Curried Rice and Chickpea Salad

Cook the basmati rice according to directions on the package, being very careful not to overcook. I boil mine for exactly 15 minutes, then drain off excess water and run the cooked rice under cold water in the strainer. If you have leftover rice in the fridge (which I often do!), you can just use that instead.

While the rice is cooking, thinly slice the green onions, dice the bell pepper, mince the garlic and grate the carrots. Use 2 medium or 3 small carrots. Also crumble up some feta cheese. I usually end up using a few tablespoons, but I have a love affair with feta cheese.

Now grab a medium-sized mixing bowl and throw in the olive oil, lemon juice (I just use the bottled stuff, but you could use fresh) and vinegar. Whisk to form the base for your dressing. Throw in the honey and spices and whisk again. Taste and add more of what you like. I like lots of pepper.

Dump your cooked rice on top of your dressing. Drain the can of chickpeas, rinse under cool water and throw them in. Add the diced veggies, carrot, garlic and feta cheese. If you don’t like feta, you can leave it out, but you’ll need salt. I sometimes add a pinch of salt at the end anyway if the feta didn’t make it salty enough, but be careful not to oversalt this! Stir it all together and stick it in the fridge for a couple of hours. The dressing will cook the rice a bit more, the flavours will blend perfectly, and you have a scrumptious salad. I usually just eat this by itself as lunch food, and the chickpeas really let it stand by itself.