rice Archives - Feast of Plants

Lo Bak Gou or Daikon Cake (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Thu, 10 Mar 2022 12:00:25 +0000

See the recipe If you’ve never had Lo Bak Gou before, you are missing out! It’s a delicious dish that can be eaten steamed or, as we prefer, stir fried. You can find it in most Chinese restaurants in the Dim Sum section of the menu and is often made around Chinese holidays, as a symbol of prosperity and new beginnings in Chinese tradition. Traditionally this radish cake is made from Chinese turnip or daikon (also known as mooli), rice flour, and water and then steamed. Once cool it can be cut into slices and pan fried until golden brown and crispy. The interior of the cake remains soft while the edges crisp up to give a great texture contrast. The most basic version of this recipe is naturally vegan and gluten free but the most popular adaptations use dried shrimps and Chinese sausage. I wanted to make my own version that was just as tasty but still vegan. I added more flavour and colour by adding a mix of carrots and parsnips. Swapped the sausage for dried shitake mushrooms, and used vegan fish sauce instead of shrimps. If you haven’t tried this dish yet, I highly recommend you give it a go. It’s a bit time consuming to make but it’s worth it because the texture and flavour are so different from any other dish. Makes: Serves 4 Ingredients 650g Daikon or Chinese Turnip 200g Parsnip 150g Carrot 3 Dried Shitake Mushrooms, soaked overnight 2 Garlic Cloves 1 Tbsp Vegan Fish Sauce 1 1/2 tsp Salt 1 tsp Ground White Pepper 1/2 tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil 2 tsp Vegetable Stock powder For the Batter: 210g Rice Flour* 400ml Water Oil for brushing Salt & Pepper to taste For the Stir Fry: 3 Red Chillies, cut into thin strips 2 tbsp Soy Sauce 5 Spring Onions, cut into strips Oil for cooking Directions Lets start with a few easy preparations so when you start cooking, everything is ready to go. Grease a 7 inch square loose based, cake tin and line the base with grease proof paper. Whisk together the batter and set to one side. Finally, prepare the vegetables – grate the daikon, parsnip and carrot together. Finely dice both the garlic and mushrooms. Place a wok on a high heat with a touch of oil. When the oil comes up to heat and starts to shimmer, stir fry the garlic and mushroom together until the garlic just starts to brown. Add the grated vegetables and season with the fish sauce, sesame oil, stock powder, and salt and pepper. Mix well before covering with a lid and cook until the vegetables release their water and it just starts to boil in the pan. This will likely take between 5 and 10 minutes but keep a close eye on it as you don’t want the mix to dry out. Turn the heat down to medium. Slowly, while constantly mixing, add in the batter. There should be enough that the vegetables are all fully coated but not swamped. Continue to cook and stir until the batter has thickened. Transfer the mix to the prepared cake tin, smooth out, and lightly brush the top with oil. Clean out your wok, add a steam rack and water to just below the steamer. When the water comes up to a boil, transfer the cake tin to steamer and cover with a lid. steam for 30 – 45 minutes, or until a chopstick inserted into the centre comes out clean. You can eat the cake as it is (and it’s incredibly popular in some parts of the world like this) but I like to move on to the next step. Let the cake cool down completely and refrigerate overnight – if not cooled completely it won’t cut cleanly. Remove the cake from the tin and transfer to a cutting board. Cut the cake into your favourite shapes, I like thin squares or bitesize cubes. Heat a non-stick frying pan on a high heat and fry until golden brown on all sides. Transfer to a plate and put the pan back on heat with a touch of oil. Stir fry the chilli, garlic, and spring onions until fragrant. Add back the cooked squares along with the soy sauce and toss to combine. Serve immediatly and enjoy! Notes * There is regular rice flour and sweet or glutinous rice flour – make sure you use regular rice flour here. Allergy Notes: This is naturally vegan, gluten free, soy free and nut free (though skip the sesame oil if you are sensitive to sesame seeds). If you have any allergies to the ingredients in this dish or have questions on substitutions, leave me a comment below.

