Curried Aubergine Rice
At BOSH! we bloody love an aubergine, and this dish is a great way to show it off! We start by marinating our aubergine in yoghurt and curry powder, before frying it off and layering it with turmeric flavoured rice and gooey spiced onions. Great as a midweek one-pot wonder, rice dishes don't come much easier than this.
Serves
Ingredients
For the aubergine
<item-todo-done>2 tbsp vegetable oil<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 aubergines<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>50g plant-based plain yoghurt<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 tbsp medium curry powder<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>½ lemon<item-todo-done><item-todo-done> salt and pepper to taste<item-todo-done>
For the onion
<item-todo-done>3 tbsp vegetable oil<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 tsp cumin seeds<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>8 cardamon seeds<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 star anise<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 bay leaves<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 large white onions<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>3 cloves garlic<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>2 inches of ginger<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 tsp turmeric powder<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>1 tbsp sugar<item-todo-done><item-todo-done> salt and pepper to taste<item-todo-done>
For the rice
<item-todo-done>3 250g bag microwave rice<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>5g fresh mint leaves<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>5g fresh coriander leaves<item-todo-done><item-todo-done>½ lemon<item-todo-done>
Before you start
Kettle boiled | Large mixing bowl | Large, deep-sided pan with a matching lid | Kitchen paper | Measuring jug | Small bowl
Marinate the aubergine
- Trim the top and bottom of the aubergine and cut longways into 1cm thick wedges.
- Add the yoghurt, curry powder, juice of half a lemon, a good pinch of salt and pepper into a roasting pan and stir to combine.
- Add the aubergine to the pan and stir to cover and coat.
Cook the aubergine
- Warm 2 tbsp vegetable oil in a frying pan, cover the bottom of the pan with aubergine wedges and fry over medium high heat for 3-4 minutes on each side until golden.
- Transfer the wedges to a plate and repeat with the remaining aubergine wedges.
Prepare the onions
- Peel and finely slice the onions.
- Peel and grate the garlic and ginger.
- Warm the oil in the pan over a medium heat, add the cumin seeds, cardamom seeds, star anise and bay leaves to the pan and fry for a couple of minutes to wake up the spices.
- Add the onion to the pan with a pinch of salt and stir to combine.
- Put the lid on and sweat the onions for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent catching.
- Remove the lid and fry the onion for a further 3-4 minutes until golden.
- Add the garlic, ginger and turmeric to the pan, stir to combine and fry for 2-3 minutes.
- Add the sugar, stir to combine and take the pan off the heat.
Prepare the rice
- Microwave the rice according to package directions.
Build the dish
- Finely slice the coriander and mint.
- Transfer the onions to a plate.
- Add one pack of rice to the pan and stir to coat in the flavour-packed oil that remains in the pan.
- Sprinkle ⅓ of the onions over the rice, sprinkle ⅓ of the aubergine over the onions, sprinkle over ⅓ of the mint and coriander and squeeze over a little lemon juice.
- Repeat the process to create a second layer.
- For the final layer, spread the last bag of rice over the top, spoon over the onions, put one of the star anise in the middle of the rice and create a fan pattern on the top of the rice with the remaining aubergine.
- Garnish with any remaining coriander and mint.
Finish the dish
- Put the lid on the pan, turn the heat up to medium and warm the dish through for 5-6 minutes.
- Remove the lid, serve the rice into bowls and serve immediately.