Mejillones Enchilados con Arroz Amarillo

I know so many people whose motto is "I don't eat anything that comes from the sea." Then there are people who will eat fish but not shellfish, and those who will eat fish and shellfish, but NOT mussels! That's okay; more for me.

A couple of weeks ago I posted a picture of rice with mussels that my sister made. My daughter did not eat with us that day, so I decided to make her a different version of mejillones enchilados con arroz amarillo (mussles in a spicy red sauce and yellow rice).

2 lbs of mussels (I used pre-cooked frozen mussels, fresh is better of course)
1 medium size onion,  chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, pressed
8 oz canned stewed tomatoes
dash of hot sauce
dash of Worchestershire sauce
dash of soy sauce
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup white wine
olive oil
salt to taste
parsley for garnish

If using fresh mussles discard any with open or broken shells. Scrub the mussels with a stiff brush, debeard and rinse under cold water.

Coat a pot with olive oil and saute your onions and garlic. Add your stewed tomatoes, hot sauce, Worchestershire sauce, soy sauce, bay leaf and wine and salt and let simmer for the flavors to meld. Add your mussels and cook until they open carefully spooning the sauce over them as they cook. Turn off the heat cover and let sit for a while so the mussels absorb the flavor of the sauce. Serve over a bed of yellow rice.

Note: If you don't eat mussels you can substitute shrimp, crab, lobster or any other shellfish for this recipe.

Yellow Rice with Vegetables

There are infinite variations of yellow rice. This time I had a package of frozen vegetables that had been sitting in the freezer for a while and were aching to be thawed. I'm no expert at making rice, which is embarrassing for a Cuban woman. This batch turned out well.

1 small onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped
2 cups thawed mixed vegetables
5 cups water
2 cups long grain white rice
1/2 tsp Bijol (annato)
1/2 tsp paprika

salt
olive oil

In a large pot sautee your onions, garlic and pepper in olive oil. Add your mixed vegetables, add the water and the spices. Add your rice. Stir. Bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat to low and cover your pot. In about 15 minutes check the rice, if the water has absorbed and the rice is hard add a little more water. Check for taste; I usually add more salt and olive oil at this point. Stir. Check back again in about 10 minutes. It should be done by then.

Arroz al Horno con Chorizo

I love it when someone is inspired by one of my recipes. In this case my cousin took my "Meatless Monday" recipe which I posted a while back for

Arroz Al Horno • Oven Baked Rice

Oven Baked Rice and added chorizo. She made a much larger portion as she was entertaining that night. Along with 7 ripe fried plantains on the side, the rice was a hit!

Meatless Monday: Roasted Acorn Squash and Onions with Long Grain and Wild Rice

Calabaza, Calabaza

todo el mundo

pa' su casa!

This is a simple, delicious and healthy recipe. I went ahead and enlisted some help from a box of Zatarains Long Grain and Wild Rice.

1 acorn squash (I don't really know how big it was or what it weighed but it yielded about 3 cups of squash)
4 small white onions or 2 large ones quarted.
olive oil (about 1/4 cup)
coarse sea salt

1 Box Zatarains Long Grain and Wild Rice.

Pre-heat your oven to 375 F. Cut your squash in half and take the seeds out using a spoon. Peel the squash and cut into chunks about 1inch square. Toss your squash and onions in  a bowl with your olive oil along with a liberal shaking of sea salt. Transfer onto a baking dish leaving space between the pieces. Roast for about 40 minutes, turning the veggies halfway.

In the meantime, prepare your rice according to package directions. Transfer your rice onto a large bowl and add the roasted squash and onions. Lightly toss together and serve.

Arroz con Puerco y Chorizo

This is just another one of those variations on yellow rice. I had a couple of pork chops in the freezer and a Spanish chorizo in the pantry, and 6 people to feed. With a side salad and some bread, dinner for six.

1 large yellow onion or medium red onion
6 cloves garlic, pressed
2 pork chops, diced
1 Spanish chorizo, diced
2 cups long grain rice
4 1/2 cups water
dash of Bijol (annato for coloring)
chicken flavor bouillon (optional)
salt to taste (if necessary)
olive oil

Spanish chorizo has a lot of flavor so it is not necessary to use many spices for this.

Sautee your onion and garlic in olive oil, add your pork and chorizo, sautee a bit. Add a cup of water and simmer until the pork is fully cooked and tender (about 30 minutes). Add 3 1/2 cups water, your bouillon (optional) and bring to a boil. Add the 2 cups of rice, stir, cover and reduce heat to low. Check in 15 minutes, stir. Add water if needed.

