Rice Primavera
Rice Primavera
Easy | 1 HR | 4 Servings
Rice Primavera is a colorful and festive dish that’s a breeze to make.
I developed this dish after trying to make Pasta Primavera with gluten-free pasta I decided to try it will long-grain brown rice. There are many delicious gluten-free kinds of pasta on the market, but they can be a bit difficult to get just right and they tend to harden up as they sit, especially if it sits overnight. Rice solved the problem and is a real winner.
Everyone will enjoy Rice Primavera, whether they need to eat gluten-free or not.
For some extra flavor jasmine rice or basmati is absolutely delicious in this dish.
Ingredients
- ½ cup organic long-grain brown rice, brown jasmine, or brown basmati rice.
Washed then soaked for a minimum of 3 hours, up to overnight. - 1 to 1 ½ cups water – the amount of water will change depending on how long you soak the rice
- Pinch of salt
- 1 large carrot, julienne
- 1 medium zucchini, julienne
- 1 red pepper, sliced in ¼” thick strips
- 1 yellow pepper, sliced in ¼” thick strips
- 1 onion, quartered and sliced thinly – red onion is nice if you have it
- 1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence or Italian herb seasoning
- Organic olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste if needed
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste (optional)
- 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
- A few leaves of fresh basil, coarsely chopped
- ¾ grated Parmesan cheese (optional -leave out of the dish for vegans)
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 375º.
- Using a small pot, drain the rice, put it in the pot, and add the water and a tiny pinch of salt. Cover and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook until done – 20 to 40 minutes, depending on how long the rice has soaked.
- When the rice is done remove it from the pot and spread it out on a rimmed sheet pan to cool. Don’t stir it too much or it will become gummy. You want it to be light and fluffy.
- While the rice is cooking put the sliced carrot, zucchini, peppers, onion, and herbs on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, salt, and if using, pepper.
- Roast the veggies, stirring after the first 10 minutes. At this time check the texture of the veggies. If they have been cut fairly thinly they might be done in 10 minutes. If they are still raw then give them another 8 to 10 minutes.
- When the veggies are done toss together with the rice and add the tomatoes and fresh basil.
- Adjust the seasonings to taste if needed then put in a lovely bowl to serve.
- Put the grated parm on the table rather than adding it to the dish so those avoiding dairy can enjoy the dish also.