Not Quite Fried Rice Salad

Are you like me and always cook too much rice? Here is your solution. An easy salad to put together using last night’s left over rice. How simple is that? It is a bit like fried rice – without the frying! Delicious.

This is a Bittman Salad – we are making all of his 101 Salads, all of the vegetarian ones at least. We are on the home-run now, with less than 7 more to make.

Are you after other Rice dishes? Try our Carrot Rice, Zucchini Rice, and all of our Risottos.

All of our Rice dishes are here and all of the Bittman Salads we have made are here. Or browse all of our Early Winter recipes.

Advertisements

Sri Lankan Mustard Greens with Coconut (Suitable for Any Greens)

Winter is the time for Mustard Greens, and we love them. This recipe, with its origins in Sri Lanka and the South of India, treats them very simply without a lot of spice, and ensures that the flavours of the Mustard Leaves shine through. In fact, any greens can be used in this recipe – spinach, kale, chards and any local greens that might be in your area. Try it with cabbage too, its delicious.

Similar recipes include Mustard Greens with Mooli (Daikon), and Turnips with Mustard Greens in a Creamy Sauce.

Browse all of our Mustard Greens dishes, and all of our Sri Lankan recipes. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Early Winter recipes.

Insalata di Radicchio e Rughetta | Salad of Rocket and Radicchio with Parmesan

It is time to increase the presence of wonderful greens in our kitchen and we begin with a quick salad of Rocket (Arugala) and Radicchio. These are tossed with parmesan and a vinaigrette and topped with toasted nuts. There, you have the recipe already. We are so lucky that our Italian brothers and sisters believe in simple dishes and have a wealth of vegetarian dishes packed full of flavour.

It is a wonderful way to begin a meal. I recommend serving it before your main course, and wait for the oohs and aahs from your eating companions. It is the parmesan that makes all the difference in this salad. Oh, and my special trick with the dressing.

Similar recipes include White Fig and Rocket Salad, Rocket Salad with Penne and Parmesan, and Grilled Radicchio with Shallots and Dill.

Browse all of our Rocket dishes and our Radicchio recipes. All of our wonderful Salads are here and Italian dishes here. Or browse our Early Winter collection of dishes.

Burghul and Cauliflower Salad with Hazelnuts

Winter brings more substantial salads – no more Summery cubes of tomatoes tossed with cubes of cucumber and a layer of red onion rings. Enter salads with noodles, grains, lentils, dried beans. Barley, freekah, chickpeas – all perfect during winter.

Today’s salad uses Burghul. I really recommend you exploring your local Middle Eastern shop for their varieties of Burghul – there are at least half a dozen. Select one type that you want to experiment and play with.

Are you after other Burghul dishes? Try a Quick Burghul Salad, Cauliflower and Burghul Kitchari and Mung Bean and Burghul Kitchari.

Or perhaps Cauliflower recipes? Try Rice and Cauliflower Pilaf, Pasta with Cauliflower Sauce, and a Plate of Cauliflower.

This is a Bittman Salad. For the past three years we have had a project of cooking through his 101 salads, and we are now in the 90’s. The end of this fantastic journey is in sight. We have made all of the vegetarian ones and modified as many of the non-vegetarian ones that was possible. After making so many salads, we are now committed daily salad eaters.

You can check all of our Bittman Salads here (more are scheduled for publishing, so check back in the future). All of our Burghul dishes are here, and all of our many many Salads. Or eat seasonally and explore our Early Winter dishes.

Fava Bean Salad with Garlic and Dill

This classic Egyptian Salad is wonderful, if you are a lover of dried broad beans (fava beans). It cooks the small dried fava until just done, or just a little over-done and beginning to disintegrate, and then mixes them with herbs, spices and olive oil. The result is a wonderfully flavoursome salad or side dish.

The recipe makes a fair amount, so you are likely to have some salad left over. Left overs make great spreads (try on sour dough bread with sliced tomatoes, cucumber and radish) and it is wonderful in salad wraps.

Similar recipes include Fava Bean Mash, Fava Bean Soup with Roasted Garlic, and Fava Bean Puree.

Browse all of our Fava Bean recipes and all of our Egyptian dishes. Or browse all of our Mid Winter dishes.

We use Australian measurements: 1 tspn = 5ml; 1 Tblspn = 20ml; 1 cup = 250ml.

