Arroz a la Mexicana/Mexican Rice (Due to some technical difficulties I wasn’t able to take pictures. But that didn’t stop us from eating!)

Even though I’ve made Mexican rice more times than I can count, I’ve never made it from scratch (i.e., pureeing tomatoes rather than just opening a can of tomato sauce). For this recipe I used my new Diana Kennedy book, “From My Mexican Kitchen: Techniques and Ingredients”. Diana Kennedy and Rick Bayless are probably the most famous Mexican cooks from the U.S., which means they write in English, something my 3rd+ Generation monolingual status needs right now (Bilingual in 2007, baby!!). I like Diana Kennedy because she was the first to document Mexican cooking in English. She lives and runs an institute there, and has been given the highest honor by the Mexican Government. She’s also very anal, and fussy about doing things “right” and in the most traditional of ways. One of my very best friends, Veronica, got me her last book, “Mi Mexico”, but that is more like graduate school of Mexican cooking and I’ve been a little afraid of cooking from it. So I got her most basic book

My grandmother taught me how to make rice and beans when I was in college. I think she was influenced by the “innovations” that came about in the 1950’s that helped home cooks stream line their recipes. She used Campbell’s chicken and rice soup, I use organic chicken broth. She used powdered onion and garlic, I use the fresh. But I’ve never pureed my own tomatoes. I also added the carrots, which I don’t usually do, though it does make the rice look prettier. I didn’t have the other optional ingredients on hand. And the results…pretty good, much more delicate in taste than with canned. But I kind of like the tanginess you get from canned tomato sauce. Final verdict, unless I have an abundance of tomatoes I don’t think I’ll make a habit of pureeing them.

Recipe: Arroz a la Mexicana (Diana Kennedy, “From My Mexican Kitchen”)
Makes about 6 servings

1 ½ cups long grain white rice
¼ to 1/3 cup vegetable oil
8 ounces tomatoes, roughly chopped, about 1 ½ cups
1 tbsp roughly chopped white onion
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
About 3 ½ cups chicken broth
1 small carrot, trimmed, scraped and thinly sliced, (optional)
2 tbsp peas (optional)
1 large sprig parsley (optional)
2 serrano chiles, left whole (optional)
Salt to taste

For this quantity you will need a flameproof pan about 4 inces deep and 9 inches across. Pour hot water to cover over the rice and let soak for about 5 minutes. Strain, rinse in cold water and strain again. Be sure to shake the strainer well to remove any excess water. So do not do this step ahead of time or the rice will become too damp.

Heat the oil in the pan and stir in the rice – it should sizzle as it touches the oil. Stir until the grains are evenly coated and continue frying over medium heat until they sound brittle and are just starting to turn golden, about 10 minutes. Tip the pan to one side and drain off the excess oil.

Meanwhile, put the tomatoes, onion, and garlic into a blender jar and blend until smooth. Stir the puree into the rice and continue frying over fairly high heat, scraping the bottom of the pan to avoid sticking, until the mixture has been absorbed, abut 5 minutes.

Add the broth and the optional ingredients; stir the rice well, adjust the salt, cover the pan, and cook over medium heat until all the broth as been absorbed – airholes will probably form. Carefully dig to the bottom of the rice with a fork to see if any moisture remains; if so, then continue cooking over low heat for a few minutes more. Set aside, still covered, to give the rice a chance to continue steaming evenly for about 15 minutes

When serving, gently stir the rice from the bottom with a fork because the seasonings tend to sink to the bottom.