Crispy rice with smoked aubergine and charred avocado
This is not an Italian inspired recipe but to me a great use of quality Italian rice. Did you know that you could use risotto rice also for sushi? Yes, you read correctly, risotto rice is a good alternative to sushi rice too as it shares similar characteristics from shape to starch content.
These crispy rice bites are a new trend stemmed from modern Japanese restaurants. The left-over sushi rice is fryied until golden and super crispy, then often served with raw or marinated fish.
In this case, I used arborio rice from sustainable agriculture by Riso Gallo and decided to keep the recipe vegan by serving the rice bites with smoked aubergines dressed with peanut butter and sesame dressing, charred avocado and chili.
It’s quirky recipe, tangy and very fresh and I believe it will be amazing If served at the beginning of a garden party during the summer.
Serve: 4 // Prep time: 60 mins
Ingredients:
1 Haas avocado
1 red chili
Mint to garnish
Sesame seeds to garnish
Salt and pepper to taste
For the crispy rice:
250 gr of arborio rice Riso Gallo
About 500 ml of water
30 ml of rice vinegar
1 tsp of sugar
1 tsp of salt
Veg oil to fry
For the smoked Aubergines:
2 large black aubergines
2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
½ clove of garlic, chopped
1 tbsp of chopped parsley
1 tsp of tahini paste (sesame paste)
1 tbsp of peanut butter
1 tbsp of lemon juice
1 tsp of honey
1 Salt and pepper to taste
Method:
To prepare the rice. Wash the rice and rinse it about 5 times until the water comes out almost clear and free from cloudy starch. Now place the rice into the rice cooker and cover with about double the amount of water (a little extra water if you like your rice well cooked). Cook as per the rice cooker instruction and when ready remove it from the heat and place it into a bowl.
If you do not have a rice cooker, you can follow the same process and quantity using a simple pot. Cover the rice with the water needed and let it simmer covered with a lid without stirring until all the water is absorbed.
Now dress the hot rice with the rice vinegar, salt and sugar, mix well and while still warm spread the rice onto a flat tray lined with film (about 1 to 2 cm thick). Press firmly to compact the rice and let it cool in the fridge for at least 2 hours (until firm).
When cold, cut the rice into segments or shards of the length of your choice and pan fry them at medium heat in hot oil on both sides until very well golden. It should take about 4 minutes each side.
When ready let them sit on the side at room temperature. For the aubergines. Cook the Aubergine over the BBQ or open flame on gas stoves. It should take about 10/15 minutes for them to be soft, fully cooked through and lightly charred on the outside. This cooking method will give them a lovely smoky flavour. In alternative, pierce the aubergines with a skewers and cook in the oven at 200 degrees C for about 20 minutes until soft.
Place the cooked aubergines in a covered container, the steam will loosen up even more their skin.
When cold, carefully remove the skin from the aubergine. This step could take time but it will be worth it. At this stage it is fundamental to drain the pulp for 10 minutes to lose as much water as possible, you can even pat dry them with kitchen paper.
Prepare the dressing by whisking in a bowl the peanut butter, tahini paste, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, parsley, honey, salt and pepper. Once creamy, add it to the aubergines, mix well and taste to check the seasoning.
For the charred avocado. Simply peel a ripe avocado and remove the pulp from skin with a spoon. Now charr it with a kitchen blowtorch and let it sit in the fridge for 10 minutes before slicing it into thick strips. Dress with olive oil and salt. If you don’t have a blowtorch simple serve the avocado as it is.
To serve place the crispy rice on a plate and top with a spoonful of aubergine’s pulp. Now add the avocado, sprinkle with sesame seeds and garnish with a thin slice of fresh chili and a leaf of fresh mint for each pieces of rice.