Tagged: arroz

Recipes

Chicken and Garden Vegetable Rice

Summer vegetables from my garden make this Chicken and Veggie Rice. I also make this Rice and Green Bean version without chicken. It’s delicious as a mean dish or serve as a side dish.

8 to 10 pieces of chicken (I used drumsticks and thighs) (remove skin if desired)

2 cups long grain rice

1 medium onion (finely chopped)

2 large carrots or 8 oz baby carrots (chopped)

1 pound fresh green beans (chopped)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1 bay leaf

5 cups boiling water

1 chicken bouillon cube or 1 cup chicken broth

chopped parsley for garnish

Preparation:

Season the chicken with the spices and let marinade for a few hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

Brown the chicken on both sides in the olive oil in a very large deep skillet. Add the onion and bay leaf and saute for about 5 minutes.

Add water, bouillon, cover and let simmer for about 30 minutes.

Add the vegetables and rice. Stir let come to a boil and cover. Let cook for about 15 minutes longer. Taste the rice for doneness.

I like a firm rice, but if you prefer a more well done rice cook longer. Add more boiling water if you find the rice has dried out.

When ready to serve top with chopped parsley.

Photo Gallery / Recipes / rice / Side Dish

Arroz de Tomate – Portuguese Tomato Flavored Rice

Arroz de Tomate – Tomato Flavored Rice

This rice pairs well with fish and poultry, but you can serve it as a side dish for any meal. My father was named Dinis after Rei D. Dinis (1279 – 1325) he also loved rice as did the once reining king!

He first showed me how to make rice it when I was a young girl. To obtain a fluffy rice you should gently coat it with the olive oil or butter and let it stir fry gently for about a minute or two. This process allows the grains to stay intact and not get mushy while cooking.

To read more about the popularity of rice in Portugal visit this link from Catavino.com.

Excerpt from Catavino.com:

Portugal’s rice production along the Tejo River estuary has been documented since the 18th century, rice was cultivated in the southern regions of Portugal well beforehand – inherited from the Moors. It was during the reign of King D. Dinis (1279-1325) that rice was first referenced, curiously as a luxury product found only on the dining tables of the wealthy. Centuries later, the production of rice was outlawed, due to a high risk of malaria from the poor growing conditions. By the 19th century, rice became highly prized and produced, extending beyond the river basin to the North. Consequently, the Portuguese government changed their tune from rice as a “tolerable grain” to an agricultural powerhouse, thereby creating better conditions to ensure its success. By the beginning of the 20th century, a solid base for rice production had been established provoking the dissemination of rice fields across the country. credits: http://catavino.net/portuguese-rice-arroz-carolino/

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked rice (preferably long grain Carolina Rice or Uncle Bens)

1 small onion (finely chopped)

4 cups boiling water

1 chicken boullion cube

2 large very ripe tomatoes (peeled, seeded, chopped)

1 teaspoon salt

1 bay leaf

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Instructions:

In heavy medium pan, saute the onion and bay leaf in the oil for a few minutes on medium heat until translucent. Add the rice, stir to coat with the oil for about 1 minute. Add the boiling water, salt, boullion and tomato.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stir, cover and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes stirring often. After fifteen minutes stir and taste for saltiness. Cover, remove from heat and let the rice absorb moisture as it sits until ready to serve.

Note: I like a firm rice, cook  rice longer if you prefer it more will done.

To form the rice tower lightly grease a small ramekin with margarine. Pack the rice firmly in the ramekin and flip onto a plate.

 

Main Dish / Photo Gallery / Recipes / rice / Side Dish

Carmelina’s Chicken and Rice Casserole

 A Rebel Rooster

During my teenage years, when my siblings and I were still living at home on a small dead end street in a small town in New England, my father brought home a little yellow chick for Easter given to him by his friend who raised chickens.

My father thought it was a great idea because we had raised chickens back in Portugal and soon, we’d be eating fresh eggs every morning. He made the little chick, a coop under our back porch and eventually the chick became our family’s pet.

My parents couldn’t tell whether the chick was a rooster or a hen that would lay eggs. Apparently sexing chicks is difficult and it is said that only professionals know how to determine it.

The chick grew bigger week by week, and we soon realized that the little chick had turned into a white Leghorn Rooster!But he was no ordinary rooster; he was very temperamental and quite a rebel who often escaped his coop, terrorizing our family and the neighborhood.

My rooster was a traffic cop.

He designated himself that position by stopping any car that drove into the street by parking himself right in front of it! Honking would ensue, followed by a loud screams of; “get the damn rooster off the road”!

Our rooster also had an aversion to anything with wheels; my father’s wheel barrel, my brother’s bicycle and especially one particular pink bicycle owned by one of my sister’s teenage friends who lived up the street!

The poor girl tried to speed by our house to elude his assaults, but the rooster was too fast for her. He terrorized her daily to the point that she eventually stopped riding by our house. She opted to use the opposite side of the street instead but unfortunately, the poor girl’s strategy didn’t work and he always found her.

My rooster was a leg man.

The females in my family lived in fear of having our legs pecked and scratched every time we walked outside our front door. Many pairs of pantyhose were torn up every weekday morning when my sister left for work that summer.

It reached the point where she’d have to ask one of us to be her lookout so she could make a run for her car. “Where’s the Galo” “Where’s the Galo” shouted my sister as she headed out the door.

If you’ve ever been pecked by a wild tempered rooster’s beak and clawed in your bare legs you know what I mean. If you haven’t, I can tell you it really hurts, because I was also attacked all summer long myself.

As that summer went on, the rooster grew bigger and his early morning “cock-a-doodle-doo” made it impossible for my family, or any one in the neighborhood to sleep past sunrise. Soon, the neighbors began knocking on our front door to complain and something had to be done about it.

My mother was a very resourceful woman and a great cook! I’ll let you figure out the rest of the story.

Meanwhile here’s her recipe for chicken and rice.

 

Ingredients:

1 small fryer chicken 3-4 lbs (cut into about 10 pieces)

2 cups of long grain rice

1 small onion chopped

1 small garlic clove chopped

1 bay leaf

2 large carrots chopped

1 small very ripe tomato

1/4 cup of olive oil

1 tsp paprika

1 tbsp salt

1 pinch of black pepper

1/2 cup of white wine

2 cups of chicken broth

4 cups of boiling water

 

Instructions:

Wash, and pat dry the chicken. Marinate with the salt, pepper, paprika, wine, and let sit for at least 2 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.

When ready to cook, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil in a heavy stove top casserole pan or deep skillet until translucent.

Add the chicken, carrots, tomato, and bay leaf.

Cook on medium heat until the chicken gets browned stirring once in a while. Add the wine, chicken broth and any remaining marinade.

Let the chicken cook on medium-low for a few minutes and then cover and cook for at least 30 minutes stirring once in a while.

After the 30 minutes add the 4 cups of boiling water, let it come to a boil and add the rice.

Stir, wait for the rice to come to a boil, stir, cover, and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes.

Remove from heat. Leave covered and let the rice sit for about 10 minutes. (The rice will continue to cook)

Uncover, stir and test rice. Add seasonings to your desired taste. *(I like a firm rice, but you may let it cook longer if you choose)