Carrot and Squash Rice

I love winter squash, pumpkin, acorn and butternut squash etc. I hope you enjoy this humble offering of mine too.

Ingredients:
1. One cup rice, preferably long grain or basmati
2. One carrot, sliced in small wedges
3. Two cups squash, sliced in small wedges
4. Half red onion, sliced
5. One or more whole garlic cloves, skin removed
6. Pinch of ground cumin
7. Pinch of ground coriander
8. 1½ cups chicken stock
9. Pinch of saffron, soaked with three tablespoon of warm water
10. Three tablespoons of onion oil or oil of your choice
11. One tablespoon unsalted butter
12. Pinch of sea salt
13. Thumb of ginger, diced into cubes
14. Pinch of castor sugar
15. Dash of white pepper

Method:
1. In a pot, water level two inches above rice, bring water to a rapid boil. Add rice, stir occasionally on high heat for about five minutes. Drain water and keep warm.
2. In a separate non stick pot (same pot you are going to cook the rice in later), on high heat, add ginger, stir and immediately lower heat to medium. Add garlic cloves, fry till ginger and garlic are slightly golden, add onion, and stir till aromatic.
3. Add butter, stir for a few seconds, add vegetables, dash of white pepper, castor sugar, cumin, coriander powder, sea salt, mix well for about three minutes, add about a tablespoon of chicken stock and mix well.
4. Top vegetable with rice, spoon saffron water around edges of rice and on rice; pour balance HOT chicken stock over rice. Press rice down gently with a spatula but without compacting it too much.
5. Cover lid tightly and simmer gently for about twenty minutes or till rice is cooked.
6. Place plate over pot to invert rice.
7. Serve hot.

Note:
1. The vegetables are heavenly to eat and rice good enough to eat on its own. Pumpkin is very yummy in this recipe too. Oooooooooooo, the crust and yes the crust .....
2. For a more substantial meal with meat warrants a different recipe.