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Peach Caramel Rice Pudding (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Fri, 05 Feb 2021 17:00:22 +0000

It’s the weekend and we all need a little bit of a reward for making it through another week in lockdown. This is the perfect compliment to those few occasions when I want to finish dinner with something a little sweet. I don’t often make dessert so on these days I’ll turn towards rice pudding as a quick solution. Pulled together in the instant pot rather than the oven, this is the modernised version of the rice pudding I grew up on that takes so much less time. I watched my mother throwing rice pudding in the oven in a fairly regular basis, it’s one of those dishes she always had memorised for an easy dessert but it was never quick. Normally baked in the oven, a traditional rice pudding can take up to 2 hours. In the pressure cooked it only take 5 minutes – 25 minutes if you count the time to come up and down to pressure. Topped of a with a quick and tasty peach caramel sauce this a quick and easy dessert you can whip together while clearing up after dinner. Makes: Serves 4-6 Ingredients For the Rice Pudding: 200g Pudding Rice (risotto rice works well too) 750ml Coconut Milk (tinned) 250ml Water 100g Sugar 1 Cinnamon Stick 1 tsp Vanilla Essence 1 Tbsp Vegan Butter For the Peach Caramel Sauce: 2 Peaches, pitted & sliced 70g Vegan Butter 70g Brown Sugar 1/4 cup Chopped Hazelnuts 2 Tbsp Mint, chopped Directions Seriously, this is one the easiest things you’ll make for a while. Put the butter to one side and place the other rice pudding ingredients into the instant pot and stir well. Seal, and cook on high for 5 minutes. When cooked, wait 10 minutes before releasing the pressure. While the rice pudding cooks, whip up the peach caramel. Place the butter and sugar into a small pan and cook on a low heat until the butter melts. Add in the hazelnuts and toast for 2 minutes before adding the peaches. Cook, stirring very rarely, for 10 minutes or until a caramel forms, and the peaches have started to brown. Turn off the heat and stir through the mint. When the rice pudding is cooked and the lid has been removed, add the butter and stir until well combined. Taste and add more sugar as need before serving, topped with a generous heap of the peach and caramel. Enjoy! Notes Allergy Notes; This recipe is vegan, gluten free and soy free. If nuts are an allergen for you then skip the hazelnuts and add a dash of cinnamon instead for an equally delicious sauce.

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Leftover Rice Pancakes (Vegan, GF, NF, SF)

Feast of Plants — Fri, 25 Sep 2020 14:00:26 +0000

Today’s recipes is a lot less work than our last! I always make more rice than we need for one meal. Having extra rice stored in the freezer makes it so easy to whip up dinner when you’re not feeling up to cooking and there’s just so much you can do with it. Whether that’s as simple as just reheating what you have, or turning it into a whole new thing, rice has the flexibility that makes it a staple in our house. Whipping your rice into pancakes takes very little time. So they make the perfect breakfast, quick snack, or light lunch. The pancakes come out with delightfully crisp and toasty edges and tender insides. You can choose what flavours to go with this depending on what you’re having with them. Going for a Mexican feel? then use black beans instead of peas and add cumin and oregano. Going for Italian? Then go for similar flavours as a risotto and think herbs and some tomatoes. I’ve gone for asian flavours here – if you’ve been reading the blog for a while you know that’s my go to – but feel free to personalise it to match what you’re looking for! Makes: Serves 2 Ingredients 2 Cups Rice, Cooked 4 Spring Onions, chopped 1/4 cup Chickpea Flour 1 Tbsp cornstarch 2 Tbsp Frozen Peas 1 Chia Egg 1 Tbsp Rice Vinegar 1 tsp Soy Sauce Substitute (see allergy note below) 1 Small Chilli, finely diced 1/2 Tbsp Furikake Seasoning (optional)* Salt to taste Directions Place the rice, soy sauce substitute, onions, peas and flours. Mix well with a fork or your hand, breaking down the rice a little. Now add the rest of the ingredients and stir to ensure everything is well combined. If you have time, cover and place in the fridge for 10 minutes to marinate. Place a few tablespoons of oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. When the pan is hot, add about a quarter cup of rice batter into the pan and press down with your spatula to make a pancake. Leave to brown, only turning once golden brown. Don’t touch or move the pancake before browned as they can be a little fragile before fully cooked. The pancake is ready once both sides are golden brown and toasty. Repeat with the batter until all cooked, adding oil as needed – they won’t cook evenly in a dry pan. I like to serve with dipping sauce. Notes *There is a wide range of seasoning available, make sure yours is both vegan and allergy friendly. I make my own (it’s great if you want something to do with leftover nori) but if it’s not your thing, or you just can’t find any, it’s ok to skip. Allergy Notes; I’m going to keep saying this – Soy Sauce is NOT gluten free as the brewing process contains wheat. A good gluten free option is Tamari which normally contains little to no gluten, is slightly less salty, and thicker than soy sauce. As always, check your brand to make sure you’ve not accidentally picked up one of the few brands which uses gluten. We use coconut aminos in our house, while not quite as rich as soy sauce, it’s both gluten free and soy free but different brands vary tremendously – you may have to look around before finding one that suits you. This recipe is vegan, gluten free, nut free and soy free

