ROTD: Chef Franco's Arroz Con Pollo

It isn’t often that you meet someone and know right off the bat your going to be good friends for years to come. While going to Le Cordon Bleu many years back, I was fortunate enough to bump into Chef Marques Franco, a gentle giant of sorts who has unbelievable skills in the kitchen as well as on the football field. We made sure that neither of us ever gave up or missed a day of school and with that, we both graduated with honors.

Chef Franco has gone on to open his own catering company that operates out of Los Angeles that makes some of the most delicious pies, cobblers & cakes as well as a full scale catering menu with everything from gourmet / fine dining faire to backyard BBQ. 

One of the dishes we fell in love with of Chef Franco’s was his exquisite, Arroz con Pollo. Graciously giving us his recipe, Chef Franco wants everyone to understand that cooking isn’t the hardest thing you will ever do in your life, but it can be one of the most rewarding if you have patience and the desire to literally feed others something good for their soul.

Thanks for the recipe Chef Franco.

(click Read More for the Entire Recipe)

 Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

Chicken

3 TBS olive oil

1 broiler-fryer chicken, about 2.5 - 3 lbs, cut into serving pieces, w/ bones & skin, rinsed & patted dry

½ cup flour

Kosher Salt

Freshly ground black pepper

A Pinch of Paprika

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp granulated garlic

Rice

2 TBS olive oil (can use up to 1/4 cup)

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

½ green bell pepper, chopped

½ red bell pepper, chopped

½ cup peas, optional

1 garlic clove, minced

2 cups long-grain white rice

3 cups chicken stock

1 heaping TBS tomato paste or 1 cup of diced fresh or cooked tomatoes, strained

Pinch of oregano

A Pinch of cayenne

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp granulated garlic

1 bay leaf

Kosher Salt & pepper to taste

  

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large skillet (a skillet that has a cover) on medium high heat.

Put the flour in a wide bowl, mix in a generous sprinkling of salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, granulated garlic and paprika.

Dredge the chicken pieces lightly in the flour mixture and put in the pan to brown.

Cook a few minutes on each side, just enough so that the chicken has browned.

Use a slotted spoon or tongs to remove from pan and set aside.

Add the rice to the pan to brown.

Add a little more olive oil if necessary.

Stir first to coat the rice with the olive oil in the pan, once rice is coated season with spices, but don't stir too much or you will prevent it from browning.

Let it brown and then stir a little to let more of it brown.

Add the onion and bell peppers, stirring frequently, until the onions and bell peppers have softened, about 4 minutes.

Add the garlic, (only takes about 7 seconds for the garlic to cook.

Add tomato paste, (mix well).

Deglaze with white wine and reduce au sec, (almost dry)

Place the chicken pieces, skin-side up, on top of the rice.

Pour the stock over the rice and chicken.

Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to low, and cover.

Let cook for 20-25 minutes, until the rice and chicken are done.

Fluff the rice with a fork, adding peas if so desired.

Season the rice with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve & enjoy!