Beyond Rice, Potatoes & Pasta
Thursday 13th of October 2011
When planning dinner - something I do almost every day - I often find myself defaulting to the obvious rice, potatoes or pasta when it comes to the starch content of our meal.
There is nothing wrong with this especially as I use a variety of rices (brown, basmati, medium grain), cook potatoes in numerous ways, and generally use gluten-free pasta (though have recently been enjoying freshly-made pasta from the farmers market) made from a variety of grains.
On days when I feel like thinking out of the square I like to mix up the starch content a little. Here are 3 of my favourite exotic starch ideas:
Quinoa Salad (summer) or Pilaf (winter) - quinoa is a superior food to rice and wheat with its high protien and calcium content. It is costly but a little goes a long way as it swells to 3 times its sizs and carries a high nutrient punch.
Mashed or Roasted Root Vegetables - instead of mashed or roasted potatoes I often use a mix of different root vegetables including carrots, kumara, pumpkin, parsnip, celeriac etc. This is inspired by my Nana's carrot and parsnip mash, a favourite when I was growing up.
And my daughters favourite... Creamy Polenta - you have to make this is you haven't before. It is creamy and silky and matches well with a stew for soaking up the juices, or the cooked polenta can be spread on a tray to cool then cut into wedges to be grilled on the BBQ in summer. Yum!
My Basic Polenta Recipe
4 cups boiling water
1 cup polenta (coarse cornmeal)
generous pinch of salt
large handful of grated Parmesan cheese
knob of butter
Put the boiling water in a large saucepan. Bring back to a boil and add the salt and sprinkle in the polenta using a whisk to mix so to prevent lumps. Very quickly the polenta will thicken but it is not ready yet. It needs about 15 - 20 minutes of gentle cooking (less if using instant polenta). Turn the heat right down and simmer away, stirring regularly. Be careful as the polenta tends to erupt in large bubbles so use a long wooden spoon to stir. If it is bubbling away and making a mess of the stove move onto a smaller element or cover with a lid left ajar so steam can escape. Once the polenta starts to come away from the sides it is ready. Remove from the heat and stir in the Parmesan and butter. Check seasoning and serve immediately or spread on a tray to cool then cut into wedges and lightly grill on a hot BBQ plate.
As easy as that! Now I know what we are having for our dinner tonight with our BBQ'd lamb chops.