Golden Coconut Rice with Greens and Crispy Chickpeas
by Sarah Jane Kenner, April 9th, 2020.
Cooking is an essential part of my self-care routine. Whether it’s a sit-down dinner at home or a packed lunch at work, it is so satisfying to put in the effort and be well-fed as a result.
As a freelance musician who moonlights as a food blogger, four things are key when I plan my meals: ease, budget, nutritional value, and flavor. I’m very opinionated when it comes to how my food tastes, but I also need it to keep me energized. I also value cooking and eating affordably, no matter what my schedule throws at me. Typically, this might mean long days of back-to-back teaching and gigs. Right now, this means a global pandemic, and 2020 threw it at all of us.
It’s quite surreal – it seems like yesterday that I was buzzing around New York City with my violin in tow. Now, I’m hunkered down with my family outside the city for the foreseeable future. I am grateful every day for their health and mine, but it puts a lot of things into perspective. I hope all of you who are reading this are healthy and safe as well, whether you’re able to stay at home or are so bravely doing the essential work that’s keeping our world turning. This situation is affecting us all differently, but I think something that unifies us is seeking comfort wherever we can find it.
I’ve been taking comfort in cooking, and if I do say so myself, this rice dish is the ultimate healthy comfort food. It’s quarantine-friendly AND will serve as an easy weeknight meal when we’re all back to business as usual! Start to finish, it takes about thirty minutes. It leans heavily on pantry staples, all comes together in one pot, and is highly versatile – you can customize it based on what you have in the pantry (see below for suggested substitutions). You can easily refrigerate or freeze it to capitalize on leftovers, making it a perfect quick, nourishing, make-ahead meal.
Golden Coconut Rice with Greens and Crispy Chickpeas
Ingredients:
- 2 tbs. coconut oil
- 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and patted dry
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- ¾ tsp salt, plus extra for seasoning
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
- Black pepper to taste
- 2 cups dry jasmine rice, rinsed
- 1 15 oz. can coconut milk
- 1 can’s worth vegetable broth or water
- 1 large bunch (4-5 cups) hearty greens, i.e. kale, chard, leaves de-stemmed and torn.
- Sesame seeds to serve (optional)
Instructions:
How to cook Golden Coconut Rice with Greens and Crispy Chickpeas
- Heat half (1 tbs.) of the coconut oil over medium-high heat in a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot.
- When the oil is hot, add the chickpeas and season with pepper. While the chickpeas crisp up (about 3 minutes per side), prepare your onion and garlic.
- When chickpeas are browned and crispy, remove them from the pot and set aside.
- Lower the heat to medium-low. Add the remaining coconut oil, onion, and garlic to the pot. Stir frequently until softened, about 5 minutes.
- Add the ¾ tsp. salt, turmeric, ginger, and cayenne. Stir for a minute or so until fragrant.
- Add the rice and coconut milk. Fill the coconut milk can with broth or water and add to the pot. Stir, raise the heat to high, and bring the mixture to a boil.
- Once boiling, lower the heat to simmer. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. In the meantime, prepare your greens (wash, de-stem, tear, etc).
- When 10 minutes is up, arrange the greens on top of the rice and season them with salt to taste. Cover and let cook for 5 more minutes.
- Turn the heat off and let the pot rest, covered, for 5 additional minutes.
- Remove the lid. Add chickpeas, garnish with sesame seeds, and serve.
Notes:
Bio:
Sarah Jane Kenner is a violinist and food blogger based in New York City. Sarah specializes in early music (baroque violin), performing frequently with top period instrument ensembles in venues such as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Washington National Cathedral, the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, and Trinity Church Wall Street. She holds performance degrees from The Juilliard School, the Manhattan School of Music, and Temple University. On her food blog, "The Hungry Musician," Sarah enjoys providing wholesome and flavorful recipes and discussing how they integrate into her life as a freelance musician.
For more recipes, visit Sarah on Instagram @hungrymusician or at www.thehungrymusician.com. To follow along with Sarah's musical engagements and projects, visit www.sjkviolin.com.