Crispy spiced chickpeas & roasted sweet potato pieces on a bed of golden with kale. A tangy vegan tahini yoghurt drizzle poured over this flavour bed makes the perfect weeknight meal for a low budget and even less time.

We’re living in peculiar times. It’s been over a month now that we have been practising a kind of self-quarantine here at my house. We only leave the house if absolutely necessary. We’ve reduced shopping trips to the store to the bare minimum and we make do with what we have at home. What I’ve learned from this is that simple dishes like this golden rice do not need any fancy ingredients to be absolutely delicious and satisfying. It’s the simple things, in cooking as well as in life in general, that make everything worthwhile. The moments spend with our loved ones. The stories and laughter shared around the table. And the satisfaction of a home cooked meal enjoyed in peace and tranquility.

Reducing my shopping trips to the bare minimum means that I meal-prep more often and make sure I cook with pantry ingredients as much as possible. This way I can ensure that there’s always delicious food on the table without having to run to the store multiple times a week. Saves me not only time but also gas money and a lot of nerves. I have to mention though, that I get a box of fresh veggies delivered to my doorstep every week. That’s a huge plus and keeps our little family supplied with fresh greens, fruit and other veggies that I like to use for my meals.

Also spices and fresh herbs make a huge difference in any meal, if you ask me. But especially when cooking with basic pantry ingredients. That’s why I make sure I always have fresh herbs either in my fridge (wrapped in a damp kitchen towel to keep them for longer) or growing in my garden beds or pots on my porch. When it comes to spices, some of my favourites are curry powder, garam masala, turmeric and hot roasted paprika powder – all of these are combined in this beautifully simple dish and through their combination this meal becomes a flavour explosion.

If you’ve followed me on Instagram or read some of my recipes here in the blog you know that I employ a no-fuss cooking approach. I try to keep pans to a minimum and I’m the proudest if I come up with a recipe that basically cooks itself – like this pasta, for example. It’s quite similar to this golden rice. Once you’ve got your sweet potatoes cut and seasoned, they go into the oven together with the chickpeas. Then you get your rice onto the stove and while all of it is cooking, you prepare the yoghurt drizzle and your garnishing. Easy peasy and all done under 30 Minutes!

I hope you enjoy this easy and straight-forward recipe. If you do so you would make my day if you leave a comment right here or on Instagram. Feel free to tag me @themellowkitchn and show me your creations of this dish!

From the bottom of my heart I hope that you and your families are well! And that it keeps that way. Make sure you eat healthy in these challenging times and I’m certain that soon enough we will look back at these times with relief.

Love always,

Anna

Golden Rice with crispy Chickpeas & Sweet Potato

Created by Anna on 24th April 2020

Prep Time: 10m
Cook Time: 15m
Total Time: 30m

Serves: 2
Yield: 2-4 portions
Category: all recipes, dinner, lunch, Main dish, Plantbased, Vegan, Vegetarian

Ingredients

For the golden rice

150 grams (2/3 cup) long-grain rice (e.g. basmati or jasmine)
1 tablespoon olive oil, ghee or coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon yellow curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 bunch kale or 125g baby spinach or swiss chard
1 lime

For the chickpeas

1 medium sweet potato (roughly 300g)
250 grams pre-cooked chickpeas (roughly 1 1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 teaspoon (smoked) paprika powder
Pinch of cayenne (optional)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

For the tahini drizzle

6 tablespoons (vegan) joghurt
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon tahini
1/2 teaspoon salt
fresh black pepper

For serving

fresh mint, cilantro or parsley

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 200°C (390° F) and prepare a baking dish or line a baking tray with backing paper.
Thoroughly wash your sweet potato (or peel if you prefer) and cut it into 1/2cm rounds or half rounds (about 1 € coin-sized). Put them in your baking tray, add drained chickpeas, garam masala, paprika powder, cayenne (if using), salt and olive oil. Mix until evenly coated. Place on the middle tray of your oven and bake for 15-20 minutes until the sweet potato pieces are tender.
Place a medium sized pot on a medium flame (you want to use a pot that would hold double the amount of rice as we need space after cooking the rice to add the kale). Once your pan is hot add a tablespoon of olive oil, ghee or coconut oil and immediately add spices. Stir and roast for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the rice and stir through until evenly coated. Add double the amount of water (325ml) and put on the lid. Once it starts boiling reduce the heat to low and cook for another 10mins.
Meanwhile wash and dry the kale (big stems removed) or other greens you are using. Cut into bite-sized pieces. If using kale, massage the kale with your hands until it becomes softer and vibrant green.
Once the rice has soaked up almost all liquid remove from stove. Add greens to the pot and let sit for 5 minutes. Add juice of 1/2-1 lime, put on lid and shake vigorously to combine.

For the tahini drizzle

Place all ingredients in a clean glass jar. Shake until it comes together and you have a homogeneous sauce. Set aside

For assembling

Stir through the rice and pour into a serving dish. Place cooked chickpeas and sweet potatoes on top of it. Add fresh mint, cilantro or parsley (chopped) and drizzle with the yoghurt tahini sauce (or serve at the side). Enjoy immediately!