Dirty Rice

This is from a great vegetarian cookbook called American Wholefoods Cuisine. I used to use this book all the time, but it kind of got shoved to the back recently. I noticed it today, and brushed it off for some new use. Good thing too, because this was really good.

2tbsp oil or butter
1 large clove of garlic, chopped
4 scallions, sliced
1/2 cup nuts (pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, pine nuts, cashew pieces, almonds, singly or combined)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh mushrooms, or soaked dried mushrooms
2tbsp soy sauce
4 cups cooked brown rice

Heat the fat in a 2 quart pot. Saute the garlic for 1 minute; add scallions and sauté for 1 minute longer. Add nuts and cook until they are lightly colored. Add mushrooms and cook for about 2 minutes, or until they are slightly softened. Add soy sauce, cover and simmer for about 5 min.
Stir rice into mushroom mixture to coat evenly. Heat through. Can be reheated if necessary.

This is super healthy, super tasty, and super fast. If you make the rice beforehand or if you just have some around, then this takes about 15 minutes start to finish, and the end result is really good.

My husband joked that it was almost as healthy as eating a tree, he’s right too. The seeds are so important nutritionally, and the combo of mushrooms rice and soy sauce make it taste like Chinese fried rice, and who doesn’t love that.

At the stage where you simmer it with the soy sauce, it looks like there won’t be enough liquid, but the mushrooms release more, and it’s not a problem, though using a non stick pan is always a good idea.

This book is excellent by the way. If you are a vegetarian, or just like to cook that way, it’s a good one to have around to cover all the basics.