Arroz Con Pollo

Rinse the chicken pieces under cool water, removing extra fat and any extra skin. Don’t remove the skin completely, simply trim off any extra skin. Set chicken aside and pat dry.

In a large frying pan (use one with a lid—you’ll need it later), heat the olive oil over medium high heat.

While the oil is heating, in a small bowl mix together the salt, onion powder or granulated onion, garlic powder or granulated garlic, paprika, cumin, and black pepper. Sprinkle seasoning on both sides of each piece of chicken. You probably will not need all of the seasoning, so save the rest for another time.

Put some flour in a shallow bowl. Dredge the seasoned chicken in the flour, then place chicken in the frying pan to brown on both sides. Turn chicken over once during the browning process. This process is only for browning the chicken, it doesn’t have to be all the way done. The chicken will finish cooking with the rice. Remove chicken from pan and set aside.

With heat on medium or medium-low, add the rice to the oil that remains in the pan. Cook and stir rice for about five minutes. Add the poblano, onion, and garlic. Cook, stirring as needed until the onions are tender.

Add the diced tomatoes and stir. Cook for about 5 minutes to release some of the juices from the tomatoes.

Pour the chicken stock into the rice mixture. Add the salt, ground cumin, turmeric or saffron threads, red pepper flakes, and chopped pimento-stuffed green Spanish olives. Stir gently to combine all of the ingredients.

Place chicken pieces evenly over the rice mixture. Put a lid on the pan, cover and bring to a low simmer. Cook over low heat until the rice is done and the chicken has cooked through, about 30-40 minutes. If it looks as though the stock will be all used up before either the rice or the chicken has completed cooking, add a bit more liquid. Water or stock will be fine, maybe about 1/2 cup. When the chicken is done, the juices from the chicken should run clear and the internal temperature of the chicken should be 165 F. Then you are set!

If desired, cilantro can be minced (amount per personal preference) and stirred into the rice prior to serving, or it can be used as a garnish. Lime wedges can be served on the side and the juice squeezed over the rice and chicken for added flavor.