Meatless Monday: Homemade Rice-A-Roni

Considering Cubans love rice, I don't believe there is a Cuban recipe that calls for a rice/pasta combination. In doing some research I read that the inspiration for the famous San Francisco Treat came from an Armenian recipe. Go figure, and you thought you had never tried Armenian food.
This is a very basic recipe to which you may add parsley, mushrooms, peas, etc.

1/4 cup pasta, cracked into small pieces (I used angel hair)
1 cup long grain rice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 1/4 cups vegetable broth (or water plus vegetable bouillon)

Heat your olive oil in a skillet, drop in your garlic, pasta and rice and stir until well coated and the pasta browns slightly. Add your broth and bring to a boil. Stir. Turn heat to low and simmer covered for 15 - 20 minutes. Fluff rice with fork and serve.

Meatless Monday: Arroz al Horno•Oven Baked Rice

I've been rattling my brain trying to think of a nutritious vegetarian meal with a Spanish or Cuban flair. I was walking through the rice and pasta isle of the supermarket inspecting my options when I came across Arroz Valencia otherwise known as Pearl Rice. My grandmother always used Valencia rice to make arroz con pollo. Of course I wasn't going to make anything with chicken for Meatless Mondays and eliminating the chicken from the recipe would leave something to be desired, so I did some internet research.  There is a dish called Arroz al Horno which is very popular in Valencia, Spain. It calls for pork and blood sausage, but also chickpeas. Aha...chickpeas would provide the protein we're lacking in a plain rice dish and I thought according to the other ingredients involved that we wouldn't miss the lack of pork and sausage. I was right! Even my husband liked it. So here is my variation of the original recipe. (I made a small portion since I was experimenting).

3 large cloves of garlic, whole (I took the skins off, but you can leave them on if you'd like)
1 medium sized tomato, sliced or quartered
3/4 cups pearl rice
2 1/2 cups vegetable broth (or 2 1/2 cups water and vegetable bouillon)
1 medium potato, sliced
7 oz cooked chickpeas (canned is fine)
a dash of Bijol for coloring (annatto powder)
olive oil
salt
petit pois for garnish

Preheat your oven to 350F

Coat an oven proof pan with olive oil and lightly fry your garlic. Add the rice and stir it around a bit to coat it in the oil. Add your tomatoes. Add your broth (or water an bouillon) and Bijol. Add the pre-cooked chickpeas and salt to taste. Let that simmer for a few mintues until it comes to a boil at which point you can turn off the burner. In the meantime, in a separate pan coated with olive oil, lightly fry your potatoes. Transfer them to the rice pan by laying them on top of the rice. Carefully place your oven proof pan in the oven. Bake uncovered for about 20 minutes until golden brown on top. Sprinkle with a handful of petit pois.

Arroz Frito Cubano: Cuban Fried Rice

This is how I learned to make fried rice growing up in a Cuban household.

Measure 2 cups of uncooked long grain white rice and cook using your preferred method (i.e, rice cooker, stove top, etc) making sure it results in fluffy rice, not sticky rice. It's best to make the rice the day before and refrigerate over night.

For the fried rice:
1 lb Ham, diced
1 lb Smoked Pork Chops, diced

1 lb Shrimp, cleaned and deveined
3 Eggs, beaten
14 oz can bean sprouts, drained

soy sauce
1 clove garlic, minced

peanut oil or vegetable oil

There are quite a few step involved in this recipe. I'm going to break it down for you as best I can.

Dice your ham and your smoked pork chops.

The ham and chops usually have water added. We want to extract as much liquid as possible from the meats without drying them out. In a skillet heat a little vegetable oil and drop in your diced meats. Stir, once the liquid starts to separate strain your meats to eliminate the liquid. Set aside.

In the same skillet now heat a little more oil and drop in your garlic, do not let it brown, add your shrimp, stir until cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed. Strain. (If you are using pre-cooked shrimp follow the same steps and we need to reduce the liquid from these shrimp as well.) Set aside.

 

The bean sprout have a lot of liquid as well. For these we will heat oil in the same skillet and basically fry the sprouts until they start to turn golden. The liquid should be evaporated by this point. Set aside.

Scramble your eggs. Heat oil in the same skillet you've been using and pour your eggs in letting them lie flat like a pancake. Flipping once (I made a mess of this). Remove from pan and cut into long slices.

Now to fry the rice: coat the bottom of a wok or a very large pan with vegetable oil and bring to a high heat. You're going to need a strong wrist for this – drop your rice in little by little stirring rapidly to coat it with the oil. Drizzle in some soy sauce as you stir, add more rice, more soy suace, etc. Watch the heat as your rice may start to stick or burn, adjust accordingly and keep stirring. Once the grains of rice are no longer sticking to each other and are evenly coated with oil and soy sauce stir in your ham and pork chops, next the bean sprouts and shrimp and lastly the eggs.

Leave the soy sauce bottle on the dinner table for those who always want more. Enjoy.

