Vegetable Jumbalaya

Full disclaimer - we have this every week without fail. It is one of our favourite recipes, which we adapted from a ‘Chicken and Chorizo Jumbalaya’. Before we were fully plant-based, we used to use Quorn chicken pieces as a substitute but now we've omitted these. You may like to use Quorn's vegan range - but at the moment this isn't to our taste! Here's what you'll need.

Ingredients:

Olive oil

1 brown onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves

1 red bell pepper

1 tbsp Cajun spice (or more if you enjoy spicy food)

1 tin plum tomatoes

1 tsp of smoked paprika

1 handful of rice per person, plus one for luck (this is how I like to measure out rice – a tip from Spain)

300ml vegetable stock (you might need a little bit more warm water if yours evaporates off quickly)

Method:

1. Heat the oil and add in the finely chopped onion; cook for five minutes until soft and translucent.

2. Add in the garlic and cook for two minutes more.

3. Add in the chopped red pepper and cook for two minutes.

4. Sprinkle over the spices and fully coat the vegetables.

5. Add a handful of rice for each person and then an extra handful for luck (obviously, this is a trick I learnt from Spain and will vary from hand to hand!). Coat in the spices for one minute.

6. Add in the plum tomatoes and break them up in the pan.

7. Pour in the vegetable stock – you may need more water if it becomes dry. Bring the liquid to a boil and simmer on a medium heat until the rice is cooked and the liquid has reduced (roughly 20 minutes). Add more water if necessary throughout the cooking process and stir regularly.

8. Serve piping hot and enjoy!