Arroz Con Pollo

Sooz Cooks's Note:

I could not stop thinking about the Arroz con Pollo by Jorge Ayala that won the Thowdown with Bobby Flay. It looked SO good.... So I decided to try and find it on the internet, but to no avail. I have no idea what Jorge's tastes like but I wanna try it! In the meantime, I came up with a version that is pretty tasty!

• Total Time: 1 hrs 15 mins
• Prep Time: 35 mins
• Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

Adobo Seasoning

• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons granulated onion
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano

Sofrito

• 1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 poblano pepper
• 3 garlic cloves

Arroz con Pollo

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon chili oil
• 4 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on (I have also used 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts with good results)
• 2 cups long grain white rice
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock
• 1 (12 ounce) bottle beer
• 1 cup frozen sweet peas
• 1 cup manzanilla Spanish olives with pimento

Garnish

• cilantro
• lime wedge

Directions:

1. Mix together the Adobo seasoning in a small bowl.
2. Cut the onion, peppers, and garlic into a small dice and set aside.
3. Trim the chicken of any excess fat and season with Adobo seasoning.
4. Heat the olive oil and the chili oil in a large pot over medium-high heat until very hot. Season the chicken with Adobo. Save the leftovers in an airtight container.
5. Place the chicken skin side down in the oil and saute until golden brown.
6. Remove chicken to plate.
7. Stir in sofrito and saute for 4-5 minutes. Add rice, chicken stock and beer and stir well.
8. Add chicken chicken back into pot and stir well.
9. Cover the pot and turn heat to low and simmer until the liquid is almost absorbed, about about 10 - 15 minutes (or according to the package direction for your rice - minus 5 mninuts). Add peas and continue to simmer unil peas are warmed (about 5 minutes). After rice is cooked and the peas are warm add the olives and stir well.
10. Garnish with cilantro and serve with hot sauce and corn or flour tortillas on the side.

Reviews

[dotybird]

Fantastic! I made this last night and it was a big hit with my Cuban husband. I followed the recipe except I dredged the chicken pieces in flour and the adobe seasonings before browning them in a little bacon fat/olive oil. The chicken was so tender-- falling off of the bones. This is officially my go-to arroz con pollo recipe. Gracias!

[SavvyL]

Excellent! I used 2 pounds of boneless, skinless, thin-sliced chicken breasts instead of the thighs and it turned out fine. Also, I didn't add the extra 1/2 teaspoon of cumin per the recipe for the rice mixture. I liberally seasoned my chicken, so I didn't think it needed the extra seasoning.

[Chef #580845]

I love this recipe. Ever since I watch Bobby Flays Throwdown. Only change I make it I use saffron (yellow) rice and add a chicken breast with the thighs. Will make again and again. Thank you!