Black whole rice, red lentils, soft goat cheese, carrots, dried raisins and cranberries, tahini and olive oil seasoning

    Here is a yummy and comfy but healthy and complete dish thanks to the association of the rice and red lentils, rich in complex carbohydrates as well as proteins for the first one and fibers, minerals and iron for the legumes. The tahini (sesame cream) also brings calcium, magnesium and iron. 

  I chose to add soft goat cheese (that you can delete or replace for a vegan option) and mint to bring some freshness and raisins and dried cranberries to ad some sweetness to the dish but also because they offer other nutriments, antioxidants for the latter. Carrots bring a dose of vegetables but also some color and crunchy. 

  By the way, did you know this black rice? This is a whole rice (rich in fibers and iron), naturally colored, that comes from the Pô plain in Italy. It turns into nice dark purple once cooked and it will changed from the usual white rice a little less healthy because refined. 

  This dish is completed with spices roasted in an intense flavor French olive oil that I also used to make the tahini and the seasoning.

  With this recipe, I take part to a culinary competition organized by l'Afidol (l'Association Française Interprofessionnelle De l'OLive) et les Huiles d'olives & Olives de France that is a French professional association of olive oils and olives. The compulsory theme was "Enjoy a meal at work with the olive oils and comfortable home made dishes to take away". This is why I chose to cook a dish we can easily take to work and heat with the microwaves (or even eat cold as an plan B, tasted and approved). 

-> Recette en français ici .

Black whole rice, red lentils, soft goat cheese, carrots, dried raisins and cranberries, tahini and olive oil seasoning


Prep time : 10 min
Cook time : 20 min (rice) + 10 min (whole dish)
Serving : for two


Ingredients quantities are given as an indication, you are free to modify them according to your taste.


Dish

- 120 g (4,23 oz) black whole rice (raw weight)
- 75 g (2,65 oz) red lentils (raw weight)
- 1 or 2 carrots (according to their size)
- 5 tbsp intense flavor good quality olive oil
- 1 small tsp ground cardamom
- 1 small tsp ground cumin
- 1 small tsp ground ginger
- 1 small tsp ground coriander
- 1 handful raisins
- 1 handful dried cranberries
- some soft goat cheese 
- a few mint leaves


Seasoning

- salt
-pepper
- lemon juice
- subtle good quality olive oil
- tahini (sesame cream)

• To start, cook the rice in a large amount of salty water, you must cook it between 18 and 20 minutes. Drain it and let it cool down.

• Meanwhile, cook the red lentils for about 5 minutes in salty water. Add-in the carrots peeled and sliced for the remaining 2 minutes so as to precook them.

• Wash and wipe half the mint leaves them chop them finely and set aside. I like to add raw herbs before serving but you can use them cooked or entirely raw as you wish.

• Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan, add-in the ground spices and roast them at medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes. When they start to "sparkle" (you'll see what I mean), add-in the rice, the lentils, the carrots, the dried fruit, some crumbled soft goat cheese (as much as you want), the chopped mint and cook for about 10 minutes at medium heat. 

• Before serving, season with salt and pepper, some olive oil, lemon juice and the tahini. You can enjoy it hot, warm or even cold as a salad!

-> Recette en français ici .

 

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