This is a Mughal influenced dish kind of like a kichadi and there are several variations. This is my take and is more of a rice salad than a kichadi. It is really easy to put together and the perfect one pot dish. The meaning of qabooli means acceptable or palatable and this dish certainly lives up to that expectation. Another easy and tasty one pot dish!
INGREDIENTS
250g Basmati rice
400g tinned brown lentils, drained and rinsed well
400g tinned Beluga lentils, drained and rinsed well
50g shallots, finely diced
1 medium sized red onion, finely diced
3 tablespoons sunflower oil
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
2 teaspoons garam masala
30g currants
1 red chilli finely sliced
120g of spinach, finely chopped
100g tomato, deseeded and diced
200g frozen peas, thawed
2 tablespoons fresh coriander leaves, chopped
2 tablespoons of mint leaves, chopped
Juice of 1 large lemon
Freshly ground black pepper
Salt to taste
METHOD
Heat the oil in a wide, non-stick sauté pan. Add the cumin seeds and when they start crackling, toss in the shallots, garam masala, currants and rice. Fry well to ensure that the rice is coated with the spiced oil. Season with salt and pour 450ml water. Let the water come up to the boil, reduce the heat to a minimum, cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes until all water is absorbed and rice cooked.
At the end of the cooking time, stir in the peas and lentils and let it warm through (for no more than a minute). Remove from heat and mix in the red onion, spinach, tomato, chilli and the herbs.
Grind the black pepper over and squeeze the lemon juice. Give it a good stir and taste to adjust seasoning to your liking. Serve at room temperature.
Serves 4