Velouté d’asperges | Cream of Asparagus Soup

This soup, so they say, is reminiscent of the creations of the 18th century French grande cuisine. Asparagus was introduced by the Italians during the Renaissance, and was part of a change in eating habits that saw vegetables introduced into grande cuisine. Previously they had been considered the food of peasants.

This soup is thick, smooth and delicate as well as utterly delicious. It is simple to make with easily accessible ingredients. It is the perfect soup for year-round enjoyment, as it can be served cold in Summer and hot in Winter.  We’ve been making this soup since the early 2000’s.

The soup can also be made quickly and easily in any high speed blender that also heats foods as it blends. I have given the instructions for making it this way as well as the usual, stove-top method. In the blender it takes around 15 mins, including cooking the asparagus. When you are using the high speed blender (mine is a Vitamix), then there are no worries about stringy stalks on the asparagus – all is blended into a smooth, perfect soup.

Similar recipes include Chilled Asparagus Soup, Gentle Asparagus Soup, and Asparagus Raita.

Browse all of our other Asparagus Soup recipes, our Asparagus recipes, and our French dishes. Or explore our Late Autumn dishes.

Chakotra, Laal Mooli and Ganth Gobhi Salad | Pomelo, Radish and Kohlrabi Salad with Tamarind Dressing

Pomelos are around for a while if you know where to look for them. As the season progresses they get bigger and bigger! As I write, they are so huge one considers bringing a ute to bring them home in. (I exaggerate of course 🙂 🙂 ).

This lovely salad combines Pomelo (or use Ruby Grapefruit) with Kohlrabi and Red Radish, and then bathes them in a spicy tamarind dressing before dusting with crushed peanuts. Who needs a better excuse to grab a Pomelo or two?

Are you after other Pomelo recipes? Try Three Citrus Salad with Ginger, Chilli and Crunchy Almond Salsa.

Or other Radish dishes? Try Cucumber and Red Radish Salad, and Radish Salad with Coconut Milk.

Browse all of our Pomelo recipes and all of our radish recipes. Our Kohlrabi dishes are here. Or explore our many many Salads. Our collection of Early Winter dishes are here.

Eggplant and Kale Pakora

Pakora are a favourite street food in India, and one that can easily be made at home. Recipes use a chickpea flour batter into which vegetables are dipped and then deep fried. I like to serve these Pakora with sea salt and lemon juice only, but they are commonly eaten with Indian sauces and chutneys.  One word describes them. Delicious. Incredibly delicious. Have a glass of chai with them – I also love them with a small cup of spicy rasam.

In frying the pakora (also called pakoda, bhajji and bhajiya) the aim is to cook the vegetable in the same amount of time that the batter takes to become crispy. It is about temperature, so it is a good idea to test-fry a few pieces before cooking the whole batch.

The types of vegetables that can be used include potatoes, onion rings, eggplant, sweet potatoes, softer pumpkins, lotus root, cauliflower and greens such as spinach, kale and amaranth leaves. Make sure that any greens are really dry before using.

Similar recipes include Red Onion and Green Chilli Pakora, Okra and Cauliflower Pakora, and Vegetable Fritters.

Browse all of our Pakoras and all of our Snacks. All of our Indian recipes are here, and our Indian Essentials are here. Or explore our Mid Autumn dishes.

Roasted Butternut with Chilli Yoghurt Sauce and Coriander Garlic Oil

Another cold winter morning, another zero degree morning, and another excuse to turn the oven on and get the butternut pumpkin out. We classify butternut as a pumpkin although elsewhere it may be called a squash.

Simply made, this is an easy recipe – the butternut is roasted and some pumpkin seeds are toasted in the residual heat of the oven. Yoghurt is mixed with chilli sauce and some coriander is whizzed with oil – both are drizzled over the cooked pumpkin. Quick and easy. It can be made early in the morning while the coffee is brewing the porridge bubbling on the stove, and then left until lunch time.

The toasted pumpkin seeds (the green inner ones, not the hard shelled, large pumpkin seeds) are wonderful – crispy and light. Make more of them and keep some for snacking during the day.

A dish to celebrate two of Turkish cuisine’s great gifts to the world, yoghurt and chilli.

By the way, the Chilli Yoghurt Sauce in this recipe is a winner. It is simply chilli sauce mixed with yoghurt (I used one of my slow cooked chilli jams). The truth be told, I could not stop eating the left overs. It was stirred into rice, dolloped on soup, and drizzled over steamed vegetables. The last spoonful was smeared on buttery bread and eaten with delight. I really advise you to make double recipe, and keep the remainder in the fridge.

