Amazing 5 minute recipes
Australian-Italian sharing amazing 5 minute recipes
FENNEL AND TOMATOES RICE
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INGREDIENTS
(Feeds 2 hungry people)
1 cup of rice
4 tomatoes
1 dash of ground fennel
1 small can of tuna
1 dash of olive oil
2 onions
4 frozen garlic cloves
1 dash of salt
COMMENT
The only funky thing in this recipe is that it needs ground fennel. But that's what makes it special.
It also needs rice to be prepared in advance. (For crying out loud, tell me you have a rice maker. If you don't have one, go buy one. If you can't afford it, get a better job or head to an op shop).
PREPPING TIME:
* About the coconut cream: make sure you put the other half in a container, or it will taste like crap tomorrow. Unless you like eating crap. Each to their own. I won't judge. No, really.
* Slam the rice into the bloody rice maker. Make it quick, because that's gonna make you slower
* Chop up the tomatoes into four pieces. No more. There's a reason for it
* Chop up the onions in small bits. You know, half it length-wise, then put each half facing down, then make more cuts length-wise, then make lots of thin cuts the other way, and off you go.
* Chop the garlic cloves in smaller bits. If they are frozen (as they should be), still chop them. It's harder, but it doesn't need the hulk.
* Open up the tuna can. Crucial step, since tin tastes horrible, even with salt
* Half a tin of coconut milk. Make sure there's no crap in it. Guar Gum is OK; if you start seeing numbers like you're playing Bingo, you don't want to eat it.
SHOW TIME:
* Put your dash of olive oil in the pan, and dump the finely cut onions in (because it's fine, yes?) and the sliced garlic cloves. Keep the flame low. Cook for 2 minutes. It's already been 2 minutes. Quick!
* I said low flame, but that is too low. This is a 5 minute recipe book, time is not cheap! While you are there, keep stirring the onion, it give it half a chance to cook uniformly.
* Add the tuna (which is already open -- there you go, you won't burn your onions!)
* Stir more, for about 1 minute. OK, it's been three minutes.
* Add the coconut milk (half a tin, in case you forgot).
* Put the flame up a little. It's a 5 minute recipe, and I am about to fail...
* Add the dash of fennel. Start small. Then add a little more next time. Then do it again. When it's too fennel-y, apologise to your wife or husband, hope s/he won't get a headache again, and remember when it's too much.
* Keep stirring for another 30 seconds, and dump the rice in there. Stir more for 2 more minutes
* When the tomatoes are well melted, and look like they stopped begging for mercy a little while ago, you are good to go.
* Add salt to taste (I am like a pro now, using the lingo!)
* Eat.
VARIATIONS
* You can try it with different herbs. Garam masala works well; so will curry; or Italian herbs; or whichever herb you feel will work. No matter what you do, keep the fennel since well, it's the name of this recipe