Let's Make. . . Arroz con Pollo

Arroz con Pollo or Chicken with Rice is one of those dishes that has eleventy million permutations in the Latin American world. There is Spanish style, Mexican style, Puerto Rican style, etc. This here is Lainie style. It's a really wonderful one pot meal that is quick to make.

Arroz con Pollo

6 chicken breasts or 8 thighs, boneless, skinless
good quality olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 3.5 oz. jar capers, drained
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes, drained (I like Muir Glen fire roasted tomatoes)
1 bunch cilantro, stemmed and chopped
3 cups long grain white rice (I like Mahatma)
6 cups chicken stock (low fat canned or boxed broth is fine)
8 whole jalapenos (not a typo. . .trust me!), washed well
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
salt & freshly ground pepper

Heat olive oil in a heavy bottomed pot that has a tight fitting lid.


Season chicken liberally with salt and pepper.

Sear the chicken on both sides, cooking it completely but make sure it is *just done* even a tiny bit pink in the center.

Remove the chicken from the pot and set aside.

Check out the beautiful fond. . . pure chicken-y goodness!

Add a little more olive oil and then add the diced onion. . .use the onion to scrape up any bits of caramelization from the bottom of the pot.

Once the onion is opaque and tender, turn up the heat and add the rice. Stirring constantly, fry the rice until the pieces are opaque and lightly golden. Add the garlic and saute very briefly to avoid scorching the garlic.

Add the chicken stock keeping in mind that it will bubble up like sizzling rice soup. Add the cilantro, tomatoes, capers, cumin, and jalapenos. Stir well and taste. Adjust salt and pepper keeping in mind that the degree of seasoning in the broth will be what flavors your rice. . don't be afraid of the salt and pepper! Bring to a simmer, reduce heat to low and cover. DO NOT raise the lid for 25 minutes. While you're waiting for the rice to cook, shred the chicken by hand.

Done!

Once the rice is done, carefully stir in the chicken and distribute all the ingredients together.

I like to serve this with pieces of fresh avocado, crema, refried beans and hot tortillas. I like to eat a piece of jalapeno with each bite! For those of you who do not like spice, keep in mind that the jalapenos remain intact and add definite flavor but no heat to the final dish.

Let's Make. . . Meatballs

I like a nice meatball! After playing around with many a recipe, I think this one is nice. . .balanced, meaty yet tender and holds up well to a nice long braise. Meatballs are easy to make. . .it just takes time and patience to shape, dredge and brown them. The effort is worth it!

1 small yellow onion, finely diced
1 small clove garlic, chopped very fine
Olive oil
1/2 loaf Italian bread (cut off crust, shred by hand. . about two cups)
1 1/2 cups whole milk
3/4 lb. ground beef
3/4 lb. ground veal
3/4 lb. ground pork
3 eggs
1/2 cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
3/4 grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (don't mess around - use the real stuff please!)
salt, pepper and a big pinch of peperoncini (red chile flakes)
Flour for dredging the meatballs

Heat the olive oil and saute the onion until it's tender and opaque, add the garlic and chile flakes and cook until the garlic is tender and fragrant - resist the urge to add more garlic. . .too much garlic throws off the balance of the meatballs. Season with salt and pepper. Set the onion mixture aside to cool.

Pour the milk over the bread pieces and let them soak. As the bread soaks up the milk, work the bread and milk together until you have a thick paste.

Combine the three meats, eggs, parsely, cheese, cooled onion mixture, and bread & milk mixture. Don't be afraid to really work the mixture but don't become overzealous as that can result in a tough meatball. Season well with salt and pepper (keeping in mind the cheese is somewhat salty).

Fry up a patty and taste (this is also knows as COOK'S BONUS!). . adjust seasoning as needed.


Portion the meatballs in to 2 oz. pieces. Roll gently between your hands to form nice, even balls. Season flour with salt & pepper and heat olive oil in a large, heavy bottomed pot. Dredge the meatballs with flour, shake off excess and evenly brown on all sides.


Drain well and either add to sauce for Macaroni & Gravy (as seen above) or braise in a simple sugo and serve with crusty Italian bread.

Let's Make. . . Macaroni & Gravy

This is a simple sauce. .. it takes about an hour of prep. . .then, in a perfect world, 8 hours to slowly simmer atop the stove and a night to rest in the refrigerator so the flavors meld and marry. Also known as Da' Sauce.

