Carrot Rice with Beans & Raisins

A colourful, aromatic rice dish inspired by Afghan carrot rice, combining sweet shredded carrots, fragrant spices, raisins, and kidney beans. Purple carrots give the rice a beautiful colour, while caramelised orange carrots and roasted walnuts add extra flavour and texture.

Ingredients

For the rice

• 350 g purple carrots, shredded

• 50 g red onion, finely sliced

• 1 cup basmati rice, (rinsed and soaked for 5 minutes)

• 1½ cups water

• 1 tsp garlic powder or 1 tbsp grated garlic

• 1 tsp salt

• ⅓ tsp ground cumin

• ⅓ tsp ground black pepper

• ⅓ tsp ground cardamom

• A pinch of turmeric

• ⅓ cup raisins, reserving some for topping

• 30 g olive oil

• 400 ml canned kidney beans (drained and rinsed)

For the topping

• 100 g orange carrot, cut into thin strips or shredded

• 10 g olive oil

• A pinch of ground cumin

• A pinch of salt

• A handful of roasted walnuts, roughly chopped (optional)

• Reserved raisins

Instructions

1. Prepare the rice

Rinse the basmati rice and soak it in water for 5 minutes. Drain well and set aside.

2. Cook the carrots and onion

Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the sliced red onion ,raisons, shredded purple carrots and garlic, then sauté for a few minutes until the carrots begin to soften.

3. Add the spices

Stir in the salt, cumin, black pepper and cardamom. Mix well to coat the carrots and onion with the spices.

4. Add the rice and water

Add the drained basmati rice make it flat (don't stir the rice) . Gently pour in 1½ cups of water and a pinch of turmeric bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover with a lid, and cook for 10 minutes.

5. Add the kidney beans

Gently fold in the drained kidney beans. Cover and cook over low heat for another 5-10minutes, until the beans are heated through and the flavours have combined.

6. Prepare the carrot topping

While the rice cooks, heat 10 g of olive oil in a separate frying pan. Add the orange carrot, a pinch of cumin, and a pinch of salt. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the carrots soften and become lightly caramelised.

7. Serve

Transfer the carrot rice to a serving dish. Top with the caramelised orange carrots, reserved raisins, and roasted walnuts.

Serve warm and enjoy the combination of fragrant spices, sweet carrots, juicy raisins, creamy kidney beans, and walnuts.