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Vegan Egg Fried Rice (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Mon, 13 Jul 2020 12:00:09 +0000

We’re doing a little series this week on Fakeaways. Recipes that you can easily cook at home that taste as good, if not better than what you’d order for a takeout. What’s more, when cooking at home you have the guarantee that everything will be vegan and match your allergy needs. Want it vegan? Of course you do! Need it gluten free? Not a problem here! Need to avoid soy? I’ve got you. Nuts are a problem? All of this week’s fakeaways are nut free. Today I present to you egg fried rice, no egg needed. A Chinese takeout classic, it’s also one of the best things you can do with leftover rice. I use the same method as my Chickpea scramble. The scramble tastes just like eggs and still gives the extra burst of protein. Full of flavour, this ‘egg’ fried rice is a perfect quick side dish to accompany your fakeaway and also makes a great snack when you’re tired to make a proper dinner. Makes: Serves 4 Ingredients 60g Chickpeas 12g Chickpea Flour 1/4 tsp Turmeric 1/8 tsp Black Salt 50ml Water 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce Substitute (See allergy note below) 2 Tbsp Oil 500g Cooked Rice 5 Spring Onions, sliced 2 Tbsp Frozen Peas 1/2 Tbsp Toasted Sesame Oil (Optional) Directions Whisk together the chickpea flour, turmeric, black salt, and water into a smooth batter. Lightly mash the chickpeas and gently stir into the batter. Place a wok onto a medium to high heat and add the oil. Once the oil has heated, swirl the chickpea batter to make a thin even layer. Once the chickpea batter starts to set, break up into a chickpea scramble. Add rice to the wok and stir fry until heated through. Add the rest of the ingredients and sir fry until the peas are bright green and just cooked. Serve with your favourite Chinese dishes. Notes If you prefer and heavier ratio of eggs to rice then feel free to increase the first 5 ingredients though I recommend tasting once your rice is cooked through you may want to add a touch more soy sauce to balance this out. Allergy Notes; If sesame seeds are an allergen for you then feel free to skip the sesame oil. I’m going to keep saying this – Soy Sauce is NOT gluten free as the brewing process contains wheat. A good gluten free option is Tamari which normally contains little to no gluten, is slightly less salty, and thicker than soy sauce. As always, check your brand to make sure you’ve not accidentally picked up one of the few brands which uses gluten. We use coconut aminos in our house, while not quite as rich as soy sauce, it’s both gluten free and soy free but different brands vary tremendously – you may have to look around before finding one that suits you.

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Loaded Congee Bowls (Vegan & Gluten Free)

