I am now a fan of cooking rice in cast iron pots. Believe me, the aroma of the dish that comes out of cast iron pots is stronger and more convincing than if the same ingredients were thrown into a rice cooker or a wok to cook. All the different flavours become encapsulated within the pot when the various ingredients come together to cook and boil. As such, the rice and flavours melt into one and the rice becomes especially tender and fragrant.
Which is the reason why I keep coming back to use the dutch oven pot regularly to cook my rice, with a few recipes here that I love a lot and am already missing – ‘A Delightful Plate Of Lebanese Mujaddara (Lentils & Rice)’, ‘Dutch Oven Nut & Raisin Rice With A Royal Fragrance’ and ‘Aromatic Chicken & Mushroom Rice Cooked In A Cast Iron Pot’. Try them and see which one of these you like best!
Ingredients:
- Butter: 1 tbsp + 1 tbsp
- Bacon: 4 slices, diced
- Garlic: 3 cloves, finely chopped
- Onion: 2, finely chopped
- Lemon thyme: leaves from 2 stalks
- Brown mushroom: 500g, sliced thinly
- Cauliflower: 250g, cut into florets
- Rice: 1.5 cups
- Boiling water: 3 cups
- Chicken stock cube: 1
- Salt: to taste
- Ground blackpepper: to taste
Method:
- Heat 1 tbsp butter in a cast iron pot.
- Add bacon. Stir-fry till just cooked.
- Add garlic, onion & thymes. Stir-fry till fragrant and onions turn translucent.
- Stir in mushrooms and cauliflowers. Mix evenly.
- Add rice, water and chicken stock cube. Stir to mix evenly.
- Cover pot with lid. Leave to boil on low heat for 20 – 25 min till rice is cooked.
- Remove lid from pot. Add in 1 tbsp butter, salt and ground blackpepper to taste.
- Garnish with remaining thymes to serve.
Disclaimer:
- My inspiration for this recipe came from a dish that I made not too long ago – ‘Aromatic Chicken & Mushroom Rice Cooked In A Cast Iron Pot‘. This recipe turns it into a vegan dish, using cauliflower instead of meat.
Serving:
3 persons
