South American-Spiced Chicken, Black Beans, & Rice

 

We made South American-Spiced Chicken, Black Beans, & Rice With Avocado, Pickled Chilies & Sour Cream which is almost like a Paella. It is from South America (or at least the author so labels it). It would be easy to see how it could have migrated to the Americas from Spain. It was hearty and good.

South American-Spiced Chicken, Black Beans, & Rice With Avocado, Pickled Chilies & Sour Cream

From the Oven to the Table

 

Another baked rice dish, so again you do need to cook it in the size of pan specified. The chicken, beans, and rice are, in themselves, simple, but it's the add-ons here that make the dish.

 

For The Chicken, Beans And Rice

 

2       tablespoons extra virgin

olive oil or peanut oil

8       good-sized skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs, or a mixture of chicken parts, excess skin neatly trimmed

1       large onion, roughly chopped

2       bell peppers, halved, seeded, and sliced

3       garlic cloves, finely grated

1       teaspoon ground cumin

1       cinnamon stick, halved

2       red Fresno chilies, halved, seeded, and chopped

15     oz     can of black beans, drained and rinsed

⅔      lb cherry tomatoes, halved

1       cup basmati rice, washed in a sieve until the water runs clear

2½    cups boiling chicken stock

sea salt flakes and freshly

ground black pepper

3       tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves

 

To Serve

 

Lime Wedges

Pickled chilies

sour cream

2 avocados

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Heat the oil in a 12in ovenproof sauté pan or shallow casserole (the size is very important) and quickly brown the chicken pieces on both sides, just to give them a good color. Remove and set aside. Add the onion and peppers to the pan and sauté for 5 minutes, or until just starting to soften.

 

Add the garlic, cumin, cinnamon, and chilies and cook for about 2 minutes, then add the black beans and cherry tomatoes. Sprinkle on the rice (it's important that the black beans are underneath the rice and chicken when the dish goes into the oven, otherwise they get scorched). Pour on the boiling stock and return the chicken to the pan, skin side up. Season.

 

Bake for 40 minutes. The chicken should be lovely and golden and the stock should have been absorbed. The rice should be tender by this time, too. Sprinkle on the cilantro.

 

Serve with lime wedges, a bowl of pickled chilies, sour cream, and slices of avocado (just squeeze lime juice over the avocados in a bowl and sprinkle with salt and pepper).