Feast of Plants — Mon, 29 Jun 2020 12:00:19 +0000

Congee is a rice porridge that’s so prevalent in the asian subcontinant that is has many names. You might have heard of it as Jook, Kanji, Zhou, Bobar, Okayu …. I could go on. Incredibly easy to digest but still filling, in some countries it’s the perfect breakfast while also considered the perfect food for the sick. With thousands of years of history behind it, this dish is incredibly comforting and can be as plain or as interesting as you like. We prefer it for dinner with a load of interesting toppings, the bowl full enough to bursting, that you can stir through or eat with a bit of the congee at a time. Chilli aubergines, quick pickled vegetables like cucumber and radishes, meaty shitake mushrooms, crunch from some sesame seeds, and some seasoning from your favourite soy sauce substitute. It makes for a hearty broth that will comfort you with a spicy hug after a difficult day or if you crave a savoury breakfast it’ll work equally well to set you up for a long day. I prefer to cook mine in the instant pot as that makes it fuss free, just set it and walk away. I’ve also included instructions for cooking this on the stove. Like a lot of broths, this will need occasional attention to make sure if cooks evenly but it’s still easy to manage. Pickle your vegetables when the congee starts cooking so they’ve got plenty of time to finish marinading. In your last 10 minutes whip out your wok and stir fry your cooked toppings – easy! Makes: Serves 4 Ingredients For the Congee: 250ml Long Grain Rice (I like jasmine or basmati) 1.8 Ltr Vegetable stock or water 3 Garlic cloves, cut into thin strips 10g Fresh ginger, cut into thin strips 15g Dried Shiitake Mushrooms 5 Lime Leaves Salt, to taste For the Pickled Vegetables: 200g Cucumber, finely sliced 60g Radishes, cut into thin strips 160ml Rice Vinegar 1/4 cup Sugar 2 tsp Sesame Oil 1 tsp Chilli Flakes 1 tsp Salt For the Toppings: 1 Large Aubergine, diced 4 Garlic Cloves, minced 7g Fresh Ginger, diced 2 Tbsp Gochujang* 1/2 Tbsp Soy sauce Substitute (See allergy note below) 3 heads of Pak Choi, roughly chopped Oil for cooking Suggested optional toppings: Sliced Spring Onions Sesame Seeds Roasted Peanuts Soy Sauce (or your favourite substitute) Toasted Sesame Oil Chilli Oil Beansprouts Coriander Leaves Tempeh, stir fried with some soy sauce and sriracha Directions Optional: Rinsing your rice is completely up to you but will result in a less sticky congee. Wash the rice in a large bowl, swirling the grains and replacing the water until the water turns clear. Allow to drain well before cooking. Instant Pot Method: Place all the ingredients for the congee, apart from the salt, into the instant pot and stir to ensure they’re well combined. Lock on the lid and seal the vent before setting to cook on high for 20 minutes (or use the porridge button – congee is what it’s designed for). When the timer is complete, allow for a natural release. Stove Top Method: Put all your congee ingredients into a large, heavy bottomed pot. Bring to a boil, cover partially with a lid and reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer until the rice is meltingly soft, this should take between 45 mins to 1.5 hours depending on how soft you like your congee. Stir the congee occationally to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom, the more often you stir it, the more broken your rice grains and the creamer the congee. While waiting for it to cook, feel free to add another a touch more stock if you feel it’s getting too dry. While your congee is cooking, prepare the toppings. It’s best to start with your pickled cucumber and radishes so they have time to absorb the flavours. Pour all your pickle ingredients apart from the cucumber and radishes in a large jar**, seal with a lid and shake until the mix is fully combined and the sugar is dissolved. Add the cucumber and radishes, seal and shake again to make sure they’re fully coated. Place in the fridge until ready to serve. Place a wok on a medium to heat and add about a tablespoon of oil. Stir fry the aubergine until well browned and just starting to soften, remove from the pan and put to one side. Add another 2 tablespoons of oil to the wok along with the garlic, ginger, soy sauce, and gochujang. Simmer, stirring constantly, until fragrant and the garlic has softened. Add back the aubergine and stir fry until the aubergines are soft and the garlic has started to brown. Remove from the pan and put to one side. Wipe your wok clean, place back onto a high heat and add a touch more oil. When the oil starts to shimmer, throw in the pak choi. Stir fry until the leaves are bright green and just starting to wilt. When your congee is cooked, stir and taste, adding salt to taste. Don’t be too heavy handed with the salt as you need to leave room for the seasoning your toppings will bring. Remove the lime leaves and mushrooms from the pot. Throw the lime leaves away and put your mushrooms to one side so they can be used as a topping. Serve family style, so everyone can add their toppings to match their preference. Enjoy! Notes * Gochujang is a fermented Korean red chilli paste. If you are avoiding soy or can’t find any then Sriracha or your favourite chilli paste will make a decent substitute. ** I often like to use two separate jars for the cucumber and radishes. This stops the pink of the radishes from colouring the cucumber but is entirely a visual decision. Allergy Notes;Soy Sauce is NOT gluten free as the brewing process contains wheat. A good gluten free option is Tamari which normally contains little to no gluten, is slightly less salty, and thicker than soy sauce. As always, check your brand to make sure you’ve not accidentally picked up one of the few brands which uses gluten. We use coconut aminos in our house, while not quite as rich as soy sauce, it’s both gluten free and soy free but different brands vary tremendously – you may have to look around before finding one that suits you. If sesame seeds are an allergen for you then skip the oil from the pickles. This recipe is gluten free and vegan, it can be easily soy free and nut free if you follow the notes above.

