Jamaican rice and peas with saffron rice

Madhur Jaffrey is definitely my favorite food author. I have 3 cookbooks by her and counting. My favorite cookbook by her is Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian. It is my vegetarian bible. Every recipe I have made has been delicious. Unlike many vegetarian cookbooks that try to replace meat with alternatives, she uses traditional vegetarian recipes from all over the world. I would highly recommend it, although you will  need to build up quite a collection of different spices that need to be tracked down from international supermarkets.

This recipe is so hearty and filling. It is also amazingly cheap and can be made in bulk to feed a crowd (something I seem to always end up doing). Don't be fooled by the name, there are actually no peas involved at all, but red kidney beans. I also added chickpeas to this recipe to bulk it out a little more, but you can use whatever you have on hand.

Jamaican rice and peas with saffron rice

 Serves 4-6
2 cans kidney beans
1 can chickpeas 
475 ml Coconut milk
3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme or 3/4 tea spoon dried
4 tablespoons of finely chopped chives or 6 tablespoons finely sliced spring onions (white and green)
1 Scotch bonnet chilli, or other chilli to taste (I used crushed chilli flakes because that is what I had)
2 cloves garlic
1 finely chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon of ground allspice*
1 teaspoon paprika

1. Heat a splash of olive oil to a pan and add the onion. Fry for 7-8 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the garlic to the pan and cook for a further 3-4 minutes.
3. Add the coconut milk, chilli, thyme, chives, ground allspice and paprika. 
4. Turn the heat down low, cover the pan and simmer for 25 minutes. 
5. Check seasoning by tasting. Remove the chilli (if using fresh whole) and sprigs of thyme before serving.

Saffron rice
300g basmati rice
Pinch saffron
Vegetable stock cube
Chilli flavoured olive oil

1. Add 1 part basmati rice to 2 parts boiling water (from kettle) to a pan on a medium heat.
2. Add the stock cube and saffron.
3. Cover tightly and turn heat to low.
4. Cook for 12 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed by the rice
5. Try not to stir the rice or remove the lid, as this lets the rice steam and not become sticky
6. Check that the rice is cooked, adjust seasoning if necessary and fluff up the rice. 
7. Serve and drizzle with chilli olive oil

*Allspice is a Jamaican peppercorn that you can pick up in international supermarkets, or online if you don't have access to such stores. It has a flavour of a mix of ginger, cloves cinnamon, so if you can't access this lovely spice, you can use a blend of those spices. They look like peppercorns the size of peas. I buy it whole and crush the spice in a pestle and mortar.

One happy customer !