The trick with the fragrant rice and lentils is to get flavour into the dish and smoked bacon gives great flavour. You could use left over ham or chicken.
This is a great one-pan dish. I always keep lentils in the cupboard as they are handy to have for lots of meals and soups. This is not a spicy dish. Turmeric is a mild spice so good for children.
There are nice green vegetables and mushrooms in it. You could add onions, courgettes or peppers if you like.
You could also add garlic into this recipe and fresh chilli instead of the chilli powder.
There is ginger in both recipes. If you leave the skin on ginger it tastes stronger. Here is a tip for ginger.
What we normally do in the restaurant is peel the ginger, wrap it in cling film, and freeze it. You can then grate the frozen ginger immediately.
The vegetable and chicken korma is much spicier. I am a great fan of Athlone-based OHCo. and there is a good Green Saffron korma made by Arun Kapil and team in Cork.
Chickpeas lack flavour but they do give nice texture. They bulk it up and give roughage. This korma is also good with turkey or pork.
Happy cooking,
Neven
Fragrant rice with lentils & bacon. \ Photography: Philip Doyle. Food styling: Sharon Hearne-Smith
Vegetable & chicken korma
Serves four
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
2.5cm (1in) piece, root ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 tbsp mild curry powder or paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
225g (8oz) stir-fry chicken strips
350ml (12fl oz) jar korma sauce (or you could use 175ml/6fl oz) vegetable or chicken stock and a small tin (180g) of coconut milk if preferred)
4 tbsp water
100g (4oz) canned chickpeas, rinsed
10 cooked peeled baby potatoes, halved or quartered
2 firm vine-ripened tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
fresh coriander, to garnish
1 Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion, garlic and ginger for a few minutes until softened and just beginning to colour, stirring occasionally. Stir in the curry powder or paste with the cumin seeds and cook for another minute or so, stirring. Add the chicken and continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes until lightly golden. Pour in the korma sauce (or stock and coconut milk) with the water, stirring to combine and bring to a simmer. Season to taste.2 Add the chickpeas, potatoes and tomatoes to the pan and simmer for about 5 minutes until heated through, stirring occasionally. 3 Spoon into bowls and scatter over the coriander sprigs to garnish and serve at once. Fragrant rice with lentils & bacon
Serves four
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 onions, halved and cut lengthways into slivers
100g rindless bacon rashers, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp freshly grated root ginger
100g/4oz mushrooms, sliced
1 tsp ground turmeric
1-2 tsp mild chilli powder
350g (12oz) cooked rice
400g (14oz) can green lentils, drained and rinsed
100g (4oz) baby spinach leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Heat a wok or large frying pan until searing hot. Add the oil and then tip in the onions and bacon and stir fry for 4-5 minutes until they are sizzling and just starting to brown. 2 Tip the garlic into the wok with the ginger and mushrooms, season and continue to stir fry for another 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are just tender. Add the turmeric and enough chilli powder to taste (depending on how hot you like your food), stirring well to combine.3 Add the rice and lentils to the onion mixture with the spinach and continue to stir fry for another 2-3 minutes or until the rice is thoroughly hot and has picked up plenty of colour. Season to taste and divide among wide rimmed bowls to serve. What’s in season?
Mushrooms are a favourite vegetable to eat with your morning fry-up, but did you know they’re chock-full of essential B vitamins and minerals? 
While the main season for wild mushrooms generally takes place in early to late autumn, cultivated mushrooms are in season and there are several Irish producers that specialise in the more common varieties.
You could get adventurous and try shiitake mushrooms instead of the more standard button, chestnut or portobello. Shiitakes have a firm, meaty texture which makes them perfect for Asian-inspired recipes, like Neven’s fragrant rice.
If wild foraged mushrooms interest you, you’ll find blewits, scarlet elf cups, oysters and winter chanterelles at this time of year, with delicious morels due to arrive in the next few weeks. You can order exotic Irish-grown mushrooms online from fancyfungi.ie or find wild Ballyhoura Mountain Mushrooms at The Milk Market in Limerick or Mahon Point Farmers Market in Cork.
