Purple sprouting broccoli with bacon, wild garlic and camargue rice

Vegetarian mains

Purple sprouting broccoli with bacon, wild garlic and camargue rice

Name: Purple sprouting broccoli with bacon, wild garlic and camargue rice
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4

Main Serves 4 40 min

This healthy dish makes a good, inexpensive weeknight meal-in-a-bowl. Camargue red rice has a lovely deep, nutty flavour and cooks down to be much softer than wholegrain brown rice. If you can't get hold of any, use brown basmati or a mixture of brown and wild rice. You could also try making this with quinoa. If you'd like a vegetarian version, just leave out the bacon.

Ingredients

1 litre veg stock (or water)
200g Camargue red rice, rinsed and drained
250g purple sprouting broccoli
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely sliced
8 smoked streaky bacon rashers, finely chopped (use scissors for ease)
6-8 leaves wild garlic, shredded (if you can't forage for wild, use a clove or two of finely chopped dried garlic)
splash sherry or balsamic vinegar
juice of ½ lemon
50g hazelnuts, toasted in the oven or a frying pan, skins rubbed off, roughly chopped
olive oil, for drizzling
salt and pepper

Method

Prep time: 5 min

Cooking time: 35 min

Step 1
In a large saucepan heat the stock until boiling and add the rice. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30-35 minutes, until the rice is just tender.
Step 2
Drain and keep to one side. Blanch or steam the purple sprouting broccoli for 3 minutes. Drain and refresh in cold water, then drain again.
Step 3
In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and bacon, fry for a few minutes, until the bacon is just cooked. Add the wild garlic leaves and fry for a couple more minutes.
Step 4
Add the purple sprouting broccoli, rice, vinegar and lemon juice, season with salt and pepper to taste and toss together to combine. Serve topped with the hazelnuts and a drizzle of olive oil.