What do we eat on Sunday? Arroz con Pollo

Dont let the name fool you it sounds grand actually it only means "chicken and rice"! I just added the a la nana cause she teach me to make this at about age 11.

In my house this is a Sunday food and we eat it just about every Sunday that i can remember. My grandmother made it for my grandfather, my nana made it for my Poppi and I make it for Gabe....Every sunday. i also made it for nana and Poppi when they got old and could no longer cook It also makes the house smell so good on sunday with all the seasonings and all. We eat ours usually with rum soaked platains which i also will put the recipe in this blog. Im no great cook but the recipes i share here are really, really simple. They dont require a lot of prep work either. this recipe makes enough for you to have leftovers or take for lunch which is what we do here. but, the choice is yoiurs. i dont eat pork and u can omit it if you choose. not for religious i just do not digest beef and pork well but i do add it to this most times

Ingredients:

3 lbs chicken pieces
about a cup of Crisco
1 lb pork cut in sm. pieces
1 can pimientos (sliced)
4 chorizo sausages
1/2 bottle stuffed olives
28 oz can tomatoes
2 bay leaves

15 oz tomato sauce ( i use hunts)
4 cups rice *
1 bunch parsley (chopped)
1 tsp saffron *
2 large onions (chopped)
Salt & pepper to taste
4 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 can peas

Directions:

Brown chicken and pork in Crisco. Add sausages and cook. (I take out some of the grease before adding the rest of the ingredients.) Then add tomatoes, tomato sauce, parsley, onions, garlic, bay leaves, saffron, salt and pepper. Simmer until chicken is tender. Remove chicken and add rice. Cook on medium high until liquid is absorbed. Then cover tightly and steam until rice is done. When serving, add can of heated peas and pimientos over the top. sometimes i just use the can but if you really wwant to go all out you can make them from dried peas but thats hours and you will need to do it like one daay before.

Arrange chicken around the sides. (Or remove chicken from bones and add to rice.) Parsley may also be used if you plan to serve it in your dining room it will be decorative..

We eat a Panamanian dinner here in brooklyn, New York every Sunday with arroz con pollo, plantain, stuffed chayote, mango salad and a coffee dessert. the secret with coffee instead of using cream use readi whip. It tastes so much better and makes it look like your really a culinary something or other LOL

very important ! *(Saffron is expensive and sometimes hard to find. I buy packaged Saffron rice and substitute half that kind with regular plain white rice, please dontg use uncle nbens converted or that crappy minute rice in the plastic bag!!! just use half plain and it gives it a extra good flavor.)

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rum soaked plantains are really easy to make. make sure you know how to buy your plantains. use the yellow ones for these type of recipes the green ones are good for cooking your brekfast plantain cereal with bacon, etc. But for this i use ripe sweet ones.

6 ripe plantains
2 tbsp. rum (clear)
2 tbsp. margarine
1/2 cup lime juice

Directions:

Heat oven 350 degrees F. In saucepan mix sugar, lime juice, margarine, and rum. Heat 15 min. to boiling. Peel the plantain, cutin diagonal slices, and arrange them in a baking dish. Cover plantain with the mixture and bake for 30 min. Turn it over every 15 min.

these are super easy sunday recipes or anytime I guess but we eat it mostly Sundays. I hope you enjoy these recipes