Meatless “Arroz con Pollo”

Ingredients

• 4
  
  garlic cloves, minced
  
• 1/4
  
  teaspoon red pepper flakes (up to 1/2 teaspoon if you like spicy)
  
• 1/2
  
  teaspoon salt
  
• 1/2
  
  teaspoon pepper
  
• 2
  
  tablespoons olive oil
  
• 4
  
  cups vegetable stock
  
• 1
  
  onion, diced
  
• 1
  
  red pepper, diced
  
• 2
  
  green peppers, diced
  
• 4
  
  plum tomatoes, diced
  
• 1
  
  teaspoon cumin
  
• 2
  
  bay leaves
  
• 2
  
  cups Vigo yellow rice
  
• 1
  
  cup frozen green peas
  
• 1
  
  jalapeno, minced (optional)
  
• 1
  
  lime or lemon cut in wedges (optional)
  

Directions

1. Mix minced garlic, vinegar, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes together and set aside. if you like spicy, you can add up to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper. If you like salt, go ahead and add it in. If not, wait until the end and add salt to taste. (The vigo yellow rice has salt already).
2. Heat stock in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until boiling then reduce to simmer. (If you’d rather not wash another pan, you can definitely just add the cold stock to the rice later).
3. Heat oil in a large heavy deep saute pan that allows for lots of stirring (I use my all-clad 6 quart). Add chopped onions, red and green peppers for 5 minutes or until onions are translucent. Enjoy the fragrance here!
4. Add in rice and stir until rice absorbs all the liquid from the veggie mixture – several minutes. Add in the vinegar garlic mix. Add in heated stock, mix, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a low simmer and cover. Let sit for about 25-30 minutes until rice absorbs all liquid. You’ll need to stir several times as the rice will begin to stick to the bottom. If it does, just aggressively scrape the bottom with a steel spoon to remove.
5. In the last 5 minutes of cooking, add the frozen peas and cover. I like my rice on the wet side. If you prefer your rice dry, keep the lid off here and stir until rice reaches consistency you’re looking for.
6. Serve with a lime or lemon wedge and diced jalapeno if desired.