Sol??????

We had something very much like that in Puerto Limon, Costa Rica, it was so good.

I don't have a recipe, but hope someone does.

Maureen, this time, my ears, and my latin heart were both on fire.

Lucy, Arroz con Pollo Cubano (Cuban Chicken with Rice) is one dish I've never used a recipe for, because I learned to make it from my mother by eyeballing everything. But, some time ago, someone here asked how I made it, It was then, that I tried writing it all down. I've adjusted my recipe since then.

Btw, if you were to visit the island of Cuba, you'd never, never, ever, never, find red beans in Arroz con Pollo. But if you liked the version you tried, then, by all means, add them.

One ingredient that is commonly used in this dish, however, is beer; sometimes I use it, sometimes I don't. The dish will not suffer either way. Some prefer the rice in the "asopado" style, which means "soupy." Others, like myself, prefer the rice fluffier, so I'm also including my mother's rice cooking method.

Arroz con Pollo

One, 3-pound chicken, cut into 8 pieces, skins on *
2 tablespoons olive oil
4-5 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red [or green] bell pepper, finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon toasted ground cumin
cup dry white wine, or dry Vermouth
¼ teaspoon Saffron
¼ cup tomato paste or 2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups long grain rice ** rinsed thoroughly, until water runs clear and drained well.
12-ounce can of your favorite beer, optional
½ cup frozen petite pois
1 bay leaf
salt and ground black pepper to taste
red pimientos for garnish. Perejil (parsley), or fresh oregano can also be used to garnish this dish, but it is optional.

Heat the olive oil in a large heavy skillet or casserole, season the chicken with salt and pepper, and cook the chicken pieces until golden, but still pink inside. Transfer the chicken to a platter and pour out all but 2 tablespoons of the fat.

Sofrito - Add the chopped onion, bell pepper and garlic to the skillet. Cook until onion is translucent (not brown), about 7 or 8 minutes.
Stir in the rice until it is well coated with the oil, and cook for a few minutes, until the rice grains begin to look opaque. DonÂt let the rice take on color.

Add the chicken stock, cumin, oregano, white wine or dry Vermouth, Saffron, tomato paste, bay leaf, beer (if using) and salt and pepper to taste. Make sure this mixture is salty because the rice will absorb quite a bit of it.

Stir to combine and arrange chicken pieces on top.
Bring it to a boil, uncovered, until most of the water is absorbed and small craters form on top of the rice, about 20-25 minutes. Reduce heat. Place a kitchen towel over the pot, and place the lid on tight over the towel. Cook on low until rice is tender, another 12-15 minutes.

A few minutes before the rice is finished cooking, stir in the petite pois. This dish is typically garnished with sliced red pimientos.

* I recommend keeping the skin on the chicken, to keep it moist while it cooks with the rice, and to lend even more flavor to this dish. If you don't like the skin, remove it just before serving.

**True Arroz con Pollo is made with Valencia rice[short grain rice]. I use Valencia rice in Paella and even in some desserts, but in Arroz con Pollo I prefer to use long grain rice, which is also acceptable.

Sol

OMG that looks sooooooo good - I'm going to try this too - thank you!

Sol,
Thank you sooooo very much, looks absolutely great! My daughter brought it home, & it happened to have the red beans in it (may have been the restaurants signature way of making it?), outside of the beans, it was wonderful. I'm gonna make this for tomorrow's dinner. Thanks.

Lucy

You're both welcome. Enjoy.

Sol

Sol...I knew you'd come through. ;-)

On my screen some of your measurements have ? instead of an amount...my MAC??? Would you check these please? Maureen

� cup dry white wine, or dry Vermouth
� teaspoon Saffron
� cup tomato paste or 2 tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
� cup frozen petite pois

btw, have you read the novel by a Haitian woman Edwige Danticat where the "Perejil (parsley)" issue is critical i.e. how you say it?

Sol,
After telling my daughter that you were so kind to supply me w/a recipe, we were discussing the dish & she said she had ordered a side of red beans.

"you'd never, never, ever, never, find red beans in Arroz con Pollo"

Apparently when they made up the doggie bag, it got mixed together. Looking forward to tonights meal ;-)

Lucy

Well....look at that...I see from my posting that the amounts came thru in the copy and paste...weird. Maureen

that is weird, because I can read the original, but not your copy and paste.
Lisa

Lucy, I hope I didn't come off sounding like a wisenheimer, but beans always get me riled up [G].
Anyway, I hope you and your daughter fully enjoy tonight's dinner. And if you happen to have mint, go ahead and make a few Mojitos. Bliss.

Maureen, I didn't know that by hitting 'Submit' it would clear up the question marks. Oh, Mother of Science, what'll they think of next?

Btw, I haven't read the novel Perejil, but I'm curious as to why the pronunciation was so darn critical?
For anyone who may be curious, perejil is pronounced pe-re-hil; the "r" would be flat, not rolled. And the "j" in Spanish is pronounced like heaven, or hunky-dory, as in Cuban fare. Hah.

Sol

Sol, the novel is The Farming of Bones and "The setting, the Dominican Republic in 1937, when dictator Trujillo was beginning his policy of genocide, is a clue, however, to the events that Amabelle relates. She and her lover, Sebastien Onius, are Haitians who have crossed the border."(the Haitians were betrayed by their inability to pronounce "parsley")"

The novel gives this little herb a whole new meaning.

Thank you Maureen.
I just took a moment to read the book's intro.
And I'll never look at the innocuous parsley the same way again.

Sol