zero food waste

Crispy Rice Salad

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One of my many faults is a total inability to judge the amount of rice I need to cook, which usually results in making enough rice to feed a small island nation.

As I hate food waste I was left with some leftover brown rice and decided to try a version of a dish I had once when travelling in Asia.  The results were yummy and I keep making this as it’s really versatile and you can swap around the veggies/herbs and protein to stop yourself getting bored with this.

If you’re  vegetarian/vegan you can swap animal protein for tempeh, nuts or tofu. I used a tahini dressing but again you swap this for a yoghurt dressing or just a plain vinaigrette if you prefer.

Serves 2-3

Ingredients

For the crispy rice

200 Grams Cooked brown rice

1/2 Tbsp Soy sauce

1 Tsp Sesame oil

1 Tsp Chilli powder (less if you prefer it less spicy)

Large pinch of garlic or onion powder

For the salad

150 Grams Edamame (soy) beans (I buy these frozen from the supermarket and just defrost them as I need them)

100 Grams Red Cabbage (shredded)

250 Grams Prawns (I used pre cooked frozen ones that I defrosted)

Spinach

1-2 Carrots (grated)

For the dressing

1-2 Tbsp Tahini

1 Clove of garlic (minced)

1/2 Lemon

Method

  • Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees (Celsius)
  • Line a baking sheet with foil (I do this to save on washing up)
  • Add the ingredients for the crispy rice to a bowl and stir well to make sure all the grains are coated. 
  • Transfer the rice to the baking sheet and smooth out evenly and bake for 20 mins.  Stir once or twice (the rice at edges of the sheet will crisp up faster).  The texture should be crispy but with a bit of chew to it (it shouldn’t  be so crisp you feel like you’re eating uncooked rice).  Once cooked, allow to cool before adding to the salad
  • To make the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl.  I usually add a couple of tablespoons of warm water to loosen the dressing, but it’s up to you, how thick you want the dressing
  • Add all the ingredients to a large bowl, and toss the dressing through and serve immediately

Easy Apple Chutney and Camembert Crostini

Seaneen's Sunnyside KitchenLeave a comment

Like most cooks I hate food waste.  So the sad looking bag of apples that was getting past their best got turned into an easy and delicious chutney.

If you’re serious about chutney and want to make a massive batch I would recommend sterilising your jars beforehand and this should ensure the chutney can last for months.  I was only making a small batch, so its fine to keep in the fridge for 4-5 days.

This is amazingly versatile.  I just used it on crostini because i was having people over and I wanted to make something a little boujie, but it will also turn a bog standard ham or cheese sandwich into something super yummy.  I’ve even used it on cheese burgers and it was incredibly tasty.  If you’re making the crostini, try to make the chutney the day before, it will give it time to cool, let the flavour develop and saves you time, you can then spend with your guests.

Ingredients

For the chutney

3-4 Dessert apples (peeled, cored, and cut into 2cm chunks)

1 Small red onion (finely sliced)

75 Grams Brown sugar (you might need a little bit more or little less depending on on how sweet/tart your apples are)

125Mil Cider vinegar

1/2 Tsp salt

1/2 Ground cumin

1 Tsp Ground ginger

For the crostini

  1 French baguette (cut into fine slices)

1 Tbsp Oil

1 Clove of garlic

125 Grams Camembert or brie

Method

For the chutney

  • Place all the ingredients in a large pot and bring to the boil
  • Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cooked for 30 mins before checking the seasoning and see if want tweak anything
  • Allow to cool and store in tje fridge for 4-5 days.  See, I told you it was really easy
  • For the crostini
  • Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius
  • Brush the slices of baguette with the oil and place on a baking tray, bake for 10 minutes or until they golden brown.  Allow them cool, and you can even do this the day before and store them in an air tight container if you don’t want to be running around at the last minute)
  • To make the crostini, simply spread the toasted baguette slices with apple chutney and top with a slices of cheese