Rice and broccoli
Rice and broccoli
"Rice and broccoli, doused in ordinary soy sauce, citrus-seasoned soy or sukiyake sauce, is a quick bowl-to-mouth supper" (Nigella, p422).
So, I was planning on making this simple meal for lunch on Saturday for Chris and I, but the best laid plans (well, mine anyway) inevitably go awry, and we decided to go out on my bike in the afternoon instead. Basically, at the ripe old age of 22 I am starting to learn how to ride a bike. I never had a bike or learned when I was little (something about living on the top of a hill!) and so I am really trying now, so Chris and I can go on bike rides together. My progress, for anyone that is interested, is slow and disastrous and yesterday I fell off and really hurt my knee!
Anyway, enough of that; I am beginning a new section; the broccoli section. In actual fact, this section is only two recipes long. If you do turn to that section, though, you will see that there are actually 3 recipes in said section; broccoli and carrots (for babies), rice and broccoli and purple-sprouting broccoli. I am not going to include the first recipe though, because as much as I do like carrots and broccoli, the actual recipe is for pureed baby food; food that I have neither the inclination or stomach for! So therefore, I am artificially shortening the broccoli section down from three, to two recipes. If anyone does have a baby or small child and fancies making the carrot and broccoli pureed, then I’ll happily add a link to it on my blog, in the spirit of making *everything* from How to Eat.
Anyway, I am really looking forward to this section, because it should be patently obvious by now, but I absolutely love broccoli. In fact, it has appeared many times throughout this blog, as the vegetable accompaniment to many of the things I have made already for this blog; I’m thinking especially of the rosemary and anchovy mayonnaise and the tagliata. That is because Chris and I can’t get enough of broccoli and in fact, it is one of my favourite vegetables.
This recipe seems good, also. It is very simple and very nutritious and has the added bonus of looking absolutely delicious. I really do have a fondness for brown rice. It is only recently that I have begun eating basmati rice; when I was younger I only ever used to eat brown rice, as it was the only rice that my dad ever used to cook. We used to eat it in salads, with chilli con carne…anything, really.
So, it should be very obvious that I am really looking forward to this recipe for many reasons. The main reason, I suppose, is that the recipe is low fat (much needed right now!) and very simple. So, then, this is a recipe for rice and broccoli, doused in ordinary soy sauce. Nigella does provide other serving suggestions (for example citrus-seasoned soy or sukiyaki sauce), but I am going with plain old soy sauce!
Ingredients: There are only 3 ingredients in this recipe; broccoli, rice and soy sauce. As mentioned, I have chosen brown rice over basmati – easily available in any supermarket, I used Tescos “whole foods” brown wholegrain rice– and ordinary soy sauce (as I already have this at home) over citrus-seasoned soy or sukiyaki sauce. The broccoli and brown rice are easily available in any supermarket; I brought mine from Tescos.
Price: For some reason, Tescos grossly undercharged me for the broccoli. I was using those “self service” tills and for some reason when I weighed the 2 massive florets of broccoli I had picked up, the till coded them as “onions” and only charged me £0.50. I only realised this when I get home! As an aide, I have noticed that those “self service” tills have done this to me before. Sometimes, I have left Tescos and only realised afterwards that I haven’t paid for a good few items! Maybe it’s time I stopped using those tills! Anyway, the “onions” and the brown rice totalled £1.03. Soy sauce, as I mentioned, we already have at home.
So, I was planning on making this simple meal for lunch on Saturday for Chris and I, but the best laid plans (well, mine anyway) inevitably go awry, and we decided to go out on my bike in the afternoon instead. Basically, at the ripe old age of 22 I am starting to learn how to ride a bike. I never had a bike or learned when I was little (something about living on the top of a hill!) and so I am really trying now, so Chris and I can go on bike rides together. My progress, for anyone that is interested, is slow and disastrous and yesterday I fell off and really hurt my knee!
