The Amazing World of Rice (23 page)

The surprise ingredient in this sweet and savory rice dish is sugar. This recipe was inspired by a similar dish served at a modest little Afghan restaurant called Caravan located in the theater district of New York City. My version approximates the flavor and appearance of their chef's
shireen palow
, as it is called on the menu. The chicken is flavored with saffron water and roasted on a bed of onions. Then the meat is pulled from the bone and the cooked rice is piled on top of it. A mixture of yogurt thinned with cream is drizzled on top and the dish is kept warm in the oven. Festive with bright green pistachios sprinkled on pale yellow rice dotted with flecks of dark orange zest, this is a good company dish because it can be assembled ahead and kept warm for up to 1 hour.

¼ teaspoon crushed saffron threads

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus 1 tablespoon butter, softened

½ large onion, cut into thin slices

1 garlic clove, minced

6 chicken thighs 6 chicken legs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 strips orange zest, slivered (about 1 tablespoon)

3 tablespoons sugar

1½ cups uncooked basmati rice

2 tablespoons golden raisins or dried currants

2 whole cardamom pods

2½ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

½ cup whole-milk yogurt

2 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons shelled unsalted pistachios

• 1.
  Toast the saffron in a small dry skillet over low heat for 20 seconds. Add ½ cup boiling water; cover and let stand for 10 minutes.
  
• 2.
  Preheat the oven to 400°F. Butter a shallow 13 × 9-inch baking dish suitable for serving with the 1 tablespoon softened butter.
  
• 3.
  Spread the onions in a single layer in the baking dish. Add the garlic. Sprinkle the chicken with salt and pepper and place on top of the onions. Spoon 2 table-
  spoons of the saffron water over the chicken; leave the saffron threads in the remaining water.
  
• 4.
  Cover the chicken with foil and bake for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let stand until cool enough to handle.
  
• 5.
  Meanwhile, melt the remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a large wide saucepan or deep skillet over low heat. Add the orange zest and sprinkle with the sugar. Cook, stirring, until the sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Stir in the rice, raisins, and cardamom pods; cook, stirring, until coated with the butter mixture, about 2 minutes. Add the broth, the remaining saffron water, and 1 teaspoon salt; heat to a boil. Stir once. Cook, covered, over medium-low heat until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes.
  
• 6.
  Meanwhile, pull the cooked chicken meat from the bones in large pieces. Discard the skin and bones. Arrange the pieces of chicken on top of the onions. Cover and set aside.
  
• 7.
  Turn the oven on to 250°F.
  
• 8.
  Spoon the rice over the chicken in the baking dish. In a small bowl, whisk the yogurt and milk until smooth; drizzle over the rice. Cover and set in the oven for 30 to 60 minutes.
  
• 9.
  Meanwhile, toast the pistachios in a small skillet over low heat, stirring, 2 minutes. Let cool; chop.
  
• 10.
  Sprinkle the pistachios over the rice before serving.
  

Arroz con pollo
, or rice with chicken, is a classic Spanish dish similar to, but much simpler than, paella. If chorizo, a spicy Spanish sausage, is unavailable, use hot Italian sausage and add a pinch of red pepper flakes. The saffron flavor is rich and pungent, but if preferred, substitute ½ teaspoon ground turmeric and 1 teaspoon ground cumin.

This version makes four generous portions; add another 4 pieces of chicken to make 6 servings.

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 to 2 links chorizo (about 5 ounces), casings removed and cut into
¹
/
₈
-inch dice

1 whole chicken breast, split, skin and excess fat trimmed, and each piece halved crosswise

4 chicken thighs, fat trimmed

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

One 14½-ounce can diced tomatoes, well drained, juices reserved

2½ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

¼ teaspoon crushed saffron threads

½ cup chopped onion

½ cup diced (¼-inch) green bell pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

1½ cups uncooked medium-grain white rice (such as Arborio or Bomba)

2 teaspoons thyme leaves

½ cup frozen petite green peas, thawed

2 tablespoons chopped pimiento-stuffed green olives

• 1.
  Heat the olive oil in a large deep skillet over medium-low heat. Add the sausage and cook, stirring, until it is browned and the fat is rendered, about 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to a side dish. Discard all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the pan.
  
