Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Pilaf | Healthy, Vegan, Student-Friendly

This Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Pilaf is one of my firm batch-cooking favourites! Not only is this recipe made in one big pot which minimises the amount of washing up you have to do (always a plus), but it is also healthy, cheap and easy to make!

Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Pilaf

What is a Pilaf?

A pilaf is an Indian rice dish, which involves cooking rice in stock alongside other ingredients such as meat of vegetables. This curried cauliflower and chickpea pilaf is made with healthy brown rice, flavoured with curry paste, cooked in vegetable stock and  – surprisingly – contains cauliflower and chickpeas.

A Vegan One-Pot Recipe – One Dish To Please All

This curried cauliflower and chickpea pilaf is not only delicious – it is also vegan! This means that it suits every dietary requirement – perfect when cooking for a group of friends! Even if you are not vegan, you will thoroughly enjoy this pilaf dish and remember – we should all try to include more vegetables in our diet and have some meat-free days!

How do you make this Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Pilaf?

Like I said, this is a really easy one-pot recipe! All you need to do is chop onions and perhaps some cauliflower (if you don´t use frozen florets)! Apart from that, it´s just adding things to the pot and then leaving it to cook!

You can either use fresh or frozen cauliflower in this recipe, whatever is easier for you. In terms of rice, I like to use brown basmati rice, as it is higher in fibre and keeps you fuller for longer. You can, of course, use white basmati rice, too, if you want. This will also reduce the cooking time as the white rice cooks faster than the brown.

This cauliflower and chickpea pilaf also goes really well with some homemade 2-Ingredient Naan Breads!

More Vegan, Student-friendly Recipes

• Vegan Mixed Bean Chilli
• Vegetable Rice Stir-fry
• Creamy Hummus Linguine
• Red Lentil Soup
• Colourful Quinoa Salad

Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Pilaf | Healthy, Vegan, Student-Friendly

Recipe

Ingredients (serves 2):

• ½ tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion
• 2 tbsp tikka masala curry paste
• 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• 1 tsp each of ground cumin and ground coriander
• Chilli flakes (optional)
• 400g tin chickpeas, drained
• 120g brown basmati rice (or white, if you prefer)
• 400-500g cauliflower florets, fresh or defrosted from frozen
• 2 vegetable stock cubes, dissolved in 500 ml boiling water
• salt and pepper, to season
• chopped fresh parsley, toasted cashews, naan bread, to serve (optional)

Method:

1. Heat the olive oil over a low heat and then add the onions. Fry for about 5 minutes until they start to become soft and translucent.
2. Add the curry paste, ginger, garlic, curry powder, cumin, coriander and some chilli flakes (leave out if you don´t want to make it too spicy) and stir into the onions. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously, to cook out the rawness of the spices.
3. Next, add the rice, cauliflower, chickpeas and vegetable stock and stir together.
4. Leave to simmer for about 30 minutes, until all the liquid has been absorbed and the rice is cooked (add a little more water if the mix is dry but the rice isn´t fully cooked yet). If you are using white rice, it should be ready after about 15-20 minutes. Check and stir your pilaf occasionally, to make sure it isn´t burning at the bottom.
5. If the mixture becomes to dry or the rice isn´t fully cooked yet, you can add a bit more boiling water.
6. Serve the curried cauliflower and chickpea pilaf with some freshly chopped parsley and some toasted cashew nuts (To toast, put them into a hot frying pan with no oil for a few minutes. Watch them closely so they don´t burn). In addition, you could serve it alongside some naan breads and a yoghurt dip/raita.