Aubergine Rice Bowl: Fuss-Free Caponata
No faffing around with oven, stove top and umpteen different utensils with this delicious yet fuss-free caponata recipe. It's all done in one pan. Serve it with rice, hummus, cucumber, olives and fresh herbs and you have a healthy aubergine rice bowl.
Servings: 2 people
Calories: 594kcal
Ingredients
- 120 g brown basmati rice
- 4 tbsp hummus (I made my own hummus)
- ¼ cucumber halved, deseeded and sliced
- 16 small olives or 4 large ones cut into quarters - go for green if you can
Caponata
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 aubergine (eggplant) roughly cut into 2 ½ cm (1 inch) chunks
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 stick celery thinly sliced
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 8 cherry tomatoes halved or quartered
- 1 clove garlic finely chopped
- ½ red chilli (optional) deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 tbsp capers
- 20 g raisins
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar or good quality herb vinegar (I used my own chive flower vinegar)
- 200 g baby spinach or chopped mature spinach - washed and drained
- 2 sprig fresh mint finely chopped
Instructions
Rice
- Rinse and drain the rice in a small pan with a tight fitting lid. Once rinsed, cover with 250ml water. With the lid on, bring the pan to the boil, turn down to your lowest setting and let the rice cook gently for 25 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it steam for a further 5 minutes (up to 15 minutes is fine). Don't be tempted to remove the lid. Fluff with a fork before serving.120 g brown basmati rice
Caponata
- Fry the aubergine chunks in the hot oil over a high heat for five minutes. Use a heavy bottomed lidded pan. Give an occasional stir and keep going until they're pretty much golden all over. Don't worry if the odd bit chars.2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 aubergine (eggplant)
- Add the onions and celery and lower the heat to medium. Cook for four minutes, giving an occasional stir.1 small onion, 1 stick celery
- Add the tomatoes, garlic, chilli and salt and cook for two minutes, again giving an occasional stir.½ tsp sea salt, 8 cherry tomatoes, 1 clove garlic, ½ red chilli
- Add the capers, raisins and vinegar and clamp the lid on the pan.1 tbsp capers, 20 g raisins, 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Cook for two minutes, then add the spinach. Clamp the lid back on the pan and cook for 5 minutes.200 g baby spinach
- Stir the now wilted spinach into the aubergine, put the lid back on the pan. Turn the heat down a little and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the celery is more or less soft. There should only be a tiny amount of liquid in the pan, but enough to cook everything through. If it looks dry, add a little water, but not much.
- As soon as the celery is cooked, turn the heat off and leave the caponata to rest for at least fifteen minutes with the lid on. It's best served warm or at room temperature rather than hot.
Assembly
- When you're ready to eat, divide the rice between two bowls. Spoon in the caponata and scatter the mint over the top. Dollop in the hummus then lay the cucumber slices and olives on the side. Scatter with more fresh herbs, such as parsley or chives if desired.4 tbsp hummus, ¼ cucumber, 16 small olives, 2 sprig fresh mint
Notes
For a faster rice cooking time, soak the rice in cold water for at least six hours or in hot water for 1 hour. You'll need less water to cook the rice in if you use this method though.
If not eating straight away, the caponata will keep in the fridge for five days. Just make sure it's in a suitable sealed container.
You’ll find additional tips and info about this recipe in the main body of the post.
Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They’re approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used. Please refer to my nutrition disclaimer for further information.
Nutrition
Calories: 594kcal | Carbohydrates: 87g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 16g | Sodium: 1401mg | Potassium: 1748mg | Fiber: 17g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 10089IU | Vitamin C: 72mg | Calcium: 206mg | Iron: 6mg