Vegetables with basic tomato paste-based sauce
Please look at our Recipes home page for some notes on the ingredients we use and to search for a vegetable which you may like to prepare. You'll see on that page that you can buy the pepper paste used in the recipes below for pick up in the Sydney CBD, Monday to Friday, or at Concord West (near Sydney Olympic Park) in the evening or on the weekend.
All these vegetable dishes below use the same sauce as their base. And they are all wonderful served with Turkish-style rice - the recipe for which is at the end of this page – because you have the saucy vegetables and the dry fluffy rice. The rice of course can be served with anything at all. And the vegetables can be eaten on their own or as a side dish.
If you'd like the sauce thicker or less watery, simply adjust the amount of water you add.
These recipes are designed to serve 4 (unless we say otherwise).
If you'd like the sauce thicker or less watery, simply adjust the amount of water you add.
These recipes are designed to serve 4 (unless we say otherwise).
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Chickpeas
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Green beans
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2 x 425g cans of chick peas – wash thoroughly to remove all the brine. You can use fresh chick peas for this if you have time to soak them before cooking.
400ml of water Half a stock cube 4 dessertspoons of tomato paste 2 dessertspoons of pepper paste Half a teaspoon of cumin Place the chick peas in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the chick peas are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir off and on throughout. |
600g of green beans, with the ends cut off and cut into pieces about 4cm long (but whatever length you like) and washed
600ml of water One stock cube 6 dessertspoons of tomato paste 2 dessertspoons of pepper paste Prepare the beans and place in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the beans are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir off and on throughout. 
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Leek
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Lentils
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3 or 4 leeks (depending on size), with the tops (green leaves) and bottoms cut off, peeled and chopped into rounds of about 1cm thickness – wash thoroughly to remove all the dirt
400ml water Half a stock cube 4 dessertspoons of tomato paste One dessertspoon of pepper paste 2 dessertspoons of white rice Place the leeks in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the leeks are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir off and on throughout. If you’re tempted to throw in more rice, remember that it could make the sauce gluggy. The rice is really just a little texture for the dish.
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You can use green or brown lentils for this dish. The picture shows a mixture of both.
375g green (or brown) lentils 600ml water One stock cube 6 dessertspoons of tomato paste One dessertspoon pepper paste Wash the lentils and place them in a saucepan with the other ingredients. Mix well and bring to the boil. Mix again to ensure the stock is dissolved, cover and reduce to simmer. Cook, stirring off and on, until the lentils are to the texture you enjoy.
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Peas
600g of frozen green peas – we use the large ones, not the baby ones, but you could use the baby ones if you prefer and just adjust the cooking time
500ml water One stock cube 6 dessertspoons of tomato paste 2 dessertspoons of pepper paste Place the peas in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the peas are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir off and on throughout.
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Potato
500g of potatoes – peeled and cut into chunks no smaller than 1.5cm. If you prefer a different size, that’s fine, just cook to your own firmness. We usually use red potatoes and they stay firm during cooking.
300ml water Half a stock cube 3 dessertspoons of tomato paste One dessertspoon of pepper paste Place the potatoes in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the potatoes are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir off and on throughout.
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Spinach
3 bunches of English spinach with the stems removed, washed.
300ml water. (We say earlier that you can adjust the water for the thickness of the sauce, but be mindful here that the spinach will give off water as it cooks.) Half a stock cube 3 and a half dessertspoons of tomato paste One dessertspoon of pepper paste Place the spinach in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the spinach is cooked to your taste. It doesn’t take long and watch overcooking when the spinach can become quite limp. There is no need to stir this much during cooking, just a gently movement of the leaves will be enough.
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White beans
375g white beans soaked for at least 8 hours in water
One stock cube 5 dessertspoons of tomato paste One dessertspoon of pepper paste Rinse the white beans after they have been soaked and place in a saucepan with the other ingredients and cover with water. Cover and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook (still covered) until the beans are as you'd like them. Stir off and on throughout.
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Zucchini
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Turkish-style rice
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600g green zucchini with the tops and bottoms cut off, peeled and chopped into rounds of about 1cm thickness and washed
500ml water One stock cube 6 dessertspoons of tomato paste 2 dessertspoons of pepper paste 2 dessertspoons of white rice Place the zucchinis in a saucepan with all the other ingredients. Cover and bring to the boil, then reduce to low and simmer (still covered) until the zucchinis are cooked to the firmness you like. Stir gently off and on throughout. As we said with the leek dish, if you’re tempted to throw in more rice, remember that it could make the sauce gluggy. Again, the rice is really just a little texture for the dish.
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Whatever quantity you make, you’ll always need twice the water for the amount of white rice. We use long grain rice.
If you wanted enough for 2 people, use 2 cups of water and one of the same-sized cups of rice. Add the water to a saucepan with half a stock cube. Cover and bring to the boil. Stir the water to ensure the cube has dissolved and then tip in the rice. Stir and leave to boil again. Stir again, reduce the heat to as low as possible and keep covered. Cook until the water has been absorbed and the rice is fluffy when you gently move it with a spoon. Don’t stir at all while it’s cooking. Be careful not to burn the bottom of the rice. It usually takes about 10mins or so for this quantity. When making the rice, use a saucepan that is just right for the ingredients, not one that is too big because it's good to have depth for the rice rather than a thin layer over a larger saucepan. Allow for the rice to expand a little of course.
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