Pisto Doria (Japanese Rice Gratin)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 220 °C. Cut all the vegetables into 1 cm dice and mince the garlic. Heat the olive oil in a 20 cm frying pan over medium heat and cook the onion and garlic for 5 min, until translucent.

   Add in this stepOlive oil 2 tbspOnion ½Garlic cloves 1

   medium heat

2. Add the pepper and courgette and cook for 6 min, then add the crushed tomatoes and salt and simmer over medium heat for 10 min. It must be thick enough that it no longer runs off a spoon; a wet pisto makes soggy rice.

   Add in this stepRed bell pepper ½Courgette (zucchini) ½Canned crushed tomatoes 200 gSalt ¼ tsp

   medium heat

3. Melt the sauce butter in a 16 cm saucepan over medium-low heat, add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Pour in the cold milk a little at a time, whisking out any lumps, add the salt and white pepper and keep whisking until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon; about 7 min in all.

   Add in this stepButter (for the white sauce) 20 gPlain flour 20 gMilk 300 mlSalt ¼ tspWhite pepper to taste

   medium-low heat

4. Melt the rice butter in a pan over medium heat, add the rice and soy sauce and stir-fry for 3 min, until every grain is glossy.

   Add in this stepWarm cooked rice 400 gButter (for the rice) 15 gSoy sauce 2 tsp

   medium heat

5. Spread the butter rice evenly in a 2 × 500 ml gratin dish, spoon the pisto over it and cover with the white sauce. Scatter the mozzarella and Parmesan evenly on top.

   Add in this stepGrated mozzarella 80 gGrated Parmesan 2 tbsp

6. Bake in the oven at 220 °C for 12 min, until the cheese is bubbling with deep brown patches. Let it stand for 3 minutes before eating; the dish is very hot, so use oven gloves.

   oven