Leek and rice is a Bulgarian Lenten dish cooked in one pot in about 40 minutes. Leeks are sweetest in October and need only carrots and lemon. On Petkovden, St Petka's Day, it makes a warm, light lunch without meat.
Ingredients
- 1 kgleeks (about 4 medium stalks)
- 2 (200 g)carrots
- 1onion
- 150 grice
- 80 mlcooking oil
- 1 tsppaprika
- 500 mlhot water
- 1 tspsalt
- 1/4 tspblack pepper
- 1/2lemon (juice)
- 1 handfulfresh parsley
Method
Prepare the leeks
Cut off the root and the dark green tops. Slice the white and light green parts into 2 cm rings. Wash them in a bowl of water until no more soil falls out.
Stir the leeks in the water and lift them out by hand. If you pour them into a colander, the soil will settle back on them.
Soften the onion and carrots
Heat the oil in a wide pot over medium heat. Cook the finely chopped onion for 3 minutes until translucent. Add the sliced carrots and cook for another 5 minutes.
Add the leeks
Put the leeks in the pot, add salt and stir now and then for 8 minutes, until they soften and shrink.
Fry the rice
Rinse the rice in a sieve and add it to the vegetables. Stir for 1 minute, until the grains turn glassy. Then take the pot off the heat and sprinkle in the paprika.
Paprika burns in seconds and turns bitter, so always add it off the heat.
Pour in the water
Put the pot back on the hob, pour in 500 ml of hot water and add the black pepper. Cover and simmer on low heat for 18 minutes, until the rice is soft.
Finish with lemon
Take the pot off the heat and stir in the juice of half a lemon and the chopped parsley. Leave it covered for 5 minutes before serving.
How to serve
Serve warm, with lemon wedges, olives and a slice of fresh bread.
Good to know
Leek and rice is a classic Lenten dish in Bulgarian cooking, made on fasting days.
Per serving (approximate): 375 kcal · protein 6 g · fat 19 g · carbohydrates 48 g