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Tomato Risotto with Basil & Garlic Breadcrumbs (Vegan, Gluten Free & Nut Free)

Feast of Plants — Mon, 08 Jun 2020 12:00:34 +0000

Risotto is one of those comforting recipes that can seem so unapproachable when served in a restaurant but it’s really not! The secret to a traditional risotto is hot stock, and stirring – never stop stirring. it can be an extremely soothing way to end a stressful day to stand at your hob and gradually nurse a risotto to life. On the other hand, if you don’t have the time or inclination to stand there, constantly stirring, then just leave it to your pressure cooker. Seriously, with very little work you can have dinner ready in 15 to 20 minutes by just leaving the risotto to your pressure cooker. This creamy, rich, tasty risotto is my take on the Italian classic. It’s an incredibly simple dish that comes out greater than the sum of it’s parts. I’ve included instructions for both the stove top method and using a pressure cooker so you can try whichever works for you but I have to admit that more often than not I tend to just use the pressure cooker as its so much easier. If you want to take a look at the science of perfect risotto then Serious Eats did a brilliant article on this subject many years ago. I use their method for washing the rice to add to the creaminess but it’s entirely optional so if you’re short on time do feel free to skip this step. Credit should also be given to Laura at Hip Pressure Cooking who first mastered pressure cooker risotto here – give her site a look! Makes: Serves 2-3 Ingredients For the Risotto: 750ml Vegetable Stock 3 Tbsp Vegan Butter 400g Tinned Chopped Tomatoes 500ml Risotto Rice 1 tsp Vegan Fish Sauce ½ Tbsp Cider Vinegar* 2 Garlic Cloves, minced 1 Onion, chopped 1 Rib of Celery, very finely diced ½ tsp dried Basil ½ tsp dried Thyme 1 tsp Dried Rosemary 1 tsp Dried Oregano 1 tsp Smoked Paprika ½ Tbsp Nutritional Yeast 1 Medium Potato, very finely diced Salt & Pepper to taste For the Crispy Basil & Garlic Breadcrumbs: 2 Tbsp Oil 4-5 Basil leaves, roughly ripped 1 Slice of Gluten free bread, grated to form breadcrumbs 2 garlic cloves, minced or fine diced 1 tsp Nutritional Yeast ½ Tsp Chilli Flakes Salt & Pepper, to taste Optional Finishers: 3 Sun dried Tomato halves, thinly sliced Lemon Juice 1 Tbsp of vegan Creme Fraiche or Cream 150g Spinach Handful of Vegan Cheese Fresh Basil Directions I’ll start by walking you through the basil and garlic breadcrumbs, if you’re doing the risotto on the stove then I recommend doing this first as you won’t have time while doing all that stirring. However, if you’re leaving the risotto to your pressure cooker then I tend to throw the breadcrumbs together while the risotto is cooking – it all depends on what works best for you. Put a small fry pan on a high heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the basil leaves and allow to fry until bright green and just starting to crisp (this will take literally seconds so don’t look away). Add the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, or until fragment. Now turn the heat down to low and add your breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, chilli, and season well. Mix well and toast gently until the breadcrumbs are browned and crunchy, stirring occasionally. Put your breadcrumbs to one side until needed. Mix together your stock, fish sauce, and vinegar in a large bowl. Add your rice to this mix stir well to ‘wash’ your rice and remove the starch into your stock. Drain well into a separate bowl so that you retain all the starch you’ve just rinsed off and your rice is mostly dry. Now stir the tomatoes into your stock. If you’re cooking on the stove you’ll want to place this mix into a small pan and heat gently so it’s ready when you need it. Stove top Method; Add 2 Tbsp of your butter to a wide saute pan on a medium heat. when your butter has melted, add the chopped onion and celery, and saute until the onion is soft and translucent. Throw in your herbs, paprika, 1 tsp of salt, as well as the garlic and continue to cook until the onions have started to very gently brown. Add the potato and rice, stirring continuously and cook until the rice grains are translucent, ever so slightly golden and smell toasty. Use a dash of your stock to deglaze the pan (i.e. scrape up all the tasty brown stuff that’s stuck to the bottom) and now we’re ready to start adding the stock for real. Add your simmering stock mix a ladle full at a time, ensuring each addition is fully absorbed before adding the next and stirring well. Once all the stock is absorbed, taste your rice to ensure it’s cooked – you’re looking for soft rice that still has a slight bite to it. Stir in your last tablespoon of butter and season to taste. Instant Pot method; Place your instant pot onto saute and add 2 Tbsp of your butter. As with the method above, when your butter has melted add the chopped onion and celery, and saute until the onion is soft and translucent. Throw in your herbs, paprika, 1 tsp of salt, as well as the garlic and continue to cook until the onions have started to very gently brown. Add the potato and rice, stirring continuously and cook until the rice grains are translucent, ever so slightly golden and smell toasty. Turn of the saute function and use a dash of the stock mix to deglaze the pan. Add the rest of your stock and mix well. Seal the lid and set to cook for 6 minutes at high pressure. when the time is finished, do a quick pressure release. The risotto will look far too wet but stir well and the excess liquid will be adsorbed. Add your last tablespoon of butter, season to taste and stir until the butter is melted and mixed through. For either method you can add whichever finishers you feel it needs that day, if the risotto needs a burst of acidity then add a little lemon juice (this will often depend on the tomatoes). Spinach is a great addition and bumps up the amount of veg in your dish – just add with the butter and stir through until just wilted. If you’ve got some vegan creme fraiche or cream hanging around in your fridge then they can really up the creaminess of your dish. Serve topped with cheese (if that’s your thing), a good helping of the breadcrumbs you prepared earlier, and a few leaves of fresh basil. Notes * Traditionally, this should be white wine but I don’t drink so we never have any in the house. If you do then feel free to sub in about a quarter of a cup of white wine. Don’t mix this with the rest of the stock but use it at the deglazing stage instead of using the stock. move on to the next step when the wine has been fully absorbed. Allergy Notes; This should be naturally vegan, gluten free and nut free. As always, double check your stock for any allergens and if soy is an issue for you then check your vegan fish sauce – if you can’t find one without and need to skip the soy then feel free to skip it entirely.

