Roasted pumpkin with black rice and tangerine tahini sauce recipe

Ingredients

• 1½ cups / 250 g black rice, soaked overnight if possible, rinsed, and drained
• Fine sea salt
• 1 medium pumpkin about 2 pounds / 1kg, such as Hokkaido or Delicata
• Knob of coconut oil or ghee, melted
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• Freshly cracked black pepper
• ½ cup / 10 g chopped flat-leaf parsley
• ½ fresh chile, sliced (Serrano is a good choice) Handful of raisins (optional)
• Tangerine tahini sauce

1. Put the rice and a few pinches of salt in a small saucepan, add 3 cups / 675 ml water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer covered, until the water is absorbed, 25 to 50 minutes (depending on how long you soaked the rice). Remove from the heat.
2. While the rice is cooking, roast the pumpkin: Preheat the oven to 400°F / 200°C.
3. Wash the pumpkin skin well (if it’s edible). Cut the pumpkin in half, then remove the seeds and slice the pumpkin into rounds or sections of approximately the same width. Put them in a single layer on a baking sheet, drizzle with melted oil, and sprinkle with the minced garlic and a few pinches of salt. Toss to coat. Roast the pumpkin until tender, about 30 minutes.
4. To serve, arrange the rice and pumpkin slices on each plate. Sprinkle with cracked black pepper, the chopped parsley, the chile, and the raisins if using. Drizzle with the tangerine tahini sauce. Serve extra sauce on the side.