Recipes

Green Rice

Green Rice

Arroz Verde
Green rice gets its color and much of its flavor from puréed green chiles, parsley, and cilantro. The rice is very good with grilled fish fillets or chicken. For color and flavor accent on the plate, add a spicy fresh tomato salsa.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Prepare the chile.
  • Chop the chile and put into a blender.
  • Add the cilantro, parsley, oregano, garlic, and the chicken broth.
  • Blend until smooth.
  • Reserve in the blender.
  • Heat the oil in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat.
  • Add the onion and rice.
  • Stir to coat with oil and cook, stirring, until the rice and onion are fragrant and begin to color, 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Add the puréed chile mixture all at once.
  • Stir to incorporate evenly into the rice.
  • Bring to a boil.
  • Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook 18 minutes, or until the rice is tender, but still moist, and the liquid is absorbed.
  • Add the salt and pepper.
  • Stir gently with a fork, cover, and let sit 5 minutes before serving.
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Course; Rice
Cuisine; Mexican

Rice with Corn

Rice with Corn

Tomatillo-Cilantro Rice
Arroz de Tomatillo y CilantroCilantro takes on a different, mild taste when cooked. The intriguing subtle flavor of this rice has made it a favorite at my house. Patricia Amtmann, owner of an import business in Mexico City, told me how to prepare this dish, and I worked out the recipe. The rice pairs nicely with a main course of Shrimp with Tomatoes and Cheese.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Put the tomatillos, cilantro, and 1 cup of the chicken broth into a blender and blend until smooth.
  • Pour into a 2-cup liquid measuring cup and add enough of the remaining chicken broth to total 2 cups liquid.
  • Reserve.
  • In a wide 2-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat until hot.
  • Add the rice and cook, stirring, until the rice coloris opaque and starts to change color, but doesn’t brown, 4 to 5 minutes.
  • Add the scallions and salt.
  • Cook 1 minute.
  • Pour in the reserved 2 cups puréed cilantro–chicken broth mixture.
  • Bring to a boil.
  • Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 18 to 20 minutes, or until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender.
  • Remove from the heat, cover, and let sit 5 minutes.
  • Stick a fork into the bottom of the pan to check for remaining moisture.
  • If just dry, fluff with a fork and serve.
  • If not, cover and let stand 5 more minutes.
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Course; Rice
Cuisine; Mexican

Mexican Rice

Mexican Rice

Arroz a la Mexicana
Rice cooked in broth with tomatoes, onion, and garlic is a classic rice dish, with variations, throughout Mexico. It goes well with so many things; try it with Chicken with Black Bean and Avocado Salsa, or Seared Tuna with Oregano and Garlic.
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Equipment

  • 4-quart saucepan

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • In a 4-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat.
  • Add the rice and cook, stirring, until golden, about 4 minutes.
  • Add the onion, garlic, cumin, and salt.
  • Cook, stirring, until the onion softens, about 3 minutes.
  • Add the tomatoes and cook until the juices evaporate and the mixture is nearly dry, 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Add the broth all at once and stir to settle the rice.
  • Bring to a boil.
  • Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, 18 to 20 minutes.
  • Remove from the heat and let stand 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Fluff the rice and stir in the cilantro.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Rice
Cuisine; Mexican

Basic White Rice

Basic White Rice

Arroz Blanco To cook a small amount of white rice the Mexican way, I use a heavy, stainless steel 2-quart saucepan with a cover. The raw rice is sautéed in oil, then simmered slowly in hot water or broth, like a pilaf.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • Heat the oil in a 2-quart wide saucepan or deep skillet.
  • When the oil shimmers, add the rice and cook, stirring, until the rice is opaque and starts to change color, but doesn’t brown, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the liquid all at once, stir and bring to a boil.
  • Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender, 18 to 20 minutes.
  • Remove the pan from the heat and let the rice stand 5 minutes.
  • Stick a fork into the bottom of the pan to check for remaining moisture.
  • If just dry on the bottom, fluff the rice with the fork and serve.
  • If not, cover and let stand 5 more minutes

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Rice
Cuisine; Mexican

Fresh Fava Beans

Fresh Fava Beans

Fabas
Shelling then peeling fresh fabas (fava beans, or broad beans) is a tedious task, but it improves their texture. Fava beans are added to soups and stews. Mix them with fresh corn and sweet red peppers for a side dish or add them to green salads or white rice.This basic recipe describes how to cook and peel fresh fabas that are available seasonally in some supermarkets and farmer's markets in the United States. In Mexico, when fava beans are in season, great boxes and piles of the beans in their pods appear in public markets everywhere.
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Ingredients

Makes about 1 cup fava beans; serves 4 to 6 as a garnish

  • 1 pound unshelled fresh fava beans
  • ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • 1 tablespoons olive oil
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Chickpeas with Spinach

Chickpeas with Spinach

Garbanzos con Espinaca
This is a modern side dish with Spanish roots that goes well with grilled fish fillets, pork, or chicken. De arbol chiles are dried and can be easily crumbled into pieces with your fingers.
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Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 medium red onion thinly sliced
  • 2 medium garlic cloves finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 de arbol chile crumbled, or ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed, or 3½ cups drained home-cooked chickpeas
  • 1 10-ounce package of fresh spinach leaves
  • 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
  • ½ teaspoon salt or to taste
  • ⅛ teaspoon freshly ground pepper or to taste

Instructions

  • In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the onion until softened, 3 to 4 minutes.
  • Add the garlic, cumin, chile, chickpeas, and ⅓ cup water.
  • Bring to a boil; then add the spinach and cook, stirring until the spinach is wilted and tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
  • Add the vinegar, salt, and pepper.
  • Stir to combine.

