Prep Tim 10 min Cook time 20 min
Diced dried apricots, roasted chestnuts and a little tomato paste give this rice dish a festive color and flavor.
The Internet can be very demoralizing.
Here I am staring at a blank computer screen trying to get inspired and come up with an original festive recipe for my blog and Eureka! I think I have thought of one. Festive rice.
As I always do, I double check with Google to see what is out there that may be similar and would you believe there is Brazilian Christmas rice, there is a Trinidadian version, a Dominican recipe and a Filipino one. There is also a Peruvian combination, one from Puerto Rico and a Nigerian one and that excludes all kinds of rice desserts from Scandinavian and Eastern European countries.
So much for original thought.
Despite that I will press on with my own contribution because I love rice and when cooked with other ingredients, I always associate it with a special occasion. In Cairo where I grew up we had a rice dish made with toasted pine nuts, browned vermicelli and raisins that had a place at our table for weekends or special occasions. I dubbed it Egyptian Rice and you can check out the recipe here.
This festive season, I wanted to create something even richer so I added some diced dried apricots and roasted chestnuts that give the dish a more fruity and buttery texture and cooked it in a little tomato paste to give it an appropriate festive color and flavor. I christened that dish Egyptian Festive Rice so if you want an easy side dish that is a little on the exotic side you should try it.
Egyptian Festive Rice
by
Derek Farwagi
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp vegetable or grape seed oil
- ¼ cup cracked vermicelli strands (vermicelli usually comes in birds nest-like bundles so you need to crack one in your hand into shorter lengths)
- ¼ cup pine nuts or slivered almonds
- ½ cup red raisins
- ½ cup cubed roasted chestnuts (packaged or tinned) cut into 1/2 inch chunks
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 2 ¼ cups water (or chicken stock for a richer result) You want enough liquid to have a 1 inch depth above all the ingredients.
- 3 tbs tomato paste
- ¼ cup coarsely chopped dried apricots
Instructions
- In a saucepan, sauté the almonds or pine nuts with 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil on a medium heat for a couple of minutes stirring often.
- Crush the vermicelli into small lengths and with a small spoon mix in with the nuts until all the mixture is coated with oil. Keep stirring every 15 seconds or so until the mixture begins to turn an even light gold color. It will take a couple of minutes to complete the browning.
- Remove from fire. The hot oil will continue to cook the mixture and keep stirring until you are happy with the color.
- Add rice and mix well.
- Add 2 cups of stock or water, 3 tablespoons of tomato paste, stir well, salt to taste and bring to a vigorous boil. (You want enough liquid to have a 1 inch depth above all the ingredients).
- Reduce heat to a very gentle simmer and cook with lid on for 15-20 minutes.
- At the 10 minute mark, mix in the raisins and apricots.
- At the 20 minute mark, the rice should be cooked. Fluff up the rice, add the chestnuts and serve.
Kate
I tried your chicken and Tahini sauce recipe and it was a big hit. Everyone loved it. Definitely one to be repeated.
Derek Farwagi
Hi Aysar. We are thoroughly enjoying being back.
Sorry you had trouble locating the recipe link and here it is.
https://amediterraneangourmet.com/egyptian-christmas-rice-recipe/
Aysar akrawi
Derek hope you are enjoying your tour of Egypt! I like your Xmas rice recipe but sadly am unable to find the recipe. I saw other rice recipes but not the Xmas reddish one. Whereas the other two recipes have a link to the recipes this one does not.