Anyway, enough of that; I am beginning a new section; the broccoli section. In actual fact, this section is only two recipes long. If you do turn to that section, though, you will see that there are actually 3 recipes in said section; broccoli and carrots (for babies), rice and broccoli and purple-sprouting broccoli. I am not going to include the first recipe though, because as much as I do like carrots and broccoli, the actual recipe is for pureed baby food; food that I have neither the inclination or stomach for! So therefore, I am artificially shortening the broccoli section down from three, to two recipes. If anyone does have a baby or small child and fancies making the carrot and broccoli pureed, then I’ll happily add a link to it on my blog, in the spirit of making *everything* from How to Eat.
Anyway, I am really looking forward to this section, because it should be patently obvious by now, but I absolutely love broccoli. In fact, it has appeared many times throughout this blog, as the vegetable accompaniment to many of the things I have made already for this blog; I’m thinking especially of the rosemary and anchovy mayonnaise and the tagliata. That is because Chris and I can’t get enough of broccoli and in fact, it is one of my favourite vegetables.
This recipe seems good, also. It is very simple and very nutritious and has the added bonus of looking absolutely delicious. I really do have a fondness for brown rice. It is only recently that I have begun eating basmati rice; when I was younger I only ever used to eat brown rice, as it was the only rice that my dad ever used to cook. We used to eat it in salads, with chilli con carne…anything, really.
So, it should be very obvious that I am really looking forward to this recipe for many reasons. The main reason, I suppose, is that the recipe is low fat (much needed right now!) and very simple. So, then, this is a recipe for rice and broccoli, doused in ordinary soy sauce. Nigella does provide other serving suggestions (for example citrus-seasoned soy or sukiyaki sauce), but I am going with plain old soy sauce!
Ingredients: There are only 3 ingredients in this recipe; broccoli, rice and soy sauce. As mentioned, I have chosen brown rice over basmati – easily available in any supermarket, I used Tescos “whole foods” brown wholegrain rice– and ordinary soy sauce (as I already have this at home) over citrus-seasoned soy or sukiyaki sauce. The broccoli and brown rice are easily available in any supermarket; I brought mine from Tescos.
Price: For some reason, Tescos grossly undercharged me for the broccoli. I was using those “self service” tills and for some reason when I weighed the 2 massive florets of broccoli I had picked up, the till coded them as “onions” and only charged me £0.50. I only realised this when I get home! As an aide, I have noticed that those “self service” tills have done this to me before. Sometimes, I have left Tescos and only realised afterwards that I haven’t paid for a good few items! Maybe it’s time I stopped using those tills! Anyway, the “onions” and the brown rice totalled £1.03. Soy sauce, as I mentioned, we already have at home.
(Broccoli, brown rice and soy sauce)
Method: This is really easy to make. Firstly, I made the brown rice and I did this by following the instructions on the back of the rice packet. I think I used about 200g for both of us, although I didn’t weigh it out. I found that it was ready after 15 minutes simmering time, instead of the 20minutes suggested by the rice packet!
I then prepared the broccoli by boiling it. I used one massive floret of broccoli; you can see by the picture how big it was. Now, as I have mentioned many times, I have an obsessional aversion to overcooked vegetables and this often results in blatantly undercooked food. I made certain sure, then not to undercook the broccoli and boiled it properly for about 8 minutes until it was definitely, certainly tender. I then drained the florets and sprinkled them *very* liberally with soy sauce. I must have used about 2 tablespoons. This may seem like a lot, but I do love soy sauce and so does Chris.
After that I divided the brown rice between two bowls, added the soy drenched broccoli atop (about half a dozen pieces or more each) and twisted over a good measure of black pepper. Hey presto; a quick and simple lunch.
I then prepared the broccoli by boiling it. I used one massive floret of broccoli; you can see by the picture how big it was. Now, as I have mentioned many times, I have an obsessional aversion to overcooked vegetables and this often results in blatantly undercooked food. I made certain sure, then not to undercook the broccoli and boiled it properly for about 8 minutes until it was definitely, certainly tender. I then drained the florets and sprinkled them *very* liberally with soy sauce. I must have used about 2 tablespoons. This may seem like a lot, but I do love soy sauce and so does Chris.
