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Chickpea and Rice Balls

11 August, 2018

Japan is the home of rice balls where it popular as onigiri.

Today we are sharing the Indian rice ball recipe made with chickpeas and coriander. Cooking conventionally as an Indian dish the balls would be deep-fried, but here they are baked.

Ingredients
Serves: 4
100 g (3½ oz) long-grain white rice
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 fresh red chili, seeded and finely chopped
2 tomatoes, skinned, seeded and very finely chopped
1 can chickpeas, about 410 g, drained and rinsed
1 egg yolk
3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
½ tsp paprika
Salt and pepper

Method
This recipe will take 50 minutes for preparation and 30 minutes for cooking.

First put the rice in a saucepan, then add 240 ml of water and boil. Cover and let it simmer very gently for 10–15 minutes or until the rice is tender and has absorbed all the water. After that remove from the heat and leave it to cool off for a few minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180ºC (350ºF, gas mark 4). Next heat the oil in a saucepan, add the onion and fry gently for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until it becomes soft. Then put the garlic and chili and cook for 2 more minutes. Now remove from the heat and mix the chopped tomatoes with it.

Take the chickpeas in a bowl and mash with a potato masher until fairly smooth, or purée it in a food processor. Next add the onion mixture, rice, egg yolk, coriander, paprika, and season to taste. Mix it well. Divide the mixture into 12 equal portions and shape each part into a ball.

Lastly, place the chickpea and rice balls on a greased baking sheet and bake it for 30 minutes or until the balls begin to brown. Now it is ready to be served with chutney.

This dish will enhance your appetite, also it is a low-calorie and low-fat choice for a starter. Moreover, it contains lots of onion which is beneficial to reduce cholesterol levels and the risk of blood clots forming