EASY ARROZ CON POLLO

Ingredients:

1 package of chicken thighs,
trimmed of excess fat

2 tbs. vegetable oil

1½ cups long grain rice

3 cups chicken broth, heated

1 medium onion – chopped

1 chile poblano (also called pasilla)seeded, deveined and chopped
½ inch diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 16 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

1 bay leaf

1 cup frozen peas, defrosted

Preheat the oven to 350 °

Add 1 tbs. of oil to a 12 inch skillet and heat over high. Season the thighs very well with salt and pepper and place the skin down in the skillet. Cook them for around five minutes until well browned – turn over and cook the second side for another five minutes, then set aside.

Drain the chicken fat from the skillet and replace with a bit of veggie oil if necessary.

Add chopped peppers and onions and cook over medium heat until they are crisp tender.

Add the rice and garlic and cook it for a couple minutes until rice is opaque. Add the drained tomatoes, season with salt and pepper and cook for another couple of minutes to kind of dry out the tomatoes.

Add the broth, bay leaf and bring to a boil. Taste the broth and re-season if necessary. Rice absorbs a lot of flavor so you want to taste that salt.

Place chicken pieces, skin side up on top.

Cover, place in the oven and cook until the rice is tender, about 25 minutes. By then the chicken should be 165° and cooked through. Add the peas, half way through the cooking. If you need more liquid, just add some more broth or hot water. Once it is out of the oven, let it rest five minutes or so before serving. You can also take out the chicken, place it in a hot skillet with a little oil and crisp it up, cooking it about two minutes on either side.

Serve with a sprinkling of lime juice if desired.

  Cooking with Judy, JUNE 09, Just For Fun