I didn’t care much for olives back in the days. I’m glad to be obsessed with them now ; add olives to tuna, to tomato sauce, and get an instant umami boost. The very words of olives with tomatoes draw a bright ray of sunshine in my mind.
The rice dish I came up with has this Mediterranean vibe to it. Olives, red bell peppers, tomatoes and onions ; that sounds like bliss, right ?
You don’t even need meat to make this rice dish shine. Simply add beans -because rice & beans, no matter how – in this Louisiana version, or in this Italian one- is gorgeous.
Now you still want it to be alluring, not just a blob of dry rice, right ? Fear not, because avocadoes have your back. They bring this needed creaminess that makes each tablespoon glide oh so very well.
Here’s what to watch out for when making one-pan rice dishes in order to not end up with a gooey mess :
- Create texture by pan-frying some of the ingredients first. Here, you pan-fry the pork until golden and crispy;
- Don’t add all the ingredients at the same time. Each of them requires a different cooking time ; adjust accordingly;
- When adding rice, make sure you :
- Rinse it twice or thrice, and
- Toast it in hot oil.
- Trust we, I’ve done it without, and the grains end up sticking to each other, which you really don’t want.
Once you know that, there’s really nothing left that stands between you and a delicious, 40mn meal.
Between the creamy avocado, zingy lime and fresh cilantro leaves, you get a fragrant rice with beans with Mexican-ish influences, but also strongly European ones with very Mediterranean olives, bell peppers and tomatoes addition. I love a good fusion dish, and I’d say this is a pretty decent one !
One-pan Mediterranean rice & beans – Recipe
Ingredients – Where to find them
- You should be able to find all the ingredients at your usual grocery store.
- The liquid smoke is optional : find it on Amazon or at your local vegan/vegetarian/organic store.
- To make the dish fully vegetarian, simply use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock !
Recipe – Advice & key points
- As written above, make sure you rinse your rice before using. This will prevent it from getting sticky.
- This recipe yields enough fried rice for 5 portions as mains.
All set ? Let’s cook some sunny rice & beans !
One-pan Mediterranean rice & beans
Description
A quick and balanced veggie one-pan-rice, relying on a the classic rice & beans pairing bumped up by lime and cilantro, plus some generous avocado.
Ingredients
Toppings
For the spices mix
Instructions
Instructions
Prep your ingredients
Mince your onion, bell pepper, chili pepper, and garlic cloves. Get some broth ready.
Add oil to a pan on medium heat. Add your onion and red bell pepper. Add salt. Let them sweat (5-6mn).
Add your spices and mix. Cook 2mn.
Add garlic. Cook 30sec.
Add tomato concentrate, harissa & liquid smoke. Cook 1mn.
Add rice. Cook until translucent ~2mn.
Add diced tomatoes. Cook 2 to 3mn.
Add bay leaves, stock, and cover. Bring to a boil and lower the heat, letting it simmer ~20-22mn.
Finish it !
While the rice cooks, chop your cilantro and parsley, green chili peppers and olives ; slice your avocado.
5mn before the end, add your green chili peppers and beans.
When the rice is done, taste & adjust for salt. Turn the heat off.
Add lime juice, olives, cilantro & parsley. Stir delicately.
Serve, topping each plate with avocado (pinch of salt on the avocado).
Leave a lime quarter for each plate, to add more to taste.
Et voilà!! You're done!