Spiced cauliflower rice pie
Full of colour and flavour, this dish is kind of like a veggie curry, but turned out into the most impressive rice cake. You’ve got a crunchy, golden outside that contrasts beautifully with the delicate, fluffy rice and tender cauliflower florets inside.
Ingredients
- 2 onions
- olive oil
- 1 head of cauliflower , (800g)
- 3 tablespoons tikka curry paste
- 1 mug of basmati rice , (300g)
- 3 fresh mixed-colour chillies
- 6 uncooked poppadoms
- 1 bunch of coriander , (30g)
- 6 tablespoons natural yoghurt
- extra virgin olive oil
How to make it
Peel and finely chop the onions, place in a 28cm non-stick frying pan on a medium heat with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and a splash of water, and cook for 10 minutes, or until golden, stirring regularly. Cut the cauliflower into 2cm florets, finely slicing the stalk and any nice leaves. Stir into the pan with the curry paste and cook for 5 minutes. Pour in 1 mug of rice and 2 mugs of boiling kettle water (600ml). Prick and add the whole chillies, then roughly snap in the poppadoms and tear in most of the coriander leaves. Stir well, season with sea salt and black pepper, cover, and cook for 15 minutes on a medium-low heat.
After this time, the rice will have absorbed all the liquid. Uncover the pan, drizzle 3 tablespoons of oil around the edge and press down with a masher. Reduce to a low heat and cook for 5 more minutes to get a super-golden, thin crispy crust. Rest, covered, for 10 minutes, then loosen the edges with a spatula. Carefully turn the whole thing out on to a board or platter, then pick over the remaining coriander leaves. Season the yoghurt with black pepper, drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and serve on the side.
Tips
EASY SWAPS
– Swap in any other veg as long as it adds up to 800g, zucchini cut into 1cm chunks works well, or throw in a handful of frozen peas.
– A couple of chicken thighs chopped into 2cm chunks and added at the beginning of cooking would also be delicious.