I learned how to make this sauce from Macario Lullo who was the father of a woman I worked for. Mac's family was from Naples and he was an old school Italian guy from Southside Chicago who drove a big ol' Cadillac and smoked smelly cigars. Not a teddy bear at all, sort of gruff and cranky. The way he showed his love for his family was through cooking. When he made this sauce, it was his way of giving us all a hug. This sauce is pretty close to the Macster's - I think a little cigar ash might be missing but I am okay with that!

Neapolitan Gravy
3 28 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 28 oz. can san marzano crushed tomatoes
tomato paste in a tube
6 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/4 bunch Italian parsley, finely chopped
big pinch peperoncini (red pepper flakes)
olive oil

1 lb. (about three links) hot Italian sausage
2 lbs. chicken breasts or thighs
1 1/2 lb. chuck or stew meat
Meatballs*

In a large, heavy bottomed pot, heat 4 tablespoons of oil over medium heat.

Add garlic and carefully saute until it is fragrant and slightly opaque being very careful not to let it color.

Add the pepperoncini and saute until fragrant.

Add tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, a good squirt of tomato paste and Italian parsley. Bring to a simmer, lower heat and let cook. Meanwhile. . .


About five hours into the cooking time, in a large saute pan, brown the sausage until it is cooked through. Remove the sausages, set them aside. Pour out any grease.

Using about 1/4 cup of water, deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits and add the deglazing liquid to the tomato sauce.

Brown the chicken, deglaze the pan, add the liquid to the tomato sauce. Brown the chuck meat, deglaze the pan, add the liquid to the tomato sauce. Brown the meatballs*, deglaze the pan, add the liquid to the tomato sauce.

MEAT!


Add all the meat to the sauce and let everything simmer together for two 1/2 hours. If you have will of steel. . .put the sauce in the refrigerator and reheat the next day. If your will is weak, slice a piece of soft Italian bread, ladle some sauce atop the bread, sprinkle with freshly grated parmigianno reggiano (use that pre-grated junk and the ghost of Macario Lullo will torment you!) and enjoy that as a snack. Now put that sauce in the fridge because it is MUCH better the next day!

When it's time to bring on the sauce, remove any grease from the surface while it's cold. Heat gently until it's simmering and the meat is cooked through. Using tongs, separate the meat from the sauce.

Cook some penne rigate (I like deCiccio), toss some pasta with the sauce and serve that along with the platter of meat, a big bowl of grated cheese and a ladle so people can add more gravy as they like.

Make a silent toast to the Macster for a nice legacy of deliciousness.

*meatball recipe to follow soon!

Let's Make. . . Turkey Soup

There is a trade off when you deep fry a turkey. . .you lose the ability to make gravy from the drippings of a roasted turkey but what you gain is a gorgeous carcass with which to make a nice soup! By frying the turkey, all the rich gelatin and juices are sealed in the turkey and you end up with a rich, delicious turkey broth!

1 turkey carcass
2 carrots, peeled and roughly diced
1 yellow onion, peeled and quartered
4 ribs celery, roughly diced


Pick all the meat from the carcass and chop into uniform pieces. Combine the turkey carcass, carrots, onion and celery in a six quart stock pot, add water to cover and simmer for a minimum of two hours but no longer than four hours.

Strain. Skim the fat off the top of the stock. Bring the stock to a very low simmer.



2 roma tomatoes
2 oven-roasted roma tomatoes*
3 cloves peeled garlic
1/2 bunch cilantro, stems trimmed
1 jalapeno pepper (or to taste)
pinch of cumin
salt & pepper to taste
2 carrots, peeled and finely diced
4 oz. fine egg noodles (fideo)
olive oil

Combine the both kinds of tomatoes, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, cumin, salt & pepper in a blender or use a stick blender to puree the salsa.

Add a little turkey stock to make a thick, well blended puree.


Heat about a tablespoon of olive oil in a small sauce pan until very hot, add the salsa, careful to avoid splatters.

Cook the salsa on high, until it reduces by two-thirds and a spoon run through it leaves a trail. Add the salsa to the turkey stock. Add the diced carrots.

In a large saute pan, heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil until it is very hot. Add the noodles.

Gently saute the noodles until they are evenly toasted - taking care not to break up the noodles.

Carefully add the noodles to the turkey stock - the stock will bubble up like sizzling rice soup so add them slowly. Simmer the soup until the noodles are tender but not mushy, about ten minutes. Add turkey meat, taste and adjust salt and pepper.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with fresh chopped cilantro and cubes of ripe avocado.

*in the dead of winter when tomatoes have little flavor, I halve roma tomatoes, season them with salt and pepper, drizzle them with olive oil and slow roast them in a 300F oven until they are almost dry. These are great to have on hand to punch up salsas or pasta sauces.