Okay, I’m a fan of rice! You can cook it, dice it, pound it… once its rice, I’m interested. So you can imagine my interest when I saw a new recipe for cooking rice that is not Jollof Rice or Fried rice. This one is from the Foods Of Africa’ stables and is called ‘ Veggie Coconut Rice, a kind of modified version of the Tanzanian recipe Wali Wa Nazi (coconut rice) . If you are a Vegan or intending to be one this is a cool way to kick it off.
In this recipe, I have taken the classic wali wa nazi recipe as a starting point, and pimped this up with veggies. This veggie coconut rice recipe is simply pimped-up-wali wa nazi. Full stop!
In this recipe, white or brown rice is simmered in coconut milk infused with spices till cooked. Once the rice is cooked, it is tossed with onions, ginger, coconut flakes and vegetables, including plantain. The coconut milk lends a nutty creaminess to the dish, while the onions and ginger introduce a savoury and spicy flavour. The bite from the plantain means you don’t notice the exclusion of meat from this recipe. The result is a blend of flavours that is just begging to be devoured.
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In this veggie coconut rice recipe, white rice is simmered in creamy coconut milk, then tossed with seasonal vegetables to create the perfect week-night meal.Vegan, simple to make, and brimming with flavour.
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- 200 ml coconut milk
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 4 tsp olive oil
- 1 plantain *
- 150 g peas
- 300 g carrots **
- 140 g sweet corn
- 1 sweet red pepper
- 1 onion ***
- 2 garlic
- 30 g ginger ***
- 100 ml water
- salt
- black pepper
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In a saucepan, add the rice, coconut milk, water and vegetable stock cube, and cover the pan. On medium heat, bring the mixture to boil, then reduce the heat to low, and simmer and cook in the steam for approximately 20 minutes****. Remove from heat after 20 minutes, and set aside, covered.
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Prepare the Peas:Bring approximately 500ml of water to boil. Once boiling, add the peas and cook for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes, remove from heat, drain and set aside.
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Prepare the plantain:Peel and slice plantain into 1-inch circles. In a pre-heated pan on medium heat, add 2 teaspoons of olive oil. When the oil is sufficiently hot, add the plantain circles into the pan, in a single layer. Fry for 3 – 4 minutes per side, until each side is golden brown. Turn over once, and repeat on the other side until golden brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
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In the pre-heated pan above on medium heat, add the remaining 2 teaspoons of olive oil. Fry the garlic, onions and ginger for 3 – 5 minutes or until the onions are soft and translucent, stirring frequently to prevent any burning. Add salt and black pepper to taste.
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Add the rest of the vegetables – carrots, sweet corn, red peppers, cooked peas, and fried plantain to the onion mix, and stir fry for approximately 3 – 5 minutes. Then add the cooked coconut rice. Stir fry for another 3 minutes to distribute the veggies evenly within the rice.
* plantain should be ripe.
** carrots should be cubed.
*** onions and ginger should be finely chopped.
**** It is important that you do not uncover the rice while it is cooking as this will cause the steam to escape.
By Emem Umoren Creator, Foods From Africa #AfricaOnAPlate
