Rainbow Grain Bowl with Tahini Dressing

Ingredients

• 300g quinoa, rinsed
• 600ml vegetable stock
• 600g sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2cm cubes
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp rice wine vinegar
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and julienned or coarsely grated
• 1 tsp caster sugar
• 200g frozen edamame beans, defrosted
• 200g red cabbage, finely shredded
• ½ lemon, juice only
• 2 ripe avocados, halved, stoned and sliced
• 1 garlic clove, finely grated
• 3 tbsp cold water, plus more to loosen
• 4 tbsp tahini
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 lemon, juice only
• ½ tsp dried chilli flakes, to serve
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted, to serve
• 15g fresh coriander, roughly torn, to serve
• warm flatbreads, to serve
• pickled cucumber, to serve

Method

1. Heat the oven to 220°C fan. Toss the sweet potato cubes with the olive oil, ground cumin, smoked paprika and a generous pinch of salt — season properly here, the spices need salt to wake them up. Spread in a single layer on a large baking tray, well spaced. Crowded cubes steam instead of roasting.
2. Roast for 25 minutes, turning once at the halfway mark, until the edges are deeply caramelised and the flesh gives easily to a knife tip. The dry heat blooms the cumin and paprika as they roast — raw spices taste dusty, roasted ones taste of themselves.
3. While the oven works, combine the julienned carrots with the rice wine vinegar, caster sugar and a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Scrunch with your hands, then leave for at least 15 minutes — the splash of vinegar softens the fibres and sharpens the sweetness.
4. Tip the rinsed quinoa and vegetable stock into a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil, then drop to the lowest simmer, lid on, for 13–15 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the little tails have unfurled — that's the doneness tell. Pull off the heat and leave covered for 5 minutes to steam.
5. Toss the shredded red cabbage with a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt. Scrunch firmly between your hands for a full minute or two until it slumps, deepens to vivid magenta and starts to weep. This is properly seasoning the raw veg — don't skip the salt.
6. Whisk the tahini with the lemon juice and grated garlic in a small bowl. It will seize and turn pale and claggy — that's normal. Whisk in the olive oil and the cold water a tablespoon at a time until it loosens to a pourable, glossy ribbon. The garlic stays raw here, so use one clove and grate it fine — any more and it bullies the sesame.
7. Taste the dressing and season with salt and black pepper. Taste again. It should be nutty, lemon-bright and just-savoury — adjust now, not at the table.
8. Divide the warm quinoa between four shallow bowls. Arrange the roasted sweet potato, scrunched cabbage, pickled carrot ribbons, edamame and sliced avocado in distinct sections over the top — eat with your eyes first.
9. Drizzle the tahini dressing generously over each bowl, scatter the toasted sesame seeds and torn coriander, and finish with a pinch of dried chilli flakes. Serve straight away with warm flatbreads and pickled cucumber alongside.