A New (To Me) Way To Make Rice
It was my turn to make dinner the other night. My husband had requested my special guacamole, so I had my starting point. Since we had some whole wheat tortillas, wraps or burritos of some kind seemed inevitable. In addition to the guacamole, I figured I would make a quick bean-y spread (the original Moosewood Cookbook has a great recipe). But somehow that seemed too simple. I was in a cooking mood, after all. Then it came to me - rice! Spanish rice. I hadn't made any in a long, long time. Long enough that I think I used a can of Campbell's tomato soup the last time. And white rice. I may have been in college.
I started looking through my books for a recipe. When I got to Mark Bittman's (aptly named) How To Cook Everything Vegetarian I hit the jackpot. What I love about his book is that he tells you how to do something, gives a basic recipe, and then suggests endless variations. This allows you to come up with your own variations, too, and makes it a great reference book. I highly recommend it. I looked up rice, and there it was: Baked Rice.
Okay, you're saying. What's so exciting about that? Well, I'm glad you asked. Here's why this is my new favorite way to make rice:
1. The rice comes out fluffy, chewy, and not even a little bit mushy.
2. I get to use my cool enamel-coated cast iron pot (my favorite).
3. Baking seems to wake up the spices, rather than making them soggy with the steam of the usual stovetop or rice-cooker methods.
4. Since the heat is coming from all sides at once, everything blends beautifully, instead of having the spices or broth or whatever you might be using end up on top.
5. Did I mention that I get to use my favorite pot?
As a matter of fact, I think I'm going to try baking other grains, too, like quinoa and millet. In fact, you could make a whole casserole-y kind of meal and add cheese on top at the end and get it nice and brown and gooey by taking off the lid and cranking the heat. But I digress.
Here's what I did:
Mark Bittman's Simpler-Than-Pilaf Baked Rice (Jody's Variation)
Ingredients
1 cup long grain brown rice (Basmati if you have it)
2 tablespoons sunflower oil
1/4 teaspoon cayenne (or to taste)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds (I like cumin!)
1 medium tomato, diced (or 3/4 of a can)
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1-1/2 cups water
1 handful chopped fresh cilantro
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Rinse the rice and set aside. (FYI - you should always rinse your grains before you cook them, especially if you buy them in bulk. They tend to get dusty sitting around in those huge silos and bins.)
In an oven-proof pot (like my favorite enamel-coated cast iron one), heat the oil and add the spices, cooking for about a minute or until the cumin seeds begin to release their aroma. Add the rice, tomato, salt and pepper and continue stirring for another minute or so, until the rice is coated. Add the water, bring to a boil, cover and place in the oven for 30 minutes. Remove and let rest for another 15 minutes. Stir in cilantro and serve.
Not only was it a big hit at dinner, it made a great lunch the next day.