Halloumi Spiced Rice

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Jasmine

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Do you ever start with a recipe and it goes through so many iterations that it barely resembles the original dish? That was my path with this rice dish which I originally made 2 years ago! I guess that’s the cool thing about cooking; you can be inspired by a dish and end up creating something new… so, let’s do my optimised halloumi spiced red rice.

INGREDIENTS

Vegetables:

Carrot

Red pepper (bell or sweet)

Tomatoes (any will do!)

Cavolo Nero (or another variety of kale)

Cheese:

Cypriot halloumi

Aromatics and flavouring:

Ginger

Garlic

Shallot

Turmeric

Ras el hanout (spice blend)

Rice:

Easy-cook long grain rice

Vegetable stock

Toppings:

Tahini

Lime

Fresh parsley

Almond flakes

TIPS

This is a simple dish which is why I love it for weeknights. My main recommendation is to limit the amount of added salt; halloumi is salty and there’s a decent amount of salt in most vegetable stock, so don’t add more on autopilot and ensure you’re tasting as you go! You may even want to rinse off the halloumi before cutting it into chunks and pan-frying it to get rid of some of the excess salt. If you want to bulk this up a little or increase the fibre content of this meal then you can add a can of drained chickpeas in at the same time as the kale.

Halloumi Spiced Rice

  • Servings: 3-4
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

Halloumi rice bowl with spices and vegetables

No special equipment or advance prep needed

Ingredients

  • 1 shallot (finely chopped)
  • 2 cloves of garlic (finely chopped, crushed or grated)
  • c. 3cm of ginger (finely chopped)
  • 1 tsp of ras el hanout
  • 1 tsp of turmeric
  • 1 carrot (peeled and grated)
  • 1 red pepper (cut into chunks)
  • 1 medium tomato (chopped)
  • 150g of easy cook long-grain rice
  • 1 vegetable stock cube (dissolved in 250-300ml of boiling water immediately before use)
  • 225g of halloumi (cubed)
  • 100g of kale (de-stemmed and roughly chopped)
  • Juice of 1 lime (+ extra lime for garnish, if you wish)
  • 1 tbsp of tahini
  • 1-2 tbsp of very cold water
  • A small handful of parsley (c.2g) (finely chopped)
  • 10g of almond flakes
  • Olive oil for cooking
  • Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

  1. Boil the kettle
  2. Over a low-medium heat – in a large, wide-based lidded pan, toast the almond flakes for a couple of minutes before removing from the heat
  3. Then increase to a medium-high heat, add the halloumi cubes and fry, turning regularly until all sides are golden (this should take around 7 minutes total)
  4. Remove the halloumi (wipe down the pan, if needed) then add some olive oil over a medium heat
  5. Add the garlic, ginger and shallot and sauté for a couple of minutes until fragrant – season with pepper and minimal salt (as the halloumi and stock are salty)
  6. Add the carrot and cook for 5-7 minutes until softened, then add the tomato and red pepper and cook for a further
  7. Prepare the stock with the boiled water
  8. Add the rice to the pan and toast for a couple of minutes before adding the stock, increasing the heat to high and putting on the lid – once it comes to a boil, reduce the heat and cook for a further 10-15 minutes
  9. Whilst you wait, combine the tahini, lime juice and very cold water, whisking together into a creamy dressing
  10. Add the kale, stir and cover to cook for 3-5 minutes until steamed
  11. Add the halloumi and stir through
  12. Serve topped with fresh parsley, toasted alongs and tahini and lime dressing

Let me know if you try this tasty weeknight favourite of mine!

See how I create this dish here:

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