SLOW COOKER ARROZ CON POLLO

I realized that I used my slow cooker only once - something that I needed to remedy quickly.  I had some chicken thighs in the freezer that I wanted to incorporate, but it seemed only enough for two meals.  That defeated the purpose, in my opinion, since I got the slow cooker in order to make big meals easily that could last for days.

A friend made beer-cooked chicken with herbs de provence a few weeks back when I came over for dinner, so I considered making that.  But after much searching, I settled on arroz con pollo.  I thought about defrosting the chicken thighs I had already and getting some more, but then I thought about having to discard the skins and it grossed me out.  I bought skinless thighs instead and saved the frozen ones for another day.

I based my recipe on the one posted at thenakedkitchen.com.  However, I wondered if all of that would fit in my slow cooker.  I followed most of the instructions and ingredients listed and as usual, I made adjustments where I saw fit.

Ingredients: (Makes 6 servings)

• 1 1/2 cups long grain brown rice
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 medium onion, minced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 green pepper, diced or cut into strips
• 1 red pepper, diced or cut into strips
• 4 medium tomatoes, diced
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 quart low sodium chicken broth
• sea salt to taste
• fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 1 – 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs or a combination of both (if the breasts are large I like to butterfly them to make 2 thinner pieces)
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• 1 lime, sliced into 6 thin wedges (optional)

Preparation:

1. Plug your slow cooker in and set to high. Place the rice and oil in the pot and stir until all the rice is coated in oil. Let the rice heat while you prepare and chop the vegetables.
2. In a saucepan heat the broth to a simmer and set aside. This step is optional.
3. Add the wine to the rice in the crockpot and stir.
4. Add the onions, garlic, peppers, tomatoes, and spices and stir.
5. Add the warmed stock, stir and then arrange the chicken pieces evenly around the slow cooker.
6. Cook on high 3-4 hours or low 5-6 hours depending on your slow cooker cooking times.
7. Once most of the liquid has been absorbed and the chicken and rice are tender add in the peas and cook another few minutes until the peas are warm.
8. Serve with a slice of lime if desired.

I mixed brown rice with white rice.  I don't really like brown rice.  However, I am afraid of getting diabetes from eating a ton of white rice.  I used 2 tomatoes instead of 4, because the idea of wasting all the innards of a tomato disheartened me, but I didn't want to go overboard by including them.  I substituted paprika for chili.  Finally, I used about 2 1/2 cups of chicken stock made with a chicken bouillon.  I went this route because I thought the chicken bouillon would add more flavor (mmmm msg), so I cut down on any salt added to the dish.  I also thought a quart was just way too much liquid.  Someone commented at thenakedkitchen that her rice came out really mushy.  The poster suggested, among other things, cutting down on the liquids.  I figured I could simply add more liquid if needed.

all these veggies make me feel like I'm eating right

looks like mush

Yeah... the poster's suggestion did not help.  I'm wondering if it's because I used white rice as well or if it just cooked too long.  My arroz con pollo came out like porridge.  And it was A LOT.  I'm not sure what type of 6 people this lady was serving, but my meal came out looking like it was enough for 10.  I can't even really comment on the taste because it's like I'm eating baby food.  Guess I'll be eating porridge for the rest of the week... and then some.  I don't think I'll be trying this recipe again.