Arroz con pollo is a flavorful Latin dish that anyone can make and everyone will love. The ingredients are simple and the spices needed are probably already in your pantry.
Arroz con pollo or “chicken and rice” is really comforting and full of warm spices and a variety of beautiful flavors from garlic, onions, poblanos, sweet peppers and fresh cilantro. The fluffy rice is full of cumin, turmeric, paprika, chili powder and sazón seasoning and the chicken is pan seared in its own delicious spice blend and all of the elements come together in one skillet.
If arroz con pollo sounds like something you’d enjoy on a chilly fall or winter evening, then let’s get it started…
My initial inspiration for this dish comes from one of my favorite episodes of I Love Lucy. I have loved that show ever since I can remember and in the Jezebel episode, Ricky comes home for lunch and Lucy had prepared his favorite meal… arroz con pollo. I knew enough Spanish to know that it meant chicken with rice and I have always been a fan of Latin cuisine, so one thing led to another and I made my first arroz con pollo.
Over the years, I have fine tuned and perfected this recipe and today, I am so proud to introduce you to what I feel is the ultimate arroz con pollo…
Begin by gathering your ingredients. For the chicken, you will need 4 large chicken thighs, 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, 1/4 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika, 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of black pepper.
For the rice, you will need 4 cloves of finely minced garlic, 1/2 of a medium white onion that has been diced, 1 diced poblano, 1 medium diced sweet bell pepper, 1 small finely minced jalapeño pepper, 1 small bunch of finely chopped fresh cilantro, 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock, 1 1/2 cups of basmati rice, 1 cup of sweet peas, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon of sazón seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of mexican oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper.
Although some dishes will work with a variety of different kinds of rice, basmati is the best choice for this recipe. The amount of time that it takes to cook through works perfectly with the chicken thighs and its texture works really soaks up all of the flavors in the sauce. You can usually find basmati rice near the other kinds of rice in your local market, but occasionally it is found in the international food aisle.
It is definitely worth looking for!
Start by patting your chicken thighs dry with paper towels and seasoning them with a combination of 1/4 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika, 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of black pepper.
Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil into a large skillet and place over medium heat. Place the seasoned chicken thighs skin side down into the skillet and cook for 5 minutes or until the underside is golden brown and the skin is crispy.
Flip the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes and then transfer the browned chicken onto a plate and set it aside for now.
Leave the skillet over medium heat and add 4 finely minced cloves of garlic, 1/2 of a finely diced white onion, 1 medium diced poblano, 1 medium diced sweet bell pepper, 1 small finely minced jalapeño pepper and 1 small bunch of fresh cilantro. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally to work up any brown bits left behind from the chicken thighs.
Next, add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon of sazón seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of mexican oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper and cook while stirring for about 90 seconds.
Add 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock into the skillet and bring the mixture to a simmer.
Once simmering, add 1 1/2 cups of basmati rice and 1 cup of frozen sweet peas and mix to combine. Reduce the heat to medium low and transfer the browned chicken thighs back into the skillet. Cover the skillet and cook for 25 minutes.
Look how light and fluffy that rice is! It has beautifully soaked up all of the flavors from the sauce and the spices we added in earlier. Garnish the arroz con pollo with some fresh cilantro and slice a few lime wedges to serve along side. A squeeze of fresh lime over this dish amazing.
Don’t skip those lime wedges…
Transfer a piece of chicken into each bowl and give the rice one final fluff before dividing it between the bowls. Add a few lime wedges and prepare to be transported with these comforting Latin flavors.
Arroz con Pollo
Ingredients
The Chicken...
- 4 large chicken thighs, bone-in with skin
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
- 1/4 teaspoon of onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- a pinch of black pepper
The Rice...
- 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon of sazón seasoning (optional, but recommended)
- 1/2 teapoon of ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon of mexican oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
- 4 cloves of garlic, finely minced
- 1/2 of a medium white onion, diced
- 1 medium poblano, diced
- 1 medium sweet bell pepper, diced
- 1 small jalapeño, finely minced
- 1 small bunch of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons of tomato paste
- 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock
- 1 1/2 cups of basmati rice
- 1 cup of sweet peas, frozen
- lime wedges
- fresh cilantro (for garnishing)
Instructions
- Add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large skillet and place over medium heat
- Pat 4 chicken thighs dry with some paper towels and season them with 1/4 teaspoon of onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika, 1/4 teaspoon of chili powder, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of black pepper
- When the skillet is very warm, place the seasoned chicken thighs skin side down into the skillet and let them cook for 5 minutes undisturbed
- Once the skin is golden brown and crisp, flip the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes and then transfer the chicken onto a plate and set aside for now
- Add 4 finely minced cloves of garlic, 1/2 of a finely diced white onion, 1 medium diced poblano, 1 medium diced sweet bell pepper, 1 small finely minced jalapeño pepper and 1 small bunch of fresh cilantro that was finely chopped into the skillet and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes
- Once softened, add 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon of sazón seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon of cumin, 1/2 teaspoon of mexican oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper and cook while constantly stirring for about 90 seconds
- Pour 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock into the skillet and bring to a simmer
- Once simmering, add 1 1/2 cups of basmati rice and 1 cup of sweet peas into the simmering liquid and mix to incorporate
- Add the chicken back into the skillet, reduce the heat to medium low and cover the skillet
- Simmer over medium low heat for 25 minutes
- Transfer the chicken onto plates and fluff the rice before adding it to the chicken
- Garnish with fresh cilantro and lime wedges
