I’ve been taking it easy this week, as we’re on vacation. In fact, the last time I posted, we were on our way up the east coast and are now in Truro, Massachusetts. I made some pretty good stuffed shells the other day, but finished when it was dark and the lighting in the house we’re in is sparsely lit. I looked at my wife and said I needed to come up with some blog content and she replied, "what about fish?" Duh! We’ll be eating/making a lot of fish, but here’s a non-fish meal I’ve been meaning to get up on the blog for quite some time, a one pot wonder of Spanish chicken and rice. This is always comforting and satisfying. Since it is a one-pot meal, it's also an ease to make for cleaning purposes, especially when you don’t have a dishwasher in your beach house!
Spanish Chicken & Rice
8 chicken thighs
Onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp paprika
2 tsp cumin
Pinch of red pepper flakes (what I had on hand) or 1 tsp chili powder
Heavy pinch of saffron
1 tsp dried oregano or Italian herbs
1 cup rice
White wine
¼ cup tomato sauce
1.75 cups chicken stock
1 roasted red pepper, thinly sliced (or 6.5 oz jar)
~5 oz Spanish or Castelvetrano olives, drained and halved
Frozen peas
Cilantro, rough chopped
Place some oil in a dutch oven over medium-high heat and season the chicken with kosher salt and black pepper and brown on each side, adjusting the heat as necessary. Invert the pot lid and transfer the cooked chicken to the lid and cook the remaining thighs, adding them to the lid once they're done cooking.
Once all of the thighs have been cooked, add in the onion and saute until beginning to soften. Add in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about a minute. Stir in the seasonings and cook for about a minute until toasted and fragrant.
Add in the rice and toast, stirring frequently, for a minute or so. Add in a splash of wine (~⅓ cup) and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until most of the wine has been absorbed. Then, add in the tomato sauce and chicken stock, along with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Bring to a boil, stir one last time, then place the chicken skin-side up on top, and pour in any accumulated juices from the inverted lid. Cover and simmer over low heat for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, crack the lid. If there is still a good amount of liquid, increase the heat to medium-low and continue to cook for another 5 minutes with the lid cracked.
Once only a little liquid remains, remove the chicken to the inverted pot top (or other dish) and stir in the pepper, olives, peas and cilantro, and cook until warmed through and the peas have defrosted (a couple of minutes).
To serve, spoon some rice on a plate and top with a chicken thigh or two.
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Copyright 2023, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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