Vegetarian rice pilaf recipe

This vegetarian rice pilaf is such a great idea for a summer dinner. It's easy to make, light and low in calories. I started to make it this summer because I planted an Indian eggplant this year so I was looking for new ideas to cook using eggplant. The recipe is adopted from Turkish cuisine which I love. Also, this dish is compatible with the phase II of the South Beach diet.

The ingredients:

2-3 small Indian eggplants, approximately 1lbs

1 medium onion

1/4 cup raisins, chopped (optional)

2 Roma tomatoes

1 tablespoon salt

3 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup brown basmati rice (I like the Indian one from Trader Joe's)

2 1/2 cups water

salt to taste

 

How to make the rice pilaf:

Start with eggplant - trim and discard a steam end. Wash and chop it into small cubes and place in a colander. Sprinkle it with 1 table spoon of salt, toss to coat evenly and place the colander on a plate to drain.  

Cook the rice (wash it before cooking if needed). Place the rice in a pan, cover it with water and heat until boiling. Add salt to taste, reduce the heat to almost the minimum and cover with a lid. Cook until all the liquid will be absorbed. Remove from the stove and cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel.

Chop the onion into small cubes and cook them with olive oil over medium heat (use the large saucepan), about 5 minutes or until softened. Rinse the eggplant under running water and squeeze the liquid out of it by hand. Add them to the pan with onions  and cook together for another 5 minutes. Peel and core a tomato and chop into small cubes. Add it to the pan and cook all together for about 5 more minutes. If you'd like to use raisins in your pilaf, now is a good time to add them.

Add the cooked rice to the vegetable mix and gently mix all together, add more salt if needed. Heat the dish and spoon into a serving bowl or individual plates. 

Enjoy!