Peruvian Green Rice
I first had green rice on our backpacking trip in Peru as part of a chicken and rice dish called Arroz con Pollo, over a decade ago. Being vegetarian, my options were very limited and I often picked on the non-meat parts of my husband’s meal. I remember, my poor husband hardly got any of that delicious green rice that I hungrily polished off his plate that day, chasing each loaded spoonful with a sip of pisco sour - another great Peruvian find! :-)
When it comes to rice, most of us just think whether it’s white or brown rice we want to eat/serve. The two standard options available at most restaurants as well. But once you taste this dish, you will never think of rice as just a side-kick to your carefully thought out main course; always playing a supporting role, never the star ingredient/ dish on the table.
In this dish each fragrant and flavorful grain stands out to impress. The recipe is easy, fool-proof and requires very little hands-on time. The color pop is gorgeous. Kids love it. It pairs very well with a wide range of dishes including Indian curries, Mexican beans, lentils, tacos, yogurt and salad. This green rice is one of my favorite dishes to make when I entertain.
Even if you aren’t a fan of cilantro (I know a few folks who find cilantro to be intolerable and soapy tasting), I would encourage you to try this recipe. Cooked cilantro tastes very different from raw cilantro; not soapy at all.
With this rich and refined Peruvian Green Rice, you will bring your A-game to the dinner table!
The recipe has been minimally adapted from an old issue of fine cooking.
Peruvian Green Rice
Serves 4-6
Ingredients
1½ cups Basmati rice
1 cup tightly packed baby spinach
1/2 cup tightly packed cilantro (tough stems discarded)
1 serrano chili (optional)
2 cloves garlic
1/4 tsp onion powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
3 Tbsp butter
1¼ cup water or veg stock
1¼ cup milk
1 tsp salt
Preparation:
Wash the rice a few times under running water until the water runs clear. Keep it aside.
Place the spinach, cilantro, chili, garlic and water/stock in the blender and blend until pureed. Add milk and onion powder to this and pulse to combine.
Place a heavy-bottomed saucepan (with a tight lid) on medium heat. Add the olive oil and butter and wait for a few seconds until the butter melts. Then add the rice.
Saute the rice in butter stirring frequently until the rice turns fragrant and opaque but does not brown, about 3-4 minutes.
Add the contents of the blender to the rice and add salt.
Give it a stir to combine, turn the heat to high and bring it to a boil.
Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes, until all the liquid has been absorbed.
Uncover and fluff gently with a fork.
Cover again and let it cook on low for another 5 mins.
Take the pan off the heat and let the rice rice steam in the covered pot for another 10 minutes. Serve hot.
Notes:
To make it vegan, replace milk with coconut milk and butter with oil.
Did you make this recipe? Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and share a picture on instagram & tag it with the hashtag #nibblengobble.
