Brown rice and lentil pilaf with crispy garlic
We’ve been making this a lot lately as it is perfect for a quick lunch or easy dinner. Nutty brown rice, savoury lentils, melt in your mouth caramelised shallots and intense, crispy fried slices of garlic.
SERVES
4
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
5
MINUTES
COOKING TIME
40
MINUTES
Ingredients
2 fat cloves of garlic, crushed
Sea salt
Black pepper
2 bay leaves
Olive oil
250g brown rice
200g cooked green lentils from a tin, rinsed
3 banana shallots, peeled and quartered
4 cloves of garlic, sliced thinly
4 scallions, sliced thinly
Method
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large saucepan over a medium high heat. Add the minced garlic and bay leaf and stir around the pot for a minute or two until fragrant. Add the uncooked rice to the pan and stir around until is it all coated in hot garlicky oil. Pour in enough boiling water to cover the by around an inch. Season with a good pinch of salt and cook uncovered for around 30 minutes until the rice has soaked up all of the water and becomes tender with just a hint of a bite. Discard the bay leaves. Add the cooked lentils to the pan of hot cooked rice and stir well to incorporate.
In another smaller saucepan heat another 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat and add the shallot quarters along with a pinch of sea salt and cracked black pepper. Stir until the shallots become translucent and browning on the edges.
Heat 60ml of olive oil in a medium frying pan over medium high heat. Add garlic slices to the hot oil, reducing heat to medium low and fry the garlic slices until well browned. Remove from the hot oil with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
Place the warm rice and lentils in a bowl and top with the caramelised shallots, crispy garlic and lastly the thinly sliced scallions.
