Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups dried green or brown lentils
- 4 medium onions (1 1/2 lb before peeling)
- 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- about 1 cup sunflower oil
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- 1 1/2 tablespoons coriander seeds
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 1/2 cups water
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Place the lentils in a small saucepan, cover
with plenty of water, bring to a boil, and cook for 12 to 15 minutes,
until the lentils have softened but still have a little bite. Drain and
set aside.
Peel the onions and slice thinly. Place on a
large flat plate, sprinkle with the flour and 1 teaspoon salt, and mix
well with your hands. Heat the sunflower oil in a medium heavy-bottomed
saucepan placed over high heat. Make sure the oil is hot by throwing in a
small piece of onion; it should sizzle vigorously. Reduce the heat to
medium-high and carefully (it may spit!) add one-third of the sliced
onion. Fry for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally with a slotted
spoon, until the onion takes on a nice golden brown color and turns
crispy (adjust the temperature so the onion doesn’t fry too quickly and
burn). Use the spoon to transfer the onion to a colander lined with
paper towels and sprinkle with a little more salt. Do the same with the
other two batches of onion; add a little extra oil if needed.
Wipe the saucepan in which you fried the onion
clean and put in the cumin and coriander seeds. Place over medium heat
and toast the seeds for a minute or two. Add the rice, olive oil,
turmeric, allspice, cinnamon, sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and plenty of
black pepper. Stir to coat the rice with the oil and then add the cooked
lentils and the water. Bring to a boil, cover with a lid, and simmer
over very low heat for 15 minutes.
Remove from the heat, lift off the lid, and
quickly cover the pan with a clean tea towel. Seal tightly with the lid
and set aside for 10 minutes.
Finally, add half the fried onion to the rice
and lentils and stir gently with a fork. Pile the mixture in a shallow
serving bowl and top with the rest of the onion.
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