Day 14: Sometimes All You Need is Chicken & Rice

I may have a slight aversion to chicken breasts. Frankly, they’ve always come out dry, and I have failed to come close to mastering them. I know, I know- the breast is everyone’s favorite. Possibly it’s the lack of bone, possibly it’s the convenience of it all. Not much can surprise you with a chicken breast, and it’s the least pink — so those without a thermometer can ease their anxieties of serving a raw piece of meat. For the record, dark meat can be cooked and still have a pink hue, but that’s another argument for another day. Chicken & rice is a combo that flexes its bounds across most cultures. It’s simple, stew-like, and can easily feed a bunch.

The Breakdown:

Ahh, the random dialogue regarding the chicken breast. Well, you’d never guess that I had some burning in the back of the freezer. And, wholly untraditional- I made Chicken & Rice with them. Loosely based on a Spanish rice & spinach/raisin salad recipe…it’s a one-pot weeknight glory. A bone-in, skin-on thigh would have served wonders here, but you take what you can get. Plus, you can do a proper pantry clean out, and use whichever veggies, beans, etc. you need to toss.

What You’ll Need:

• Chicken (your pick…go crazy)
• Rice (short grain if you please)
• 2–3 bell peppers
• Crushed tomatoes
• Onion/garlic
• Spinach
• Raisin
• Paprika/Bayleaf/S+P
• Evoo

Spin Away:

This is truly the most adaptable dish. Rather than provide an arduous, overly-detailed description, I’ll provide the basic outline.

The first thing you’ll want to do is brown the chicken. Ideally, you’ll have dry-brined it with salt and the spices of your choosing. Life’s often too busy for that. Try at least to get it going while you prep the veg + accouterments. Since I was using breast, I felt it better to cook the whole thing rather than let it dry out in the stew. If I had thighs, I would get a nice brown on the skin, and then add it back in with the rice to simmer. In my case, I butterflied the breasts and cooked them on med-high heat for ~3 min per side then tinted them under foil and let them rest.

Next, add your alliums (onion/garlic) right to the pot. You might need to deglaze the pan (think vinegar or wine). Once cooked through, add the veg and sautée for ~5 mins.

When the veggies are just barely cooked through, add a little glug of oil and bloom the spices. Now’s a great time to add the uncooked rice. Let the rice toast for 2 mins, and then add the crushed tomatoes & either stock/water and simmer!

Come back when the rice is cooked through, and there’s barely any cooking liquid left. Serve piping hot. I like to top my plate with just a drizzle of oil and a pinch of spice.

Hearty, homey, and delicious- chicken and rice will take you back to your roots — wherever they may be bound. Heck, it might even take you on a trip across the globe.

Until next time,

Lil!