Limey Cilantro Rice

A photo of prepping the limey rice.
Added the rice, cilantro and showing the limes (yes my limes are yellow (it is a dwarf Bearss lime), my lemons are golden color). Photo by PattyCooks.

Diet
[x] Flexitarian + Omnivore
[x] Vegan
[x] Vegetarian
[x] Pescatarian
[x] Gluten free
[x] Weight Maint
[O] Keto Diet
[x] Mediterranean 
[x] Lectin Avoidance: beans, grains, soy
[x] Oxalate Avoidance: nuts
[x] Purine Avoidance

Limey Cilantro Rice

A great base for grilled tofu, shrimp or chicken.

  • 2 Lime zest and juice (Zest and squeeze)
  • 1 Garlic clove (Minced and smashed)
  • 1 C Basmati rice (Rinse, then fry a bit in oil)
  • 1 t Olive oil
  • 1/4 C Organic Chickpea & Red Lentil Risoni (Trader Joe's has this Risoni)
  • 1.5 C Water
  • 1/2 C chopped cilantro (Use stems and leaves)

Prep

  1. Rinse the rice under running water, until the water is clear. Then let dry while you do other things.

  2. Set up a veggie workstation.

  3. Wash and chop the cilantro, stems and leaves, and set aside keeping the stem parts seperate from the leaves. (The stems + some leaves go into the rice; the leaves are used as a topping.)

  4. Wash and zest the limes, squeeze out the juice, and set both aside.

  5. Chop the cashews and set aside. This is a rough chop, nothing too fancy.

Cooking Rice

  1. Gently fry the rice in oil to release some of the aromatics.

  2. Then add the Risoni, 1/4C cilantro stems + some leaves, and water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, add half of the lime juice and zest, and put the lid on to cook ~15-20 minutes, until you see the holes in the rice.

  3. Then remove from the heat but keep covered until you are ready to use.

Serving

  1. When ready, mix in the remaining lime juice or zest, fluff and serve 3/4C per serving.

  2. Top with a portion of the remaining chopped cilantro, and cashews.

  3. Also serve with a lime wedge.

There are many versions of this dish out  there. But I wanted to up the protein in the dish and add a little bit of texture to rice. I serve this dish with grilled food, like tofu, shrimp or chicken as it adds a bit more flavor to the food. 

The only veggies I add is some chopped scallions (white and green parts) if I want some additional crunch.