Rice & Grains
2019 recipes found
Skillet Chicken and Farro With Caramelized Leeks
This very savory skillet dinner features golden pieces of bone-in chicken nestled in a leek and farro pilaf. You might be surprised to see the leek greens used along with the whites. But, because the slices are sautéed until tender and then simmered with the farro, they turn soft and sweet, and contribute loads of deep onion flavor. (Added bonus: It’s nice to use the whole vegetable.) A simple tomato relish garnishes the top, adding juicy freshness to this hearty one-pot meal.
Veggie Burgers
Pearl Couscous With Creamy Feta and Chickpeas
Baking pearl couscous with chickpeas, roasted tomatoes and garlic results in a one-pan vegetarian meal that’s cozy and very savory, especially if you use a flavorful stock for cooking. Soft and almost porridgelike in texture, it satisfies the same urge as polenta or risotto. Lemon zest and fresh herbs make it bright, while feta, added at the end, gives the whole thing a creamy richness. Save leftovers to bring to work for lunch the next day; they pack up perfectly. If you feel like you need more vegetables here to round out the meal, serve this on a bed of baby spinach, some of which will wilt on contact with the hot couscous.
Grape Dumplings
Grape dumplings are a favorite treat among southeastern Indigenous nations. Originally made with strained muscadine or possum grapes, they’ve been adapted by modern cooks using other dark grape varieties and bottled Concord grape juice. In a blend of old and new, this take on the popular indigenous recipe pays homage to the historic use of cornmeal while observing popular contemporary practices of adding flour and sweetener. The dumplings incorporate blue cornmeal and whole-wheat flour to intensify the rich evening shades of the dish, and the sauce substitutes agave for granulated sugar. Pair them with vanilla ice cream and a sprig of fresh tarragon for a delightful explosion of perfectly purple goodness.
Beef With Farro, Egg, Kimchi Purée and Broccoli
Farro Pilaf With Balsamic Cherries
The balsamic cherries are great with this pilaf, but they’d also be good as an accompaniment to meats.
Herby Farro With Butternut Squash and Sour Cream
The herb and chile paste that seasons rice in arroz verde is also a great match to nutty farro and sweet butternut squash. As everything bakes in the oven, the garlic and onion lightly steam, the herbs wilt, and the farro tenderizes while maintaining its signature chew. Fresh lime zest and juice perk everything up. This dish is great with salmon, pork or chicken — or, skip the sour cream and this becomes a hearty, vegan main that partners well with black beans.
Banh Xeo
Banh xeo are Vietnamese rice pancakes filled with various vegetables and meats. Thin and crispy, the finished pancakes are cut into pieces, tucked into lettuce wraps, and finished with fragrant herbs and a spicy nuoc cham dipping sauce. This recipe features the classic shrimp and pork, using bacon for the hit of smoky flavor. If bean sprouts are unavailable, try finely shredded cabbage instead. The batter can be made two days ahead and stored in the refrigerator. When ready to use, bring it to room temperature and whisk until well blended, adding water if needed to thin the batter. (It should be slightly thicker than the texture of heavy cream.) Banh xeo are best eaten as they are made, but if you need to keep them warm while making all four pancakes, heat the oven to 200 degrees and set a rack over a baking sheet. As you make the pancakes, transfer them to the rack to keep warm.
Summer Tomato and Basil Soup With Farro
Farro Salad with Leeks, Chickpeas and Currants
Sliced leeks are wonderful roasted: they caramelize in the oven, becoming tender and sweet, their edges crisp. This recipe combines them with spicy marinated chickpeas and sweet currants for a hearty, satisfying side-dish salad. You could easily turn it into a main course by adding grated cheese (maybe ricotta salata or aged Cheddar) and nuts (pistachios, pine nuts, pecans). And also feel free substitute any other cooked bean or dried fruit; chopped apricots or cherries would work particularly well, as would navy or cannellini beans. The recipe makes a very large bowlful, but sturdy farro holds up well in the fridge.
Collard Greens With Farro
Farro with anything is comfort food, and the combination of farro and collard greens is particularly hearty and nutritious. The time required to cook the farro will depend on how long it has been sitting on your shelf. When it’s less than a year old, farro softens nicely. The older it is, the longer it will need to cook.
Skillet Beet and Farro Salad
This hearty winter salad can be a meal or a side dish, and warming it in the skillet makes it particularly comforting. Cook your farro until you see that the grains have begun to splay so they won’t be too chewy and can absorb the dressing properly.
