Chicken and Rice with a Twist: Cook-Up Rice

I was cruising blogs the other day and saw a photo and recipe name that struck my fancy on Cynthia's blog, Tastes Like Home.  "Cook-up Rice". Hmmm... just sounded good to me, comforting and filling.  In the post she said that she didn't have the recipe written down on the blog but if anyone wanted it, to email her. So I did.  Nice lady. Everyone go see her blog. Then make her crazy by emailing her for the recipe because it's fabulous.  You need it.  (She's gonna hate me forever.)

Please note that my dish doesn't look like her dish but all most of the important ingredients are there.  Okay, I switched the beans, all right?  I'm a gimp. I didn't want to go to the grocery for black-eyed peas.  In my pantry, I had the choice of kidney, lima, garbanzo, lentils, or butter beans.  I chose the last and it was delicious. Gene loved it too.  Cynthia says this is a traditional Guyanese dish and they often serve it on Saturday nights with fried fish, fried plantains, and a fresh salad.  Well, that sounds wonderful but I'm a whiney bitch today so Gene's going to have to go to Cynthia's house in Barbados if he wants all the accompaniments.  He was lucky to get the chicken and rice, if you know what I mean, rather than being handed the phone and Pizza Hut's number. It was just one of those days.

I'm not going to give a recipe because you can email herself (I told you I was feeling hateful) and, more importantly, I didn't quite follow directions. Surely by now that's not really surprise, is it?  Cynthia says to make the whole thing in a dutch oven. I said "Screw that! I'm not standing over a pot!"  so I ended up throwing the whole thing in the oven and forgetting about it for an hour.  I'm glad I remembered it, though, or we would have missed that delicious meal.  I'm never making chicken and rice my old way ever again. I've already folded up the email and stuck it in my recipe box. Thanks, Cynthia!

I think the key to this dish is the fresh herbs and the coconut milk.  Thyme is my favorite herb, always has been. I think I could almost suck the leaves off the stems.  Almost.  So because of the four sprigs of fresh thyme that went into it, Cook-up Rice is my entry in this week's Weekend Herb Blogging, created by Kalyn at Kalyn's Kitchen, hosted this week by this week by Ulrike of Kuchenlatein.

UPDATE:  The recipe--MY VERSION--is now posted. 

Click Below.

Cook-up Rice--Glenna's Version based on Taste Like Home from Cynthia:

1 cup light brown rice

1 15 oz can butter beans

1 14 oz can Lite Coconut Milk (Thai Kitchen)

4-- 5 oz chicken breasts

1 medium onion, diced

1 tomato, diced

1 sprig fresh basil, minced

4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves pulled and minced

1 Tbsp olive oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1.  Sear chicken over medium heat in heavy bottomed skillet with olive oil.  Do not cook through.  Place chicken in bottom of 8x8 casserole dish, crockware works very well for this type of dish.

2. Saute onion in same skillet until translucent, adding a little more oil if needed.

3.  Combine all the ingredients except the chicken in a medium bowl and then pour over the chicken, making sure none of the rice gets stuck high and dry on top of the chicken.

4.  Bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until chicken is cooked through and rice has absorbed all of the coconut milk.

Cook's notes: In Cynthia's notes she said that the dish is typically made with a cut up chicken, salt pork, and salted beef.  In my case I didn't have any of those and they weren't in the original list of ingredients so I made it more as the best chicken and rice casserole I've ever eaten. The coconut milk doesn't make it sweet, it just adds another dimension to the flavors that gives a depth and a smile factor.  I was also thinking that next time it would be delcious to garnish it with spring onions and maybe even chopped pecans. I know that gets away from the traditional dish Cynthia sent me but it would be a lovely casserole.

Again, Thanks Cynthia!

Comments

[Kalyn]

I think either you or Cynthia has got to come back later and post the recipe for us! It sounds so good. I love thyme, especially with chicken that's cooked in liquid.

[sher]

That looks delicious! Your new camera takes great photos.

