Arroz Con Pollo

Arroz Con Pollo is basically a latin chicken and rice dish.
It’s popular everywhere from Spain, to Mexico, Columbia, the Dominican Republic, but none take this dish more seriously than Puerto Rico!
Every Latin family’s Abuela has their own recipe and hand me down secrets, but this is OUR keto interpretation of this classic dish, based on Neisha Loves It’s  Abuela’s recipe.
So again, as with ALL OF OUR RECIPES, take them, use them, tweak them and make them your OWN!!

Nearly every great Arroz con pollo starts with a SOFRITO base, but the Puerto Rican version uses a green sofrito base called Recaito.  It’s basically a few ingredients whizzed up in a blender or food processor to make a paste.
If you have a Mexican/Latin grocery store available to you;  you can often find a jarred or frozen version available, but if you don’t, I have included a very basic recipe using Grocery Store ingredients.  It might not be as AUTHENTIC, however in a dish like this, the difference will be negligible.

PUERTO RICAN SOFRITO RECIPE HERE:

INGREDIENTS:

• 6      bone in skin on chicken thighs
• 2.5   lb bag of frozen cauliflower rice (we use Green Giant Family Size)
• 2.5   cups of chicken broth/stock
• 1      small white onion (diced)
• 1      green pepper (diced)
• 2      cloves garlic (minced)
• 1/4   cup tomato sauce
• 7      oz jar Goya olives and pimentos (drained)
• 1.5   tsp of our msg free sazon seasoning or 1 sachet of Goya Sazon (if it doesn’t offend your keto)
• 1      tsp of our msg free Adobo seasoning or 1 tsp of Goya Adobo seasoning (if it doesn’t offend your keto)
• 3    TBSP of Recaito Sofrito or full jar of Goya Recaito (if it doesn’t offend your keto)
• 2 to 3  TBSP keto friendly oil, we use bacon fat/drippings or manteca for this dish

PREPARING THE RICE:

• Microwave the cauliflower rice for 10 mins. (Rice should be still cold/lukewarm and a little firm) afterwards
• Place rice in some cheesecloth, twist and strain out as much of the liquid as possible. (This step removes a lot of the CAULIFLOWER TASTE)
• Set aside

ARROZ CON POLLO INSTRUCTIONS:

• Put enough oil/fat in a large dutch oven to coat the bottom.
• Over med/high heat, sear the the chicken thighs fat side down, until they are nicely browned and crisp, then turn and lightly brown the bottom side.  Set aside.
• Lower heat to medium.  In the rendered fat from the chicken, saute the recaito for about 3 mins or until fragrant.
• Add onions and peppers and garlic, saute until the peppers and onions start to soften.  5-10 mins
• Add tomato sauce, sazon, adobo seasoning and jar of olive and pimentos.
  Stir and saute for another 2 mins.
• Add chicken stock/broth then the rice.  Stir and incorporate well.
• Place the chicken neatly on the top and push in, but not so much that the skin gets covered.
• Set heat to med/low, cover with the lid and let simmer for 40 mins or until chicken is fully cooked and the rice is to the texture that YOU like.
• Stir the Arroz Con Pollo once every 15 minutes to make sure that nothing is scorching or burning on the bottom of the pan.
• IMPORTANT TIP:  Because Arroz Con Pollo is meant to be more dry than soupy, you will need to take it OFF THE HEAT – with the lid OFF, let it sit for 5 mins, stir, leave it for another 5-10 mins (trust me, it’s not going to get cold) then stir again.  This gives both the rice and the chicken a chance to soak up any excess liquid.  So this step is crucial, otherwise it will be soupy – “Which Hey, will still be delicious”
• Enjoy!

PRODUCTS WE USE:

• LODGE 6 QT ENAMEL CAST IRON DUTCH OVEN

• 2.5   LBS Bag Green Giant Cauliflower Rice

AMAZON ASSOCIATES