A simple vegan twist on a Creole favourite, dirty rice. This dish will transport you to Louisiana in just 20 minutes.
Traditionally, this rice dish gets its colour from being cooked with small pieces of meat, this dish uses vegan chorizo which gives off a beautiful deep red colour. Smokey aubergine, deep savoury kidney beans, zesty lime and sweet peppers all play part in bringing together the wonderful flavours this dish has to offer.
Ingredients
4 Vegan chorizo sausages
1 Leek
1 Small aubergine
1 Red bell pepper
4 Garlic cloves
5 Chestnut mushrooms
1 Tin Red kidney beans
3 Tbsp Cajun Spice mix (see below)
1 Vegetable stock cube
300ml Water
A handful of frozen peas
1 Pack brown basmati rice
Salt & Pepper
1 Chopped spring onion
1 Avocado, sliced
A drizzle of lime juice
Cajun Spice Mix
3 Tbsp Smoked Paprika
2 Tbsp Fine Sea Salt
2 Tbsp Garlic Powder
1 Tbsp Ground Black Pepper
1 Tbsp Onion Powder
1 Tbsp Dried Oregano
1 Tbsp Cayenne Pepper
1/2 Tbsp Dried Thyme
Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and store in a glass jar/spice jar. Ingredients should store for up to 6 months and this recipe calls for 3 Tbsp of Cajun Spice mix.
Method
Add a little oil to a heavy based pan or casserole dish, cut the chorizo into 1cm pieces, add to the pan and fry, breaking up into crumbled pieces as they cook.
Chop the leek, add to the pan and sauté until translucent. Dice the aubergine and red pepper into small cubes and add to the pan, stirring frequently. By now the sausage will have cooked and released it’s paprika rich oils.
Add the cajun spice mix and the garlic and give everything a good stir. Just before things start to stick, dissolve one vegetable stock cube in 300ml of water and add to the pan, ensuring you deglaze any sausage bits from the bottom. Chop and add the mushrooms, the kidney beans and cover and cook for 20 mins.
Once the kidney beans are soft, add a splash of water if things are looking a little too thick. Cook the brown basmati rice as per packet instructions (I used microwaveable rice to save time) and tip into the pan along with the frozen peas. Stir through, chop and add the spring onion, chopped coriander and a swig of lime juice to lift all those heavy, spicy flavours.
Serve in a bowl with sliced avocado, spring onions and fresh coriander leaves to garnish.
I hope you enjoyed this recipe if you want you can replace the sliced avocado on top with my guacamole.
H x
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