Zesty orange rice with rosemary and fennel

Another weekend and time to try something new...

We are all used to spicy lemon rice down south. I wanted to try out something similar using oranges. Surprisingly, the sunniest of all fruits are in season during dullest months of the year.

The rice came out very mild and fragrant and I think will be a good accompaniment for strong spicy curries. The sweetness of the oranges mostly cooks out leaving a lingering sweet aniseed flavour. I used rosemary, star anise, fennel and green chilli to add the spice component. Rosemary isn't an herb I am very familiar with but I thought the strong aniseed flavour of fennel and star anise would go well with it.

   

1 cup basmati rice
2 stalk of celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped finely
5-10 green chillies, chopped finely (depending on the heat in the chillies and your heat quotient)
2 sprigs of rosemary
3 navel oranges
2 tsp ginger-garlic paste
3-4 star anise
2 tsp fennel seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/3 cup frozen peas
4 tsp cooking oil
Salt to taste

Wash the rice a couple of time to remove the starch and then keep it soaked till while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Soaking helps the rice to elongate while cooking.

Remove the rosemary leaves from the stalk and chop finely. Zest the oranges first using a grater before extracting the juice and keep aside.

Roast 1 teaspoon of fennel seeds in a dry pan for a few minutes and grind them to a fine powder in a pestle and mortar. This will be added at the end of the cooking process.

Boil at least 11/2 cups of water in a kettle and keep ready.

• Heat the oil in a pan. Add the star anise to the hot oil and toss for a few seconds. Follow this will the 1 tsp of fennel seeds and allow them to splutter.
• Add the chopped onions and sauté till they are softened and translucent. We don't want the onions to brown.
• Add the turmeric, chopped celery and chopped green chillies and sauté till they are also softened.
• Drain the rice well. Add it to the pan and fry it for a few minutes till the rice turns opaque and the crackling sounds have mostly gone. You'll need to keep stirring on a medium heat, otherwise the rice will catch at the bottom of the pan.
• Add the zest and juice of the oranges to the rice along with the salt and stir to combine. Follow this with enough boiling water to just cover the rice. I eyeball this, but in theory you need 11/2 times the amount of liquid for every cup of basmati rice. This quantity will include the orange juice as well.
•  Cover and cook on a low heat. If you are using garden peas add it at this stage along with the water. Petit pois don't need much cooking, so they can be added half way through the cooking. You can also add more water (few tablespoonfuls) at this stage if needed. The rice will require about 7-10 minutes to cook with the lid on. Don't keep taking a peek as you'll let the steam escape and it will take longer and may require more water.
• When the rice is cooked, turn off the heat. Add the roasted fennel seed powder and stir to combine. Cover and let it sit for some more time (about 10 minutes). 

Serves 3-4.