Arroz Con Pollo ~ Rice with Chicken ~ Estilo Puertoriqueno ~ Puerto Rican Style

This was my first attempt at making arroz con pollo.  As it was one of my mother's signature dishes and no matter where she would go people would request that she make this dish for them, I was a bit intimidated.  This is what lead to my fear of making this dish.  I think that since my mother's rendition of this dish was so phenominal, that the dish would prove to be too difficult, and that I would some how let her down because mine would not live up to her high standards.  Plus, would it taste as good as my mother's?  When I thought about my mother though, I remembered that she had to begin somewhere, and that by the time I came around she had had the benefit of cooking for over 20 years.  Therefore, when I finally cut myself some slack the dish began to flow for me.  Some of the techniques that I had watched my mother do quickly came back to me and that made it so much easier to create this dish.  I actually felt like her hands were guiding me through the dish and in the end the finished product while not 100% my mom's version, it was very delicious!  My husband, Michael and my daughter, Autumn absolutely loved it.  While there is room for improvement I am quite pleased with the fact that I finally attempted this family heirloom recipe.  We were blessed with some avocadoes that came straight from from my aunt's (Titi Fifa) farm
in Puerto Rico.  She had sent my father a care package of avocadoes and he shared two of them with us.  it was the perfect addition to our meal.  The avocadoes were creamy just like eating butter, yet they were quite sweet.  And they had that tropical island scent to them.  As I made the arroz con pollo I felt like I needed something to go over the rice adn so I whipped up a small pot of gandules guizado (stewed pigeon peas).  For the recipe see my post from Christmas 2008. 

Arroz Con Pollo
Sofrieto Ingredients:

1 tbsp achiote
1 head of garlic, minced
1 cup oil
1 onion, chopped
½ can tomato sauce
1 tsp. dried oregano
½ cup stew tomatoes
3 agiesas dulces (leave out if you can't find these)
3 cups long grain rice
cilantro
1 lb. chicken parts
green bell pepper, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
olives, 15 to 20
capers, 1 tablespoon

Directions:
Heat oil on medium heat. Cook the Sofrieto for 3 minutes. Add tomato sauce and stew tomatoes. Put in washed pieces of chicken. Add cilantro. Add olives and capers a little tomato sauce on top. Put on low heat and cover. Cook for 15 min. Uncover, turn meat, stir and cover. Cook for another 10 min.
Wash rice, add rice. Stir up with other ingredients. Put on achiote for colo. Stir fry rice on med heat. Add hot water to an inch above rice. Salt to taste. Cover and cook high heat to boil. In 5 min when the water disappears, turn rice and turn heat to low. Cook on low for another 15 min. Clean off top of pot.

Chilies Relleno ~ Estilo puertorriqueño ~ Stuffed Chilies ~ Puerto Rican Style

When I was growing up my mother would always cook her special Puerto Rican dishes and in addition she would also try her hand at various cultural treats like roast turkey (American), lasagna and spaghetti (Italian), stir fry (Chinese), tacos (Mexican), etc. Although someone may have given her a recipe, my mom had her own style of cooking, and she would incorporate that into all of her dishes. Hence our change in titles of our recipes became Puerto Rican lasagna, Puerto Rican tacos, and so on. But in actuality there was no such thing as a Puerto Rican lasagna, or a Puerto Rican taco. As far as I know, they never existed in Puerto Rico, just in our kitchen in California.

My mother, who I considered to be a culinary genius, told us that she did not even know how to boil and egg when she married my father at the age of 19. When I heard this I was totally shocked, as I had thought that my mother came out of the womb with her cuchara (spoon), and her olla (pot) lista para cocinar (ready to cook). Of course my dad will always tell you that he was the one that taught our mom how to cook; although he does not really know how to cook himself. But he says he would guide her with his finely tuned taste buds. "It needs a little bit more pepper, or too much salt," he would say to her. My mother was not always so receptive to my father's criticism.
Mom also let me in on a little secret that in the olds days it was a whole lot of trial and error. My mom said that at first she would burn the rice and just break down and cry. The only true lessons my mom received in cooking were from her aunts in New York. Mom lived with them for a time and became their little understudy. Who would have guessed?! Not I, that's for darn sure. My mother was an only child and both of her parents owned and ran a grocery store. As she was the only child, she was treated like a princess and not allowed to cook, or clean, etc. My Abuela (grandmother) would dress my mother up like a doll and was not allowed to get dirty in any way. While my mother grew up she said that had a lady in the neighborhood that would cook food for them and bring it to them when they arrived from work. either that or one of my mother's aunts would come and cook for them.

So long story short, I am not even sure that they have chilles relleno in Puerto Rico, but my mother used to make them for us and they were mouth watering and absolutely delectable. These are not hot chiles, they are sweet chiles that I am able to purchase at the Sunday Farmers Market under the freeway; Summertime only of course. They are unlike most chile rellenos not breaded or dipped in egg. So as I am making these today my daughter, Autumn, who loves to cook, says she is dying because the smell is so tantalizing. It was 3:30 p.m. and she couldn't wait for dinner. "Let's eat now!", she said. All I can tell you is that it smells like my mom's kitchen, and that, always brings me back home. It is a safe and comforting feeling.
Chiles Relleno ~
Estilo puertorriqueño ~
Stuffed Chiles ~ Puerto Rican Style
8 Pasilla Chiles (Long Green Chilies or Bell Peppers)
Picadillo (See recipe)
Mozzarella Cheese

Picadillo

Picadillo Recipe (Puerto Rican Style Ground Meat)
1 lb. ground pork (ground turkey or ground chicken will work too)
1 onion, diced
½ head of garlic, finely chopped
½ diced bell pepper
1 tsp. dried oregano
!/8 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. black pepper
green olives stuffed with pimentos
1 tsp. capers
1- 8 oz. can tomato sauce

Saute the onion, garlic and bell pepper with olive oil in a large skillet. Add the ground meat and brown.. Add oregano, cilantro, olives and capers. Simmer for 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add tomato sauce. Bring to a simmer then cover and cook for 15 minutes or so over low heat.

Make a slit with the tip of a paring knife in the pepper at the cap. Remove the seeds. Roast the chiles in a 450 degree until they are blackened on the outside. (This step is well worth your effort. It will make your house smell sumptuous Once roasted place the chiles in a ziplock bag and seal. Allow the chiles to steam and cool. Once they are cool the skin with be much easier to peel off. Once cooled fill with Picadillo mixture and grated mozzarella cheese. Line in a greased 9 x 13 pan or larger. Sprinkle grated mozzarella cheese over the top and place in a 400 degree oven until the top is golden brown. About 20 to 30 minutes.