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Roasted Spiced Cauliflower and Chickpeas over Jeera Rice

A warmly spiced vegetarian salad over a fragrant rice is perfect warm or at room temperature!

Course Main Course
Cuisine Mediterranean
Keyword basmati rice, cauliflower, chickpeas, mint, parsley, pomegranate arils
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 small head of cauliflower
  • 3 tbsp olive oil, plus more to finish
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tsp cumin seeds, crushed lightly
  • 1 1/2 cups chickpeas (home cooked or drained from a can or jar)
  • 1 tsp Aleppo pepper (to taste)
  • 4 ripe vine tomatoes
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 4 tbsp pomegranate seeds (or more if you love these jewels!)
  • Jeera Rice See Notes for recipe
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh mint
  • 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 425F
  2. Trim the cauliflower into small florets. Pour the olive oil into a large bowl. Add the cinnamon and cumin seeds. Stir it all up. Add the cauliflower and toss to coat well. Pour out the cauliflower onto a baking sheet, in one even layer. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes or until just softened. Don't wash out the bowl with the oil.

  3. Add the drained chickpeas to the bowl. Add the Aleppo pepper to taste (I say the kickier the better, but you know your taste buds!) Toss to coat. Quarter the tomatoes if small, or cut into eights if larger. Should be about the same size as the cauliflower florets.

  4. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and add the chickpeas and tomatoes to the cauliflower. Roast another 15 minutes at the most. (just enough to start to char the tomatoes) Remove from the oven. Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. Toss in half of the pomegranate seeds you want to use.

  5. Take your cooked rice, and turn onto a serving platter or large bowl. Add half of the mint and the parsley leaves and lightly combine with the rice. Pour the heated cauliflower and chickpeas over the rice. Drizzle with a final bit of olive oil.

  6. Scatter the remaining pomegranate arils, mint and parsley over the vegetables.

  7. See blog post for more details.

Recipe Notes

Here is the Jeera Rice recipe. The full recipe link is here.

1 cup basmati rice (or as much as your rice cooker suggests for 4 portions

2 tbsp ghee or butter

1 tbsp whole cumin or jeera seeds

4 green cardamom pods lightly crushed with the flat blade of a knife

1 large bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick, broken in half

6 whole cloves

salt as desired

1 1/2 cups water (or as directed by your rice cooker)    

  1. Place the rice in a strainer set over a bowl. Rinse with water a few times till the water runs clear. Use your fingers to stir the rice strands around in the strainer.

  2. Then pour enough water over the rice to soak (the rice should be completely covered and has an inch of extra water on top) .Soak the rice for 30 minutes.

  3. When you are ready to cook, drain all the water from the rice and set the rice aside.

  4. Heat ghee in a pot and add the whole spices and cumin seeds to it. Once the cumin seeds start spluttering after a minute or so, add drained rice. If using a rice cooker, just heat the ghee directly in the rice cooker and temper the whole spices in it on the cook setting before adding the rice.

  5. Sauté the rice in the pan (or rice cooker) for one minute on a medium heat, stirring to coat the rice in the ghee and spices.

  6. Add 1 1/2 cups water (or as much water as your rice cooker directs) and salt to the rice and mix well. Bring the rice to a quick boil, and then reduce the heat to a low simmer. Cover and cook for approximately 12-15 minutes, until all the water has evaporated and the rice is cooked through. Turn off the heat, leave the cover on and let the rice rest for 5 more minutes.

  7. Top with chopped coriander and serve.