After my post on brown rice, Shimshonit left a comment and then wrote me an email with two recipes for brown rice. Since they look so great, I have decided to share them in my wednesday recipe post.
Brown Rice Pilaf
(some suggestions of ingredients for creating a rice pilaf suited to any entree)
- Brown rice or rice blend, including red or Canadian wild rice
- Sauteed vegetables: onion, garlic, carrot, colored pepper, celery, zucchini, chopped chard, kohlrabi
- Vegetables: finely chopped sun-dried tomato, cucumber
- Toasted nuts: pine nuts, cashews, peanuts, pecans
- Oils: olive, sesame (after cooking)
- Herbs: parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage, mint, chives
- Spices: sauteed curry spices, garam masala, cinnamon, seasoned salt, black pepper, paprika, saffron
- Dried fruit: apricots, cranberries, raisins, figs
Whole-grain Wheat Berries with Sauteed Onions and Dried Fruits
from Ethan Becker’s most recent edition of The Joy of Cooking…
To prepare wheat berries for pilaf, combine in a bowl 1/2 cup wheat berries with water to cover by 5 cm. Let stand overnight. Drain and add to 4 cups boiling salted water. Gently simmer, covered, until tender but still chewy, 45-60 minutes. Drain. Can be used in salads, soups, cereals, stuffings, or pilaf, alone or mixed with other grains.
If there is no time to soak overnight, combine wheat berries with plenty of water and simmer gently for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Berries that have been soaked for at least 8 hours cook in half the time.
Ingredients for pilaf:
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup diced mixed fruits, such as dried apricots, pitted prunes, golden or dark raisins, dried currants, dried cherries, and/or dried cranberries
3 cups cooked wheat berries (can also use cooked brown or wild rice)
1 (5 cm) cinnamon stick
1/2 cup stock or water
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup chopped blanched almonds, walnuts, or pecans, toasted (optional)
Melt or heat butter or oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until gold, 8-10 minutes. Add dried fruits and stir to blend. Stir in cooked wheat (or rice), cinnamon stick, and stock or water. Cover and cook, stirring once or twice, over low heat until the flavors are blended, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with nuts if desired.
from Ethan Becker’s most recent edition of The Joy of Cooking.
4 Comments
July 23, 2008 at 11:50 am
Both sound lovely. Yum.
July 23, 2008 at 11:26 pm
Yes, what Leora said. I will try them!
August 26, 2008 at 9:09 am
[...] the brown rice recipes, this one comes from my friend Shimshonit. Even the introduction is [...]
November 1, 2008 at 11:10 pm
[...] friend Shimshonit has just started her own blog. I hosted two posts that she had sent me, Brown Rice Recipes and Honey Cake. Yet Shimshonit writes on a wide variety of subjects and her first post, A vote for [...]