Chicken and Rice Cuban Style or "Arroz con Pollo"
This recipe is a one-pot meal for chicken and rice called in Spanish, "Arroz con Pollo." The ingredients include long-grain rice, white chicken meat, olive oil, butter, peas, saffron, olives, chicken stock, and Latino condiments. All ingredients can be found at Sedano's Supermarkets.
Equipment
- Dutch oven with a lid
- Chopping block
- Knife
- Wooden spatula
Ingredients
For the Chicken and Rice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil plant-based butter (recommend Country Crock plant-based products)
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 chicken breasts, deboned and cut into chunks
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 1 piquillo pepper, chopped
- 1/2 cup Spanish olives, sliced
- 1 pinch saffron
- 1 teaspoon yellow rice condiment
- 1 pinch black pepper
- 1 tablespoon chicken bouillon
- 2 cups long grain rice (recommend Mahatma Rice)
- 1 cup chicken stock (canned or homemade)
- 3 cups warm water
- 2 cups frozen peas
For the Tomato-Cucumber Salad
- 3 tomatoes on the vine, sliced
- 1 cucumber, peeled and sliced
- 1 teaspoon mayonnaise (recommend Hellman's Real Mayonnaise)
- 1 pinch italian seasoning
For the Pineapple Mango Agua Fresca
- 4 cups cold water
- 1/2 cup Lipton Aguas Frescas pineapple mango flavor
- 1 cup frappe ice
- 2 slices pineapple, cut into chunks
- 2 cherries
For the Ice Cream Cup
- 1 scoop vanilla ice cream (we recommend Breyer's ice cream)
- 4 strawberries, sliced
- 4 coconut cookies
Instructions
- Place the pot on the stove over low-medium heat and add the olive oil plant-based butter along with the olive oil to avoid the butter to burn. Sautee the bay leaves to revive the flavor.
- Add the chicken breast chunks and cook. Add the garlic, the piquillo peppers, and the olives. Season with the saffron and the yellow rice condiment. Stir and add the rice.
- Incorporate the chicken stock, the chicken bouillon, and two and a half cups of warm water. Stir slowly and cover with a lid. Let the rice cook for 15 to 20 minutes.
- As a final step add the frozen peas and the rest of the water which should be warm and no more than half of a cup. Cover again with the lid and cook the rice for another five minutes. When the rice has an al dente texture it is ready.
- Serve the rice with sweet plantains. We used frozen plantains and cook them in the oven. Add a salad using tomato slices and cucumbers. Dress with Hellman's Real Mayonnaise and Italian seasoning.
- Slice a Cuban bread and spread each slice with Country Crock almond plant-based butter spread. Bake for 2-3 minutes and serve warm.
Video
Notes
- Use a dutch oven or a deep rice pan called “arrocera” in Spanish. The pan must include a lid.
- Use two cups of Mahatma long-grain white rice.
- The original chicken and rice recipe calls for chicken thighs and drums. My family prefers chicken breast, but the dish is more flavorful when using pre-seasoned dark chicken meat.
- To add a creamy note, use Country Crock olive oil plant-based butter and olive oil to avoid the butter burning.
- Saffron is a key ingredient to achieve a yellow color. It is also possible to use yellow rice chicken condiment instead.
- Use one cup of chicken broth. This ingredient adds depth of chicken flavor, which is characteristic in this dish.
- Sliced olives, fresh garlic, and piquillo peppers are essential too. The three ingredients balance the flavors.
- For achieving an authentic flavor, include bay leaves, black pepper, and chicken bouillon too.
- The recipe for the chicken and rice recipe calls for two cups of rice. We recommend one cup of chicken stock, plus three cups of warm water. The ratio of liquid when cooking rice is two cups of liquid per cup of rice.
Nutrition
Calories: 230kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 10gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 141mgPotassium: 298mgFiber: 2gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 405IUVitamin C: 19mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 1mg
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