• 2.
  Sprinkle the chicken on both sides with salt and pepper. Add the chicken to the hot skillet; increase heat to medium, and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a side dish. Drain off and discard all but about 1 tablespoon of the fat from the skillet. Set the pan aside.
  
• 3.
  Combine the liquid from the tomatoes and the chicken broth in a 4-cup glass measuring cup. Add enough water to make 3¼ cups. Heat to a boil in a medium saucepan, cover and keep hot over low heat.
  
• 4.
  Toast the saffron in a small dry skillet over low heat for 20 seconds. Add ½ cup hot broth. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand until ready to use.
  
• 5.
  Add the onion and green pepper to the skillet you used for the chicken; cook, stirring, over medium heat until the edges are browned, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic; cook for 1 minute. Stir in the rice; cook, stirring, over low heat until the rice is thoroughly coated with the oil. Add the saffron, the hot broth, 1 teaspoon salt, and a grinding of black pepper; stir to combine.
  
• 6.
  Sprinkle the chorizo on top. Tuck the chicken into the rice mixture. Place the tomatoes and thyme on top. Cover and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes, or until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Add the peas; cover and cook 5 minutes more. Let stand, covered, off the heat, for 10 minutes.
  
• 7.
  Uncover the rice and cook over medium-high heat to cook off any excess moisture, about 1 minute. Sprinkle with the chopped olives and serve.
  

I have eaten jambalaya from Savannah to Houston, and points in between, and have yet to experience the same dish twice. Two main ingredients are found in the name—
jambon
, French for “ham,” and
ya
, meaning “rice” in an African language. Jambalaya also often contains tomatoes, pork, ham (tasso, a highly seasoned Cajun smoked ham is popular) or seafood. This version, from friend and colleague Kristen O'Brien, uses boneless, skinless chicken and spiced beef sausage instead of pork. Kris says, “This is a great do-ahead dish; in fact the flavors are better if it's made a day ahead.” It is perfect for feeding a crowd. The recipe can be halved.

1½ pounds smoked spiced beef sausage, cut into ¼-inch-thick slices

6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, if necessary

4 cups chopped onions

2 cups chopped celery

2 cups chopped green bell peppers

3 garlic cloves, minced

4 cups uncooked converted or parboiled long-grain white rice

5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

½ teaspoon cayenne

• 1.
  Brown the sausage in a large Dutch oven over medium heat; transfer to a side dish. Salt and pepper the chicken. Working in batches, if necessary, add the chicken to the drippings in the pot and cook, turning once, until lightly browned on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a side dish.
  
• 2.
  Add about 1 tablespoon vegetable oil to the pan if necessary. Add the onions, celery, green peppers, and garlic; cook, stirring, over low heat until tender and just beginning to brown, about 15 minutes.
  
• 3.
  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325°F.
  
• 4.
  Add the rice, broth, salt if needed, and cayenne to the pot; heat to a boil. Add the chicken and sausage. Cover; bake for 30 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, stirring once or twice. Let stand for 10 minutes, covered, before serving.
  

Leftover rice, like bread crumbs, helps to bind ingredients together. For this meat loaf, balance sweet and salty ingredients: for the sweetness I use dried currants, and for the salty, chopped anchovy. If you suffer a fear of anchovy, as many do, don't skip this recipe. The anchovy simply lends a salty complexity, and none of the fishiness you might suspect. Serve this with thinly sliced crisp garlic-roasted potatoes.

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

½ cup chopped onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 anchovy fillets, rinsed, drained, and minced (about 1 tablespoon)

2 cups cooked long-or medium-grain white rice

1½ pounds meat loaf mixture (ground beef chuck, pork, and veal) or a combination of 1 pound ground chuck and ½ pound pork or veal

1 large egg

One 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, drained, and squeezed dry

¼ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes in olive oil, drained and blotted dry, or 2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons dried currants or chopped raisins

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

• 1.
  Heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion; cook, stirring, over low heat until soft and golden, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic; cook for 1 minute. Add the anchovies; cook, stirring and mashing with the back of a spoon, until they are dissolved. Stir in the rice until blended. Set aside.
  