This is an Ottolenghi dish from Plenty More – we are cooking our way through this book. We feel free to substitute ingredients that are not readily available in our local area.

In fact it is Ottolenghi Cooking the Books Day on the blog – one of two days per month where we publish the latest recipes we have tried in our project of cooking from Ottolenghi’s books – those we have cooked directly and those we have been inspired by. Currently we are cooking from Plenty More, but not ignoring his other books completely. Note that I often massage the recipes to suit what is available from our garden and pantry. For the original recipes, check his books and his Guardian column.

Similar dishes include Butternut with Buckwheat Polenta, Roast Pumpkin with Miso Sesame Dressing, and Caramelised Roast Pumpkin.

Our Ottolenghi dishes from Plenty More are here. We have written about our experiences cooking through this book. Or explore our Early Winter recipes.

We use Australian measurements: 1 tspn = 5ml; 1 Tblspn = 20ml; 1 cup = 250ml.

Baked Okra in Dukkah

Are you looking for a TV snack – something to eat while you are curled up binge watching the latest series, or watching Eurovision, or Tour de France, or Master Chef, or The Voice, or any other favourite program?

Well here it is. Forget the bag of crisps or corn chips. Go for okra rolled in dukkah and baked. A few minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook, and you are right for the evening. You can make your own dukkah beforehand, or purchase from any providore or shop that sells Middle Eastern ingredients.

Easy Tomato Pepper Rasam

Sometimes, particularly when cooking large batches of dishes, we skip corners and the steps that enhance the complexity and sophistication of the dish go by the wayside. And this is Ok – it still tastes jolly amazing.

This rasam is in that category. The recipe is for 2’ish cups (four small serves or 2 large ones), but it can be scaled up. This is the way that rasam is often cooked when 30 or so people need to be fed, and in our house, it might be made this way when it is 15 mins to dinner time and we just need to get it on the table.

Pasta Salad with Artichoke Hearts

Pasta is back in fashion! The supermarket shelves are bowing under the weight of the multitude of different types and brands of pasta. Italian shops are extending their shelves to stock the increased range. Customers are querying staff about the different sorts and the differences between brands.

The local Italian shop is amazing, their staff very knowledgeable, and the range of pastas outstanding. Using a good quality pasta makes quite a difference.

Urad Dal with Onions Four Ways

Urad lentils, in all their forms, and one of our favourite lentils, partly because of a dal that we made a long, long time ago. We love it. My daughter and I, at our respective places, still often make that recipe in bulk and freeze it for those busy winter evenings when you just need to grab something from the freezer to avoid ordering pizza or buying bags of chips.

Urad dal needs special handling. It needs long cooking, and is best keep soupy (in my opinion). It is a common dal in North Indian cooking, especially in the Punjab, and goes well with tomatoes, onions, butter, cream and yoghurt.

Poritha Kootu with Finely Diced Snake Gourd

Kootu is a favourite in our house – well, we just love toor dal, truth be told. With a snake gourd in the fridge, left over from making Snake Gourd Pachadi, we make this Snake Gourd Kootu. The same recipe can be made with cabbage, kohlrabi, amaranth leaves or spinach instead of snake gourd.

The gourd is finely diced in this recipe, so it disappears into the dal, and is a delightful surprise as you are eating. Gorgeous pops of green-tasting snake gourd in your mouth. It is wonderful served with rice.

Pomelo Salad with Chilli, Lime, Peanuts, and Coconut

A refreshing salad in South East Asian style, packed with sweet, sour, and salty flavours.

Pomelo is one of the most undiscovered citrus in the West, in my mind. A little work is required to release the yellow gems from their casings, but once done, this citrus is a beauty. First the very thick peel needs to be cut away. Do this by slicing off the top thick layer and the bottom thick layer, and then cut the Pomelo into 6 or 8 pieces. Carefully pare the outer skin from each piece with a small sharp knife.

The next casing is the membrane around each segment. Using your sharp small knife, cut between each segment, remove and discard the casing. Now those yellow gems are ready for use. I adore them in salads.

Are you after other Pomelo dishes? Try Pomelo, Radish and Kohlrabi Salad, Pomelo, Green Mango and Pea Eggplant Salad, Pomelo Salad with Avocados, and Pomelo and Green Mango Salad.

Browse all of our Pomelo recipes, and all of our many many Salads. Or take some time to browse our Early Winter dishes.