Preparation time
less than 30 mins
Cooking time
30 mins to 1 hour
Serves
Serves 4
Dietary
Vegetarian
By Matt Tebbutt
From Saturday Kitchen
Ingredients
For the Rice Pudding:
- Jasmine rice: 100g (3½oz)
- Caster sugar (plus 1 tbsp extra): 50g (1¾oz)
- Milk: 600–800ml (20fl oz–1½ pint)
- Arab mastic (optional): 1 tsp
- Cornflour: 1½ tbsp
- Rosewater: 1 tsp
For the Compôte:
- Ripe strawberries: 250g (9oz)
- Strawberry jam: 100g (3½oz)
- Orange blossom water: 1–2 tsp
To Decorate:
- Pinch of cinnamon
- Toasted Israeli pistachios: 50g (1¾oz)
Alternative Ingredients
Here are some suitable alternatives for Arab mastic:
- Guar Gum: Guar gum is a versatile thickening agent that can be used in cooking and baking. It doesn’t have the same flavor as mastic, but it provides similar thickening properties.
- Xanthan Gum: Xanthan gum is another thickener that works well in recipes. It’s commonly used in gluten-free baking and can replace mastic in certain applications.
Method
- Rice Pudding:
- Rinse the rice and transfer it to a large saucepan.
- Add 200ml (7fl oz) water and cook over low heat until the water is absorbed (about 4–5 minutes).
- Add sugar and most of the milk.
- Grind the mastic (if using) with the extra sugar, then add it to the pan.
- Mix cornflour with the remaining milk to form a paste; add this mixture to the pan.
- Cook for about 15 minutes or until thickened.
- Taste the rice pudding and adjust sugar if needed. Add rose water.
- Allow to cool.
- Strawberry Compote:
- In a large saucepan, combine strawberries and jam.
- Cook over low heat until strawberry juices start to run (8–10 minutes).
- Add orange blossom water to taste.
- Set aside.
- Serve the rice pudding cold with strawberry compote. Garnish with pistachios and cinnamon.