Vegan Caribbean Bowl
A dreamy vegan Caribbean Bowl with a spicy chickpea curry, sweet and crunchy roasted plantains, and a delicious, delicately spiced coconut rice. A soy-free, nut-free and gluten-free recipe.
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 425kcal
Ingredients
For Chickpea Curry
- 30 oz chickpeas (approx 2 cans)
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 1 medium onion (finely diced)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- A small piece of scotch bonnet or habanero pepper (these are very spicy, so use a very small piece and be sure to deseed. You can sub with jalapeno if you can't find either of these.)
- 2 medium potatoes (cut into a ½-inch dice)
- 2 teaspoon dried thyme or oregano (or use 2 tablespoon fresh thyme or oregano, chopped. You can also use a mix.)
- 2 tablespoon coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns (use more of less per your preference)
- 5 cloves
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- ½ tsp turmeric
- Salt to taste
For the coconut rice:
- 1 ½ cups jasmine rice (or basmati)
- 2 cups coconut milk (from the carton, not can)
- 1 tsp avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 1 medium onion (finely diced)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- A small piece of scotch bonnet (or habanero pepper. Jalapeno is okay as a substitute)
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- Salt to taste
For roasted plantains:
- 4 plantains (Peeled and cut crosswise into ¼-inch thick slices. Use plantains that are slightly ripe, with the skin just turning yellow with some black spots. You don't want very mushy, overripe plantains here)
- 1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
- 2 teaspoon adobo seasoning (or make your own by combining equal parts of onion powder, garlic powder, dry oregano, black pepper and salt)
- ½ teaspoon paprika (optional)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Make the chickpea curry:
- In a skillet, roast the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, mustard seeds, ground cloves, fennel seeds, fenugreek seeds and turmeric until a couple of shades darker and fragrant. Process to a coarse powder in a spice grinder and set aside.
- Heat the oil. Add the onions and garlic and saute until translucent. Then add the chili pepper, thyme and powdered spices and stir in.
- Add the chickpeas and potatoes with 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, cover the pot and let the curry simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. At any point, if the curry looks too dry, add some water.
- After the potatoes are tender, add salt and turn off heat. Garnish with cilantro if you desire.
Make Coconut Rice:
- Heat the oil in a saucepan or skillet. Add the onions and garlic and thyme and cook until the onions are translucent.
- Stir in the ground cloves, the chili pepper, and thyme and mix well. Add the rice and stir until it turns opaque. Add the coconut milk and ½ cup water along with salt. The water should taste a little saltier than you would like your rice to be.
- Once the water starts to boil, cover the pot, turn heat to low, and let the rice cook 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the rice stand, undisturbed, at least 10 minutes more.
Make the roasted plantains:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In a bowl, toss the plantains together with the adobo, paprika if using, and salt.
- Place the plantain slices, without overlap, on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Flip the slices over halfway through baking.
Assemble the bowls:
- To make your bowl, scoop rice into the bowl, top with the chickpea curry, and with the plantain slices. Add some more fresh thyme or cilantro to the bowl if you wish. I also love adding slices of fresh avocado for more nutrition and texture.
Nutrition
Calories: 425kcal | Carbohydrates: 84g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 311mg | Potassium: 956mg | Fiber: 10g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 1105IU | Vitamin C: 25.7mg | Calcium: 98mg | Iron: 5mg