconut milk
4 oz of coriander, roughly chopped
6 cloves of garlic
2" ginger, peeled
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbs lemon juice
optional: if not feeding children or if you like your food hot spicy, add a green jalapeño.
You will need an oven safe casserole dish (or pot) about 11 inches across and 3.5 inches deep.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line two baking sheets with foil. Oil lightly.
Wash the rice in a few changes of water. Let soak if your rice is very old.
Cut the sweet potato or beets into 1/2 inch by 1 inch chunks. Place them on a baking tray. Cut the tomatoes into wedges (6 to 8 per tomato, depending on the size of the tomato. Don't make them too small, they will reduce). Cut the paneer/halloumi cheese into cubes. Place the tomatoes, chickpeas and paneer/halloumi cheese on the second tray.
Put 8 tbs of oil into small bowl. Add 1 3/4 tsp salt, the cayenne pepper, cumin, garam masala and lemon juice. Mix well and spoon over the vegetables, adding more to the tomato-chick pea-paneer/halloumi tray. Toss with hands and make sure everything is coated. Put tray with the cheese on top shelf and the beet/potato on the lower shelf in the oven. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, check and stir after 20.
While waiting for the vegetables to roast, add 5 tbs of oil to a frying pan and turn on heat to medium. When hot, add the onions (and shallots, if using) and fry till the mixture is caramelized (patience needed here - slow heat and stirring helps). Turn off heat when done.
Wash and trim the green beans, cut into 1.5" lengths (or thereabout). Bring a medium pot of water to boil (or use the larger pot we will use to cook rice and fill part way). When it comes to boil, throw in the beans and boil for five minutes. Drain and give it rinse of cold water to stop the cooking process.
Fill a large pot and fill to the top, leaving 2 inches. Add a tablespoon of salt or so. Bring to boil and then add the rice (drain soaking water first if you decided to soak the rice). Boil for five to six minutes. When the timer goes off, drain the rice into a colander.
While waiting for big pot of water to boil, place all the ingredients for the coconut and coriander sauce into a blender and blitz till you have a sauce of fine consistency. Pour it into a frying pan/pot and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Stir every now and then. When done, take off heat.
Now you are ready to layer your biryani. Start out by putting half o f the chickpea-tomato-paneer/halloumi mixture into the bottom of you casserole dish. Follow with a quarter of the rice and a quarter of the onion mix. Then add half of the coconut and coriander sauce and half of the beet/potato and green bean. Then add rice, then the rest of the chick peas-tomato-paneer/halloumi mixture, rice, potato/green bean, sauce. You just have to make sure you finish with a final layer of rice and onions.
Put puff pastry over your casserole dish. Working quickly, press down around the edges of the pot and brush with beaten egg (don't use all - this is just for glaze. You don't want to make it soggy).
Bake in 400 oven for 25 minutes. Remove from oven carefully and serve!
Minus the puff pastry that doesn't store well (no chance of leftover for that anyways), the rice tastes really yummy.
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