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Vegan Store Cupboard Paella

Feast of Plants — Fri, 27 Mar 2020 12:00:09 +0000

There are days when I want dinner to remind me of summer and at the moment it feels like we’re almost there with the glorious weather we’ve been having. Paella is perfect for this, it has a warm fragrant burst of flavours that sing of Spain, sun, and long lazy afternoons with friends. My version is ideal for the moment when you might not be able to get to the shops and need to use the odds and ends in the cupboard. I’ve also made sure everything in this can be either frozen or shelf stable so you;re less reliant on leaving the house. This dish is warm, bright and easy – why not take it out in the garden and enjoy in the sun? Serves: 2 Ingredients 3 tbsp Oil 2 Onions* 1 Red Pepper** 1 Yellow Pepper** 3 Garlic Cloves* 2 Bay Leaves 1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika 1/2 tsp Turmeric 1/4 tsp Cayenne 150g Paella Rice 60ml Sherry (aprox) 1 tsp Saffron 500ml Vegetable Stock 200g Frozen Peas 8 Sundried Tomatoes 2 Artichoke Hearts*** A Large Handful of Pitted Kalamata Olives Handful of chopped parsley Lemon Wedges (Optional) Salt & Pepper to Taste Directions I like to start most of my cooking by doing my prep work and this recipe has less than most. Slice both your onions and peppers, so that both veg are cut into long strips. Crush your garlic cloves, roughly slice your tomatoes, dice the artichokes into bite size pieces (quarters work well here), and halve your olives either by roughly crushing them by hand or with a knife – both techniques work well. Heat the oil in a wide pan on a low heat and gently fry your onion until soft. Add the peppers, cook until they just start to brown then add your garlic and cook until it just starts to smell fragrant which should take no more than a minute. With the saffron to one side, add the rest of your spices and bay leaves to the veg and stir well. Then add your rice and combine well before adding your sherry and saffron to deglaze the pan. Boil down for a minute, then add the stock and a pinch of salt. Bring up to the boil then reduce the heat to the very minimum and simmer gently, uncovered and undisturbed, for 20 minutes or until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. Remove the pan from the heat, add the tomatoes, artichokes and peas. Stir through well but gently, the residual heat should cook the peas but try not to break up the rice. Taste and season. Cover the pan with a tight fitting lid** and leave to rest for at least 10 minutes. Scatter the olives on top of the paella and sprinkle with the parsley. Serve with a wedge of lemon. Notes *All the items flagged here can be found frozen – normally with the prep work already done! **If you’re using a bag of frozen peppers instead of fresh, this works well and a large handful should work ***You can get ‘shelf stable’ artichokes frozen (normally whole) or in jars in the Italian section – I tend to use the jars and the prep work is normally already done for you!

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