Winter will not release her grip on the Mid-Atlantic just yet. I am so over the cold and ready for warm days and nights where the windows can be open as soft breezes flow through the house. But, if winter won’t relent for you either, you need to make this dish as soon as possible. It is healthy, vegan, easy to make, surprisingly complex in flavor, and extremely hearty. This dish also allows me to check off a new country under my apron: Uzbekistan. I’d also never cooked mung beans before, so this was a rewarding experience all around. This soup/stew (it’s up to you how much water you add towards the end - I went with stew consistency) delivers on the last bite as it does in the first spoonful. If you’re one of those people, who must have meat in their meal, check out this similar Slovenian dish I prepared, as part of my Culinary Ridealong series, for the Tour de France. This dish is perfect for cold, rainy days, like today, and is comfortingly dill-icious.
Mashhurda adapted from Food & Wine, Damira Inatullaeva
1 cup mung beans
¼ cup safflower oil
Yellow onion, diced
Large carrot, diced
2 tbsp tomato sauce (or Passata)
4 bay leaves
⅓ cup Arborio rice
Cilantro
Dill, fronds only
¾ cup dried apricot, small dice
Greek-style yogurt (optional)
Bring 9 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Reduce heat, to maintain a gentle simmer, and cover. Simultaneously, in a small pot, cover the mung beans with some water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer for 6 minutes. Drain in a fine mesh strainer and run under cold water to stop cooking. Drain and reserve.
Meanwhile, add the oil to a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and saute the onion and carrots for a few minutes. Then stir in the tomato sauce, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened.
Add in 3 cups of the hot water, along with the reserved mung beans, bay leaves, and 1 tsp of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and maintain a simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, check the water level. If beans are just barely covered in water, add about a ½ cup of water to the pot. Continue cooking for 20 more minutes or so, until the beans are soft, adding water a ½ cup at a time when necessary.
Meanwhile, rinse the rice in the mesh strainer until the water runs clear. Drain and reserve.
Once the beans are soft, stir in the reserved rice, 2 cups of chopped cilantro, 1.5 cups of chopped dill and 2.5 cups of hot water. Increase the heat to medium-high, stirring near constantly, until the contents come to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender (about 20 mins). Stir occasionally, ensuring the rice doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot, adding water only if necessary.
When the rice is just about finished, stir in the apricots, reduce the heat to low, and add water adjusting the contents to a stew or soup-like consistency. After 5 minutes of cooking, cover the pot and remove from the heat and set aside for 10 minutes.
To serve, remove the bay leaves, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Portion out into bowls, adding additional cilantro and dill, and a dollop of yogurt.
______________________________ Copyright 2022, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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