Arroz verde - Mexican green rice
This lovely green colored rice is packed with flavor yet easy to make. A delicious side.
Servings: 2 or a little more if smaller servings
Calories: 289kcal
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Ingredients
- 1 poblano pepper medium
- ¼ onion small
- 1 clove garlic small
- ¼ cup cilantro coriander leaves, ¼ cup is around 5 stems
- 1 handful spinach
- ½ cup Jasmine rice or other long grain rice, see notes
- ¾ cup chicken stock or can use vegetable, to keep vegetarian
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 pinch salt or more to taste
- 1 pinch black pepper or more to taste
- cotija cheese/queso fresco to serve optional but recommended unless using as a burrito filling
Instructions
- Char the poblano pepper either over a grill/barbecue, gas stove or if those are not options, roast in the oven (at around 400F/200C, about 10 minutes then check and turn, cook further as needed). Carefully turn as you cook the pepper so that the skin chars in places and the pepper is softened. Place the cooked pepper in a freezer bag and leave to steam - this helps the skin be easier to remove. Once it has cooled to room temperature, peel off the skin and remove the core and seeds. Don't worry if the pepper breaks up.
- Peel and roughly chop the onion and garlic. Place the peeled poblano pepper pieces in a blender along with the onion, garlic, cilantro/coriander and spinach. Blend to a smooth puree - if needed, add a small amount of the stock to help it blend smoothly.
- Warm the oil in a medium, wide pot/pan over a medium heat then add the rice. Toast the rice for a couple minutes, stirring to coat in the oil and gently brown in places.
- Add the pepper-cilantro puree to the rice and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring regularly, so that the liquid is absorbed and cooks - you should see it visibly darken.
- Add the stock, a little salt and pepper then cover the pot and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat so that the liquid continues to simmer and leave to cook until the liquid is absorbed and the rice cooked through.
- Once all of the liquid has been used and the rice is cooked, remove from heat and let it sit to steam a minute then fluff up with a fork or spoon and to mix in the puree mixture that can sometimes rise more to the top. Serve, optionally topped with some cotija cheese or queso fresco (highly recommended!) or eg use as a filling for burritos.
Video
Notes
The stock quantities work for jasmine rice but for other varieties you may need a little more - check as the liquid is almost absorbed and if not near cooked, add a splash or two more (but take care not to add too much).
Nutrition
Calories: 289kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.04g | Cholesterol: 3mg | Sodium: 168mg | Potassium: 375mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 1767IU | Vitamin C: 54mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 1mg
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