Easy and healthy Veggie Vermicelli recipe

Vermicelli is quite an understated food item I feel. It is super easy to cook and tastes comforting and delicious. It is gluten-free and these days you even get brown rice vermicelli, which is a great healthy item to add to your list! I have now made this vermicelli using this recipe as one of the main meals and as breakfast. It fits well into meal prep too!

Ask husband to buy:

This makes about 2-3 servings of cooked vermicelli

– Brown rice vermicelli 1 packet of about 200 gms
– 1 small Carrot
– Green Peas as per your liking
– Green capsicum 1
– Baby broccoli or cauliflower: a small head
*personally I prefer the taste of cauliflower
– Onions 1 medium
– Green Chillies as per taste and liking. you could skip it too.
– Shelled split black lentil (urad daal) 1 tbsp
(which is the key ingredient that actually creates magic, just saying)
which is the key ingredient that actually creates magic, just saying
– Fresh lemon or lime juice from 1 whole lemon
– Coriander for garnish
– Spring onions for garnish and goodness if you enjoy the taste
– Olive Oil 1 tbsp
– Cumin seeds 2 tsp

This is how we do it:

• The most boring part of this dish is the chopping. So first prep includes chopping. Small chop the onions. Also dice the capsicum, and carrots.

• Separate the baby broccoli into small florets. If you are using cauliflower, separate the florets into small size that are just a little larger than a green pea.
  (I personally prefer cauliflower because it tastes really good in this recipe)
• Boil green peas, broccoli/cauliflower/carrot till they are soft. If you like the taste of soft capsicum, boil that along too. If not, we will fry it with the onions.
• Once the vegetables are boiled, drain them and keep them aside
• Meanwhile, also boil enough water to drown the vermicelli in. Turn off the heat and leave the vermicelli in it till it is cooked and soft for about 10 minutes or so. I am impatient so i just boil mine with flame on and it does just fine.
  (Add some salt and a little bit of olive oil to this while boiling, so that the vermicelli strands do not stick together)
• Drain the brown-rice vermicelli in a large sieve strainer and immediately run cold water through it so that it doesn’t cook further or stick together.
• Heat the oil in a deep pan on medium and when it is hot enough, put the cumin seeds to crackle.

 

• Lightly dust the split black lentils in your palms to dry-clean them and chuck just one grain of it in the oil.
  If that one grain of the lentil crackles/sizzles then add rest of the lentil grains. Fry for a minute or so till it turns light brown.
• Add onions and and green chillies (if you are opting to add the chillies) and saute till they are lightly golden.
• Then add capsicum, if you chose to not boil the capsicum. Saute a little so that it still stays crisp and not turn into mush
• Add rest of the boiled veggies to saute lightly and add salt as per taste at this stage.
• Now toss the vermicelli into all this mixture and lightly mix it all patiently.
• If you want to keep the long strands intact then use tongs to mix everything gently by holding the vermicelli each time. If you don’t mind it breaking then just use your spatula with light hand.
• Lastly add lemon and mix. Turn off the flame and add coriander/cilantro garnish with chopped spring onions.

I would not recommend storing this preparation for more than two meals because the veggies lose their crisp charm. Instead, chop all your veggies and store in airtight containers in the fridge. Store the chopped carrots by submerging them in water in a container and keep in fridge. The carrots will be fresh and crisp for a few days!

Store the chopped onions and capsicum separately in airtight containers. Boiling and tossing takes far less time and your fresh meal is ready in no time! This also would be a great addition to a salad if you changed or reduced a few veggies and used lemon based or any citric salad dressing. You could also eat this with spicy gravy if you are a fussy eater* who may find this recipe too bland. Since this also happens to be gluten-free, another great box that this recipe checks!

Cheat Sheet*

*mama taught me that sour things such as lime juice when added to a dish, must be mixed quickly and the whole item must then be taken off the flame after a minute or two

*Fussy eater husband of mine is not a huge fan of this dish for some reason (rolling my eyes here)

Where’s the hygge?

My mother has made this since I was a child and usually I tweak recipes when I make them to fit my preferences. This is one of the very few recipes I follow exactly as my mother made it and it makes me feel all warm and comforted every single time. The simplicity of this recipe is where the hygge is at for this one, people!