Caramelized Winter Squash With Pumpkin Seed Persillade
This method of flame-roasting a whole winter squash, just as you would roast a bell pepper, comes from the San Francisco chef Dominique Crenn. Surprisingly, the skin becomes soft, smoky and entirely edible. (The dish can also be made with squash chunks: see note at the end of the recipe.) Caramelizing the fragrant mash at the last minute brings out the sweetness and smoke, and a fresh herb sauce brings it back to earth. The pumpkin seeds in the garlicky, green sauce, or persillade, echo the flavors of the squash.
Baked Polenta With Ricotta and Parmesan
This no-stir method produces an effortless polenta. The ricotta adds lightness and turns the polenta into an elegant side dish. It may be baked up to 2 hours in advance and reheated, if desired.
Arancini With Brandy-Soaked Raisins
These Italian fried rice balls have a surprise filling of brandy-soaked raisins, which gives them a gentle sweetness that contrasts with the savory fontina and mozzarella cheeses. You can make the rice mixture up to a day ahead, and form the balls up to four hours ahead. Then fry just before serving so the cheese is warm enough to gush when you bite in.
Tomato, Oregano, and Feta Risotto
Turmeric Rice
Gingery Cabbage Rolls With Pork and Rice
These fork-tender cabbage rolls, filled with savory pork, rice and ginger, are the ultimate comfort food — perfect to serve as a cozy meal on a cold night. When assembling the rolls, you can simply fold the cabbage leaf onto itself as you would fold a burrito — and don’t worry if the cabbage leaves tear. If there are any leftovers, reheat them with more chicken broth. They are good the day they are made, but even better the next day.
Celery Risotto With Dandelion Greens or Kale
Celery is both vegetable and aromatic in this risotto. It retains some texture as it cooks, contrasting nicely with the rice. Dandelion greens are very nice here, but you can usually only find them in a farmers’ market; kale, especially dark green cavolo nero, is a fine substitute.
Risotto With Kale and Red Beans
I’m always on the lookout for vegetables with red pigments, a good sign of anthocyanins, those beneficial flavonoids that are known for antioxidant properties and are present in purple and red vegetables. When you cook the kale with the rice, the red in the kale dyes the rice pale pink (the kale goes to a kind of drab green). The first time I made it, without the red beans, the finished product reminded me of the way the rice looks when I make red beans with rice. So I decided to add red beans to the mix, which provide a healthy dose of protein and fiber, as well as color.
Watermelon and Pancetta Risotto
The important thing for this dish is to have good, sweet, ripe watermelon that is firm enough to retain its shape once cubed, as well as good-quality pancetta, cut thick enough so that you can cube it to match the shape of the melon. Don’t use prepackaged pancetta or have it sliced into paper-thin wisps. Also important is to use good chicken stock. The best, obviously, is to make it yourself. But if that’s not available, good, organic, low-sodium stock will work, too.
Barley Risotto With Greens and Seared Scallops
A great vegetarian entree for fall, this creamy risotto can be served with scallops or seared halibut fillets; you could also add more leafy greens and top it with with slivers of aged cheese. Using barley instead of rice produces a nutty chew that works with the sweetness of root vegetables. You can use less butter and cream than the recipe calls for, but the end result won’t be quite as deliciously runny and rich. The Saltry restaurant, in Halibut Cove in southern Alaska, is reachable only by boat or seaplane. Like a culinary Brigadoon, it appears every summer and evaporates each fall — and has done so since 1984, when Marian Beck, a native of the area, decided it was time for the food of Alaska’s wilderness to move beyond canned corned beef hash and smoked fish. Modern dishes like this risotto, beet salad with savory sesame brittle, and black cod with dashi and paprika oil now sit comfortably on the menu with classics like house-pickled salmon, smoked cod chowder, and oysters and mussels raised just yards offshore.
Creamy Rice Casserole
Risotto With Chard and Pancetta
This satiny risotto uses an entire bunch of chard, both stems and leaves, which gives texture and color to the tender grains of rice. Pancetta, crisped up in the pan, adds a savory, brawny crunch that contrasts with the sweetness of the shallots or onion. Red chard turns the rice a subtle shade of pink, but Swiss or rainbow chard will work equally well. And don’t neglect that squeeze of fresh lemon juice right at the end; it brightens everything up.