After that I divided the brown rice between two bowls, added the soy drenched broccoli atop (about half a dozen pieces or more each) and twisted over a good measure of black pepper. Hey presto; a quick and simple lunch.
(Cooked brown rice, draining)
Result: WOW! I absolutely loved this lunch. It was simple, classy and very delicious. The brown rice was absolutely superb. I haven’t eaten it for so long, I will admit that I had forgotten how truly delicious it actually is. It is very starchy and wheaty and has much more body than basmati rice. It is very filling and feels virtuous, but also lovely to eat. In fact, I wish I had made more than the 200g (and thus 100g each).
The broccoli itself was absolutely delightful. I am so glad that I made the effort and had the willpower to cook it properly. It was really lovely and very tender. It tasted emphatically of itself; very fresh, green and alive, but it was truly fabulous with the soy sauce, which added spicy and deep notes of flavour to the vegetables. I had also added a good twist of black pepper and I’m very glad I did, because it added more crucial notes of flavour to the whole meal. All in all, this meal was absolutely gorgeous and it reminded me of some of those lovely and unexpected side dishes which are sometimes brought out in Chinese restaurants. In fact, this did have very Asian-inspired flavours and ingredients and it was certainly all the better for it.
This was a real pleasure to eat, and I found myself looking around for more after I had finished my bowlful. Chris did, too, and I heroically forfeited my share of leftovers to him. It is made even better by the fact that this is actually a low-fat meal. The broccoli itself is very healthy and although the rice is quite calorific, it does contain essential vitamin B, which, according to the rice packet “…works with other B vitamins to help release energy from foods.”
Perhaps the nicest thing about this meal is that I just did not expect it to be so nice. I do like broccoli and I do like rice, but together with soy sauce they turn into something much more than the sum of their respective parts. Added to the facts that this is low-fat and easy, simple and quick to prepare, surely must make this one of the most perfect lunches.
The broccoli itself was absolutely delightful. I am so glad that I made the effort and had the willpower to cook it properly. It was really lovely and very tender. It tasted emphatically of itself; very fresh, green and alive, but it was truly fabulous with the soy sauce, which added spicy and deep notes of flavour to the vegetables. I had also added a good twist of black pepper and I’m very glad I did, because it added more crucial notes of flavour to the whole meal. All in all, this meal was absolutely gorgeous and it reminded me of some of those lovely and unexpected side dishes which are sometimes brought out in Chinese restaurants. In fact, this did have very Asian-inspired flavours and ingredients and it was certainly all the better for it.
This was a real pleasure to eat, and I found myself looking around for more after I had finished my bowlful. Chris did, too, and I heroically forfeited my share of leftovers to him. It is made even better by the fact that this is actually a low-fat meal. The broccoli itself is very healthy and although the rice is quite calorific, it does contain essential vitamin B, which, according to the rice packet “…works with other B vitamins to help release energy from foods.”
Perhaps the nicest thing about this meal is that I just did not expect it to be so nice. I do like broccoli and I do like rice, but together with soy sauce they turn into something much more than the sum of their respective parts. Added to the facts that this is low-fat and easy, simple and quick to prepare, surely must make this one of the most perfect lunches.
(Raw broccoli drained)
Other person’s perspective: Chris said that he feels that rice alone is pretty boring; broccoli is all right (shocker! I thought he loved it!), but that together with soy sauce this makes a meal that he would pay to eat in a restaurant as a vegetable side-dish. He said that this was lovely. He loved the taste of the broccoli with brown rice and the soy sauce totally and utterly transformed the meal. He said that this MUST be tried!
(Broccoli cooking)
Future changes: Chris said that you must add black pepper as I did and that it might be an idea to use egg fried rice (Nigella has a recipe for this in Feast). He also said that this would be great as a side dish to some meat; barbeque sticky ribs or pork chops; even chicken.
(Cooked broccoil, draining)
Rating: 5/5.
Labels: Broccoli