Notes & Wine Advice

Serve hot.
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Course; Side Dish
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Basic Chickpeas

Basic Chickpeas

Garbanzos
Chickpeas are grown and widely used throughout Mexico. Mexican cooks soak chickpeas overnight to reduce cooking time and to help loosen the skins so they will rub off easily after they are cooked, a traditional technique that I follow. It is not necessary to rub off the skins, but the beans have a smoother texture and taste without them.It is very easy to cook dried chickpeas. Of course, it does take time to cook any beans from scratch, but the results are worth the extra effort, for the beans will have better flavor. Dried chickpeas require very little attention while they cook, but plan ahead and allow time to soak the beans overnight in the traditional way.
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Equipment

  • strainer

Ingredients

Makes 3 cups cooked beans; about 6 servings

  • 1 cup dried chickpeas garbanzo beans
  • ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

  • Put the chickpeas in a strainer or colander and rinse under cold tap water.
  • Drain and put into a bowl.
  • Add hot water to about 1 inch above the level of the beans.
  • Cover and soak overnight.
  • Put the soaked beans and the soaking water into a large pot.
  • Add 2 more cups of water and the salt.
  • Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the beans are tender, but not mushy, about 1½ hours.
  • Cool the beans in the broth; then scoop chickpeas out of the broth, about ¼ cup at a time, and rub off the thin outer skins with your fingers and discard them.
  • Put skinned chickpeas into a bowl.
  • Repeat until all are skinned, then return all the chickpeas to the broth.
  • The beans are ready to use, or cover and refrigerate, in their broth, for up to 3 days.
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Course; Basic recipe / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

White Beans and Carrots with Green Onions

White Beans and Carrots with Green Onions

Frijoles Blancos y Zanahorias con Cebollinas
In Veracruz, white beans and carrots are paired with tiny green onions called cebollinas. The combination is very tasty, and I find that in the United States, substituting green onions for the unavailable cebollinas works just fine.
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Equipment

  • medium saucepan

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

Instructions

  • In a medium saucepan, boil about ¾ cup water and cook the carrots until crisp tender, about 3 minutes.
  • Drain the carrots and return to the same pan.
  • Add the cooked beans, olive oil, onions, cumin, salt, and pepper.
  • Cook over medium-low heat until bubbling and completely heated through, 4 to 5 minutes.
  • Stir in the parsley.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

White Beans with Roasted Garlic

White Beans with Roasted Garlic

Frijoles Blanco con Ajo Asada
Beans of many colors and sizes are an integral part of daily meals in most Mexican homes, so it was not surprising to have smooth, puréed white beans served with my entrée at the elegant Restaurant El Sacramonte in Guadalajara.
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Ingredients

Makes 6 servings

Instructions

  • Prepare the white beans.
  • While the beans are cooking, roast the garlic cloves in a small dry skillet over medium heat until flecked with brown and slightly soft.
  • Remove the papery skin and reserve.
  • When the beans are tender, using a slotted spoon, transfer the beans to a food processor or blender.
  • Reserve the cooking broth.
  • Preheat oven to 325°.
  • In a medium skillet, melt the butter over medium-low heat and cook the onion slowly, stirring frequently, until soft and translucent, 5 to 6 minutes.
  • Add the oregano, marjoram, and cumin.
  • Cook, stirring, 1 minute.
  • Transfer to the processor with the beans.
  • Add the reserved roasted garlic and purée to a thick smooth mixture, adding just enough bean broth to achieve a consistency that holds its shape on a spoon.
  • Add the salt and red pepper.
  • Pulse 3 to 4 times to mix.
  • Transfer the puréed beans to an ovenproof baking dish and bake 20 to 25 minutes or until completely heated through.
  • Sprinkle with chopped parsley

Notes & Wine Advice

serve hot
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian

Quick Refried Black Beans

Quick Refried Black Beans

Frijoles Refritos Pronto
Convenient canned black beans are used in this recipe to make refried beans when there is no time to start from scratch.
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Ingredients

Makes 6 servings

  • 3 tablespoons corn oil
  • ½ medium onion chopped
  • 2 medium garlic cloves finely chopped
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano Mexican variety preferred, crumbled
  • ⅛ teaspoon crushed hot red pepper
  • 1 cup canned ready-cut tomatoes with the juices
  • 2 15-ounce cans black beans, drained, but not rinsed

Instructions

  • In a medium skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium high heat, and cook the onion and garlic, stirring, until the onion softens, about 3 minutes.
  • Stir in the cumin, oregano, red pepper, tomatoes, and beans.
  • Transfer the mixture to a food processor and pulse 8 to 10 times to make a coarse purée.
  • In a large skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat.
  • Add the bean mixture and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.
  • Turn the heat to low and cook, uncovered, stirring frequently, 6 to 8 minutes, or until the liquids have reduced and the beans are thick enough to hold a mounded shape on a wooden spoon.
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Course; Side Dish / Vegetables
Cuisine; Mexican
Diets; Vegetarian