Anatolia

Components

The Brown Rice

• 300g brown rice
• 600ml water
• pinch of salt

The Wok Vegetables

• 2 tbsp olive oil or neutral oil
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1 yellow pepper, sliced
• 1 zucchini, sliced into half moons
• 1 medium carrot, julienned
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp fresh ginger, grated (or ½ tsp ground ginger)
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp rice vinegar (or apple cider vinegar)
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 tsp sesame oil

The Beet & Chickpea Hummus

• 1 x 400g tin chickpeas, drained
• 1 medium cooked beet (about 150g)
• 2 tbsp tahini
• 1 clove garlic
• juice of ½ lemon
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

The Lemon Kale Salad

• 200g kale, stems removed, roughly torn
• juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• pinch of salt

To Finish

• 2 tbsp toasted white sesame seeds

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Method

1. Cook the rice

Rinse the brown rice well. Bring 600ml salted water to a boil, add the rice, reduce to a low simmer and cover. Cook for 30–35 minutes until water is absorbed and rice is tender. Remove from heat and leave covered for 5 minutes.

2. Make the beet hummus

While the rice cooks, blend the chickpeas, cooked beet, tahini, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil together until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Add a splash of water if you want a looser consistency. Set aside.

3. Massage the kale

Combine the kale with lemon juice, olive oil and salt in a bowl. Massage with your hands for 1–2 minutes until the kale softens and turns darker green. Set aside — it gets better as it sits.

4. Wok the vegetables

Heat a large pan or wok over high heat until very hot. Add the oil and stir-fry the carrot and peppers for 3–4 minutes. Add the zucchini and cook another 2 minutes. Add garlic and ginger, stir for 30 seconds. Mix the soy sauce, vinegar, maple syrup and sesame oil together and pour over the vegetables. Toss well and cook for 1 more minute until glossy and slightly caramelised.

5. Assemble the bowls

Divide the rice between bowls. Add a generous spoonful of beet hummus to one side, a mound of kale salad to another, and pile the wok vegetables in the centre. Scatter sesame seeds over everything.

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To Serve

Serve immediately while the vegetables are still hot against the cool kale and hummus. A wedge of lemon on the side is a nice touch.

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After Cooking

Pantry note: The teriyaki sauce is made from scratch using soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup and sesame oil — no specialty sauce needed. If you don’t have rice vinegar, apple cider vinegar works fine.