• 2.
  Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  
• 3.
  In a large bowl, combine the meat loaf mixture, 1½ cups water, the egg, anchovy mixture, spinach, dried tomatoes, currants, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Gently mix with your hands until thoroughly blended. Transfer a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
  
• 4.
  Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until the juices run clear when the center is pierced with a skewer. Let stand for 15 minutes before lifting from the loaf pan (meat loaf will reabsorb some of the juices in the pan) and setting on a serving platter. To serve, cut into thick slices.
  

Rice and Seafood

Rice has a natural affinity for seafood—perhaps because they both grow in water. Consider just a handful of famous rice dishes: Spanish paella, Japanese sushi, jambalaya from the American South, and Italian seafood risottos (including the unique
risotto nero
made with cuttlefish or squid ink). Another—and perhaps—stronger rice and seafood link was revealed when my research uncovered a quaint, but intriguing, bit of rice lore. It seems the inhabitants of the northern Italian rice-growing regions and the rice farmers in Indonesia—two apparently disparate peoples—both eat frogs (and, in some instances, prawns) caught in the rice paddies in their local cuisine, including, naturally, combinations of rice and seafood. In fact, throughout Asia, it is not unusual for rice paddies to double as fish ponds between rice-growing seasons.

More preparation than cooking time is necessary here. The shrimp are marinated and roasted in a hot oven. The rice, cooked separately, is stirred into the hot shrimp juices and seasoned with capers. The salsa verde, a puree of parsley, cilantro, scallions, olive oil, and lime juice, is used as a condiment on the roasted shrimp. This dish is Caribbean inspired, but as it's without any authentic lineage, I think of it more as a cook's fantasy.

Marinade

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

½ teaspoon minced garlic

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

¹
/
₈
teaspoon red pepper flakes

 

16 jumbo or 24 extra-large shrimp, shelled and deveined

Salsa Verde

1 cup packed chopped curly leaf parsley

½ cup packed cilantro leaves

1 scallion, trimmed and coarsely chopped

¼ teaspoon minced garlic

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Rice

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons minced onion

1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice

1 teaspoon salt

 

1 tablespoon rinsed and drained capers

Parsley and/or cilantro sprigs

Lime wedges

• 1.
  For the marinade:
  Combine the olive oil, garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes in a shallow dish. Butterfly each shrimp by cutting it three-quarters of the way open down the back. Place in the marinade, turning to coat. Cover and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
  
• 2.
  For the salsa verde:
  Finely chop the parsley, cilantro, scallion, garlic, and salt in a food processor. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil through the feed tube, stopping to scrape the sides once or twice, until the sauce is smooth. Add the lime juice; process until blended.
  
• 3.
  For the rice:
  Heat the oil in a large wide saucepan or deep skillet over low heat. Add the onion; cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the rice until well coated with the oil. Add 1¾ cups water and the salt; heat to a boil. Stir well. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Set aside, covered, until ready to serve.
  
• 4.
  While the rice is cooking, preheat the oven to 450°F.
  
• 5.
  Arrange the shrimp, butterflied side down and tails up in the air, on an ovenproof platter or in an oven-to-table gratin or baking dish. Roast until the butterflied sides of the shrimp begin to brown, about 8 minutes for jumbo shrimp, 6 minutes for extra-large shrimp. Remove from the oven; transfer the shrimp to a side dish.
  
• 6.
  Stir the cooked rice into the shrimp juices on the platter or in the baking dish; sprinkle with the capers. Arrange the cooked shrimp (tails up) on the rice. Spoon a small amount of the salsa verde onto each shrimp. Garnish the dish with parsley and/or cilantro sprigs and lime wedges. Serve the remaining salsa verde on the side.