Chicken and Rice

So, for those of you who don't know, I am a personal trainer. This might be kind of shocking to hear after you see what I like to cook. But, everything in moderation right. Well, I have this client who is amazing. She is one of my favorite people and after work one day she invited me over for lunch and after lunch she said she had a gift for me..... so she went and got it and she brought back a recipe book from American's Test Kitchen. It's called Simple Weeknight Favorites. Underneath the title it says, "More than 200 No-fuss, FOOLPROOF meals".  I was so excited! I opened it up and every recipe I looked at seemed pretty complicated. Either the recipes had a lot of steps or they called for ingredients that I have never used/ heard of before. But, I was determined to try something out. So, I tried "Chicken and Mexican Green Rice Skillet Supper." It was really tasty and it was a pretty quick meal. It was even better the next day for lunch though once all of the flavors had soaked into the rice a little bit longer. Yum!

Ingredients:

8 (3-oz) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed (I used 4 because there are only 2 of us)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 onion, chopped fine

2 poblano chiles, stemmed, seeded, and chopped (poblano chiles are really mild chiles. I'm a wimp when it comes to spicy. These didn't have much spicy to them at all. I had never cooked with poblano chiles before, but I found them at Fresh and Easy in the refrigerated section if anyone is having a hard time finding them.) If you're looking for more heat you can add minced jalapeno's instead.

3 garlic cloves minced

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 (14oz) can green enchilada sauce

1 1/4 cup water

1 cup long-grain white rice

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro 

   

 

Directions: 

1. Pat chicken dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Cook chicken until well browned on 1 side, about 5 minutes. Transfer to plate.

2. Add onion, poblanos, and remaining 1 tablespoon oil to now-empty skillet and cook until softened, about  5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add enchilada sauce, water, rice, and any accumulated chicken juices and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Nestle chicken into rice, browned side up, cover, and cook over low heat, stirring every 5 minutes, until rice is tender and chicken registers 175 degrees, about 20 minutes. 

3. Stir in cilantro, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.