The trick with the fragrant rice and lentils is to get flavour into the dish and smoked bacon gives great flavour. You could use left over ham or chicken.
This is a great one-pan dish. I always keep lentils in the cupboard as they are handy to have for lots of meals and soups. This is not a spicy dish. Turmeric is a mild spice so good for children.
There are nice green vegetables and mushrooms in it. You could add onions, courgettes or peppers if you like.
You could also add garlic into this recipe and fresh chilli instead of the chilli powder.
There is ginger in both recipes. If you leave the skin on ginger it tastes stronger. Here is a tip for ginger.
What we normally do in the restaurant is peel the ginger, wrap it in cling film, and freeze it. You can then grate the frozen ginger immediately.
The vegetable and chicken korma is much spicier. I am a great fan of Athlone-based OHCo. and there is a good Green Saffron korma made by Arun Kapil and team in Cork.
Chickpeas lack flavour but they do give nice texture. They bulk it up and give roughage. This korma is also good with turkey or pork.
Happy cooking,
Neven
Fragrant rice with lentils & bacon. \ Photography: Philip Doyle. Food styling: Sharon Hearne-Smith
Vegetable & chicken korma
Serves four
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely grated
2.5cm (1in) piece, root ginger, peeled and finely grated
1 tbsp mild curry powder or paste
1 tsp cumin seeds
225g (8oz) stir-fry chicken strips
350ml (12fl oz) jar korma sauce (or you could use 175ml/6fl oz) vegetable or chicken stock and a small tin (180g) of coconut milk if preferred)
4 tbsp water
100g (4oz) canned chickpeas, rinsed
10 cooked peeled baby potatoes, halved or quartered
2 firm vine-ripened tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
fresh coriander, to garnish
1 Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion, garlic and ginger for a few minutes until softened and just beginning to colour, stirring occasionally. Stir in the curry powder or paste with the cumin seeds and cook for another minute or so, stirring. Add the chicken and continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes until lightly golden. Pour in the korma sauce (or stock and coconut milk) with the water, stirring to combine and bring to a simmer. Season to taste.2 Add the chickpeas, potatoes and tomatoes to the pan and simmer for about 5 minutes until heated through, stirring occasionally. 3 Spoon into bowls and scatter over the coriander sprigs to garnish and serve at once. Fragrant rice with lentils & bacon
Serves four
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
2 onions, halved and cut lengthways into slivers
100g rindless bacon rashers, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp freshly grated root ginger
100g/4oz mushrooms, sliced
1 tsp ground turmeric
1-2 tsp mild chilli powder
350g (12oz) cooked rice
400g (14oz) can green lentils, drained and rinsed
100g (4oz) baby spinach leaves
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Heat a wok or large frying pan until searing hot. Add the oil and then tip in the onions and bacon and stir fry for 4-5 minutes until they are sizzling and just starting to brown. 2 Tip the garlic into the wok with the ginger and mushrooms, season and continue to stir fry for another 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are just tender. Add the turmeric and enough chilli powder to taste (depending on how hot you like your food), stirring well to combine.3 Add the rice and lentils to the onion mixture with the spinach and continue to stir fry for another 2-3 minutes or until the rice is thoroughly hot and has picked up plenty of colour. Season to taste and divide among wide rimmed bowls to serve. What’s in season?
Mushrooms are a favourite vegetable to eat with your morning fry-up, but did you know they’re chock-full of essential B vitamins and minerals?
While the main season for wild mushrooms generally takes place in early to late autumn, cultivated mushrooms are in season and there are several Irish producers that specialise in the more common varieties.
You could get adventurous and try shiitake mushrooms instead of the more standard button, chestnut or portobello. Shiitakes have a firm, meaty texture which makes them perfect for Asian-inspired recipes, like Neven’s fragrant rice.
If wild foraged mushrooms interest you, you’ll find blewits, scarlet elf cups, oysters and winter chanterelles at this time of year, with delicious morels due to arrive in the next few weeks. You can order exotic Irish-grown mushrooms online from fancyfungi.ie or find wild Ballyhoura Mountain Mushrooms at The Milk Market in Limerick or Mahon Point Farmers Market in Cork.
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