Recipe #40 - Mexican Rice

Mexican (or Spanish) rice comes in many different forms. Most of us have tried various commercially available boxed versions of it, with mixed results. It might taste OK, but it usually ends up being overly moist, or soupy, or gloppy, or (add your own adjective here).

So in an effort to come up with something more akin to what we've experienced at good Mexican restaurants, we latched onto something we found in Cook's Illustrated magazine and adapted it with some of our own flourishes.

The key is to use both the stovetop and the oven, and also to add the fresh-taste ingredients at the very end so they don't get overcooked and lose their bright flavors.

Serve this with fish tacos and Sheri's slow-cooked latino black beans (recipe to be published soon).

1 large ripe tomato, cored and coarsely chopped
1/2 yellow onion, peeled, trimmed and coarsely chopped

2 fresh jalapeno chiles

1 cup long grain white rice
2 Tbsp. olive oil

3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely minced

1 cup rich vegetable broth
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 lime, juiced

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Put tomato and onion in a food processor and puree until smooth.

Remove the seeds and pith from one of the jalapenos. Mince the seeded chile and set aside. Then mince the other chile, including the seeds and pith.

Put the rice in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse several times, then shake fully to remove all the water from the rice. Heat the oil in an oven-proof saute pan (which has an oven-proof cover). Add the rice and saute for about five minutes until the rice is translucent and starting to brown.

Add the garlic and seeded minced chile and stir-fry for a couple more minutes. Add the broth, the tomato-onion puree, tomato paste and salt. Bring to a boil, then stir one more time to mix everything well.

Cover the pan and put it in the preheated oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed into the rice is tender.

Stir in the cilantro, the minced jalapeno and lime juice. Serve immediately with additional wedges of lime.