Meatless Monday: Arroz con Maiz – Yellow Rice with Corn

I've decided to join the Meatless Mondays bandwagon. If you haven't heard of it, it is a movement to cut out meat one day a week in order to improve one's personal health and the health of the planet. I've placed an icon with a link to their page on the right.

Today I've decided to make yellow rice with corn which requires absolutely no meat. (I know, it's Wednesday, just play along – you can make it on Monday).  Since I finally feel confident to make rice outside of the rice cooker (thanks to my followers and their tips and advice), I thought I'd give this recipe a whirl, and I must say it turned out yummy!  This is a very flexible dish, you can add or subtract at whim.

4 cloves garlic pressed
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped peppers (I used red and green)
the kernels from 2 ears of corn or 1 1/2 to 2 cups of frozen or canned
1 tbsp capers (optional)
1 tbsp salt or to taste

dash of Bijol (Bijol is basically food coloring, the ingredients listed on the label are: corn flour, cumin, annatto, yellow 5 and red no.40)

1 bay leaf
2 cups long grain white rice
3 1/2 cups water
2 tbsp olive oil

Pour olive oil into a large enough pot to cook your rice, sautee your onions, peppers, and garlic. Add your water, salt, Bijol, bay leaf and capers. Bring to a boil. Stir in your rice and reduce heat to simmer. Cover.
In 15 minutes uncover, fluff and taste your rice. If the rice is still a little hard but there is moisture left in the pot then turn off the heat and cover letting the steam finish cooking. If it is still a little hard and there is not moisture left, add 1/4 cup water, turn of the burner and let it finish steam cooking. At this point you may also add salt and/or olive oil depending on your taste.

Congrí: Red Beans and Rice

Congrí in my family has always meant red beans and rice as opposed to Moros y Cristianos which is black beans and rice. In searching recipes for the dish, I learned that black beans and rice is often referred to as congrí as well. Live and learn. I have never made congrí although I have eaten it often. Another new adventure! I can say that I had to make adjustments to the recipe I was following, but it turned out terrific. This is what I did:

1 cup dry red kidney beans, soaked overnight (or a minimun of three hours)
8 cups water
a drizzle of olive oil

Bring your pre-soaked beans to a boil in 8 cups of water with 1 bay leaf and olive oil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 1 1/2 to 2 hours, adding additional water if needed. Once the beans are tender turn off the burner and let sit for about one hour. At this point drain them and reserve 4 cups of the liquid (if you don't have enough liquid add water). Set aside.

5 strips of bacon cut into 1/2 inch slices
1/4 cup olive oil
1 medium size onion, finely chopped
1 small green bell pepper, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
3 teaspoons salt
2 cups raw long grain white rice

In a large pot over medium heat cook the bacon until crisp. Remove it and discard the excess fat from the pot. In the same pot heat your olive oil, add the onion, bell pepper and garlic, stirring until tender. Return the bacon to the pot. Add the beans along with the reserved liquid. Turn the heat to high and add the oregano, cumin, bay leaf, salt and rice. Stir. Bring heat down to low and cover. Check in 15-20 mintues; fluff rice with a fork and determine if more liquid is necessary. Make any necessary adjustments and cover until done. Remove bay leaf and serve.

Arroz con Salchichas: Yellow Rice with Hotdogs?

My mother always made arroz con salchichas with the Vienna Sausage that come in a can. I personally have never liked that sausage, so I'm making it with some party sized turkey franks that I had in my freezer since New Years (I know!). I'm going to follow Nathans basic recipe for yellow rice click here with the addition of the franks, and I'm going to attempt to cook the whole thing on the burner (as opposed to the rice cooker).

1 small to medium size onion, chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, or red (whichever you have at hand)
4 garlic cloves, pressed or minced
the equivalent of about 4 regular sized hotdogs sliced
3 cups rice, long grain
4 1/2 cups water
salt to taste
olive oil
a dash of cumin
a dash of bijol

(Bijol is also know as "achiote" or "annotto" powder and it is used for coloring rice. It is used to replace the very expensive saffron in many recipes. Bijol does not really duplicate the saffron flavor, but it does have a unique flavor all its own that is unmistakable in Cuban dishes.)

Sautee your onion, garlic and pepper in olive oil, add the franks, and sautee for a few more minutes. Add the water with bijol, cumin and salt. Bring to a boil and add the dry rice.  Stir. Cover and simmer on low for about 20 minutes. Check at about 15 minutes to adjust for water and to fluff.

 

White Rice #1

About a week ago I posted Pedro's Cooking Tip for making white rice. I made it this way today.

