Tomato rice

How to make Tomato rice recipe

Serves 4

Preparation time 5 minutes, plus soaking and standing, Cooking time 15 minutes

Ingredients:
225 g (7½ oz) basmati rice
25 g (1 oz) butter
1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
4–6 black peppercorns
1 clove
1 cinnamon stick
50 g (2 oz) frozen peas
200 g (7 oz) can chopped tomatoes
2 tablespoons tomato purée
475 ml (16 fl oz) boiling water
2 tablespoons chopped fresh coriander
salt and pepper

Method:
Rinse the basmati rice under cold running water, put it in a bowl and cover with cold water. Soak for 15 minutes, then drain well.

Heat the butter in a large heavy-based saucepan, add the onion, garlic, cumin, peppercorns, clove and cinnamon and stir-fry for 2–3 minutes. Add the peas, tomatoes, tomato purée and drained rice and stir-fry for another 2–3 minutes.

Add the boiling water and coriander, season with salt and pepper and bring back to the boil. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Do not lift the lid because the steam is required for the cooking process.

Remove the pan from the heat and leave the rice to stand, covered and undisturbed, for 8–10 minutes. To serve, fluff up the grains of rice with a fork.

For quick paella-style rice, soak the rice as above. Stir-fry the onion and garlic as above, omitting the cumin, clove and cinnamon. Add 1 cored, deseeded and chopped yellow pepper and 150 g (5 oz) diced chorizo with the peas, tomatoes and rice, omitting the tomato purée, and stir-fry as above.

Add the boiling water, 1 teaspoon saffron threads and 1 teaspoon paprika, season with salt and pepper and cook as above. Midway through the steaming process, add 200 g (7 oz) cooked frozen large prawns, then continue cooking with the lid on for 3 minutes until the prawns are piping hot. Serve as above.

Tomato rice