[Ulrike]

Thanks for your entry. That looks great. I hope your knee is ok!

[Kalyn]

Thanks for getting us the recipe so quickly! Sher's right about the photo too. What kind of camera did you get? The picture is fantastic.

[Kalyn]

Forgot to say, I am saving this recipe to del.icio.us right now.

[Cynthia]

Glenna! You've made my day! This post is funny, entertaining and such a tribute to a simple Guyanese dish - thank you. I am really touched. You have done exactly what this dish is - a cook-up! Throwing together whatever you have in the pantry, freezer and fridge - add some coconut milk and fresh herbs and it would be a dish that's hard to beat. Your presentation is much more attractive too!

I think I will try it in the oven and see how it comes out also.

Thanks Glenna. Tell Gene that he's welcome anytime. Oh yeah, and you too :D

[Cynthia]

Cynthia's Recipe – Cook-Up Rice

Ingredients

• 2 cups parboiled rice
• 1 cup of dried black-eyed peas, soaked overnight
• 6 cups coconut milk (preferably fresh)
• 1 chicken, cut up
• 4 sprigs of thyme
• 1 onion diced
• 1 tomato, diced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 sprig of basil, torn
• 2 tbsp oil, divided
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Water if needed

Method

1. In a large pot, heat 1tbsp oil
2. Add chicken, season with salt and pepper and let brown (not cooked through)
3. Remove chicken from pot and set aside, covered, to keep warm
4. Add the other tbsp oil if needed
5. Sauté onions and 3 sprigs of thyme (1-2 mins)
6. Add drained peas and continue to sauté
7. Add 2 cups of coconut milk and some water if needed, to cook the peas at least half-way through
8. When peas is half-cooked, add the chicken back to the pot
9. Add 4 cups of coconut milk, washed rice, 3 sprigs of thyme, basil, tomatoes and green onions
10. Season to taste with salt and pepper, stir
11. Cover pot and let it come to a boil
12. When the liquid begins to reduce and you see the rice, reduce the heat to low, cover pot and let cook for 25 minutes or until the liquid is completely gone
13. The rice should me moist, loose and cooked through

Notes:
1. This dish is traditionally made with salt pork, salt beef and fresh versions of these meats as well. Any single protein or combination can be used in this dish.
2. Use a rice of your choice. Follow the package instructions as it relates to the liquid ratio to cook the rice. However, be sure to have extra liquid on hand to cook the peas.
3. Some people put a pat of butter into the rice for flavour; it’s optional, I don’t.
4. If using canned coconut milk, thin it out with water
5. There are some people who add browning to their cook-up rice for colour, in Guyana we do not. The dish is supposed to be flavoured with the natural colour of the peas and other ingredients.

[wow powerleveling]

I love checken.Thank u,Glenna!
looks delicious!

[Glenna]

Thanks for the compliment and for commenting.

[Tanna]

Now I think this was just a really fun running around to get the recipe!!
Looks like great chicken!

[Christine]

Oh my, Oh my - this just went into my del.icio.us file! Thank you Glenna and Cynthia! :)

[Glenna]

Cynthia--Thanks so much for giving us your original recipe! I just loved it!

[Glenna]

Thanks,Christine! Double thanks to Cynthia for the recipe.

[Mimi]

I love the color combination in that dish.

[Deborah Dowd]

Thanks for pointing us to Cynthia and sharing your version of the recipe. I am definitely going to give this a try (maybe during the Summer Olympics when we usually make a dish from a different country each night!)

[Alisha]

Glenna (and Cynthia) .. both these recipes look fantastic! I'll have to give my own version a try soon.

[Glenna]

Mimi--thanks! It is pretty.

Deborah--Hey, perfect! And honestly it doesn't taste all that different from the normal chicken and rice casserole I grew up eating, it just has more depth from the coconut milk and beans.

Alisha--Thanks, girl!

[Zlamushka]

Glenna,
This is such a lovely dish. Simple and homey, just like it should be, thanks for revealing the secret, hehe :-)