If you want to make the tastiest white rice ever (and according to Nitza Villapol, this is the TRUE way of making white rice the Cuban way) do it like this:

• ALWAYS use the proportion of 1 cup of dry rice to 1.5 cup of water.
• Never rinse the rice if it's enriched and packaged. It's unnecessary and you will NEVER get the rice water to run completely clear ... Anyway. Let's say you are making 2 cups of dry rice. Therefore, you need to measure 3 cups of water in a shallow flat-bottom pan (by shallow I mean with no steep high walls).
• To the water add salt to taste, one large clove of garlic pressed, minced, sliced or however you like to cut it, but in very small pieces.
• Add the juice of 1/2 lime (or lemon) to the water and let it come to a gentle boil.
• Simmer for about 3 minutes. Add the dry rice and distribute evenly over the entire bottom of the pan making sure it's completely covered by the water.
• Let it come to a boil again (about 1-2 minutes) and then reduce heat to a minimum ( my stove has 6 settings; at this point I turn it to setting number 2) and simmer on this very low heat, COVERED with a lid, for 10-15 minutes).
• Uncover, fluff with a fork and check for tenderness. If it's still a little tough, add 1/8-1/4 cup of water and keep it on number 2 until the grain is tender (tender; not mushy or sticky).
• At this point, sprinkle some extra virgin olive oil on top ( maybe 1-2 tablespoonfuls, depending on taste), fluff and serve.

I made two cups.  I found that I did need to add a little more water, and it took a little longer than the time mentioned above, but it did turn out very tasty and fluffy.  I found that the shallower pan cooked the rice quicker and the addition of the garlic and lemon juice really made it flavorful.  A dish on it's own.  Yum!

 P.S.  I have received other suggestions for rice in the comments section, and I will be posting and trying out those directions as well.

Paella with a little help from my friend Goya

Shortcuts. We have to take them sometimes depending on our resources: time, accessible ingredients, expense, knowledge. I don't have access to fresh mussels or clams or lobster (can't afford it anyway), basically most of what I can get my hands on is frozen. I had one package of Spanish chorizo that I found in the back of my pantry (surprise!) from a care package sent to me at Christmas. I'm not an expert at making paella, and with my track record for making rice (I will learn, Pedro!) I wouldn't risk ruining this dish with undercooked or overcooked rice, so I prepare the yellow rice separately in a rice cooker. There are quite a few step involved so I've taken a million pictures. Here we go.

1 large onion, chopped
6-8 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 lb shrimp
1 lb scallops (or any other seafood)
1 package Goya paella mix (basically this brings seasoned yellow rice and a can of squid in a sauce)
2 cans octopus
3 chorizo links, casing removed, sliced
chicken (I used pre-cooked chicken breast pieces, you may use 2 boneless chicken breasts, sliced)
dash or Worchestershire sauce
dash of soy sauce
dash of hot sauce
salt (see note below)*
olive oil
chicken buillon (optional)
t tbsp capers
1/4 cup red wine
1 tbsp tomato paste
Pimentos for garnish

I buy my raw shrimp with the shell on. Remove the shells and devein your shrimp . Place these shells in a pot with about 6 cups of water and one chicken buillon. Bring to a boil. Strain. Keep the broth.

In a large pot, sautee your onions and garlic in olive oil while you slice your chorizo. Add these to the pot. Add your chicken. Sautee for a while. Add a couple of laddlefuls of your broth and the tablespoon of tomato paste. Add your canned contents (squid and octopus). Add your soy sauce, hot sauce, Worchestershire sauce and your scallops. Add your capers and red wine. Simmer for a while. Add your raw shrimp. When the shrimp turn pink remove them from the pot and set aside. (Don't allow anyone into the kitchen at this point, or your shrimp could disappear). Let your pot simmer uncovered on low for about 30 minutes. In the meantime, prepare your rice according to instructions substituting the broth for the required water.

Once the rice is done, incorporate this into your pot. Stir. Put your shrimp back in. Garnish with pimento.

*Be careful with your salt on this dish. Remember the chorizo is salty, soy sauce is salty as is Worchestershire sauce, the buillon is salty as well as the canned seafood. Taste as you go.

Arroz con Huevos Fritos y Plantanitos Maduros

It has happened to all of us. We open the refrigerator and it's basically empty; the cupboards are in the same bare condition. What to make for dinner? If you are Cuban, there is always white rice in the house. Eggs are a staple in every household, and if you're lucky, there's a ripe plantain sitting around. This is such a simple dish, and a satisfying, tasty one, that it requires basically no explanation.

Cook your white rice using whatever method you prefer. Fry your plantains (click here). Fry a couple of eggs per person until crispy on the edges and soft in the middle. Place them over a bed of white rice, with a couple of plantains on the side. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Now what? Slice your eggs over your rice and mix it together. You can cut up your plantains and toss them in the mix. It's gooooood!