Spanish Chicken and Rice is gluten-free and dairy free, and gives traditional chicken and rice a little zing with fresh oregano and bright paprika. Savory flavors abound and whole food ingredients make this healthful take on a classic dish almost guilt free.

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I am pleased to inform you all that the Personal Chef leg of The Cheerful Kitchen is starting to rock and roll! For the months of August and September I offered a Back to School Special, and the response was a little overwhelming to me. I cooked for so many new people, and I even ended up with some repeats, which is what I’m looking for.

So, thank you for booking if you were one of them! And if you live in the LA area and would like some info on my Personal Chef services, please message me HERE.

You can also come follow along at my Facebook Page to make sure you don’t miss notifications about future in-home cooking specials I will be offering. I’m working up a fall soup and stew package and some fun seasonal meals for the holidays coming up.

On another note – I am an avid reader and consumer of books, both hard copy and e-book, so I thought I’d start linking to some of my favorites. Read along with me and then let me know what you thought! I might start a book club off shoot of The Cheerful Kitchen…. there’s not enough time in the day to do everything I want to do haha

Now, about this delightful recipe I have for you today.

This Spanish Chicken and Rice is another dish that I love to make ahead for my husband to take to work with him. It’s wonderful either hot or cold, and the flavors are so bold and bright so they hold up really well in the fridge for a few days.

I use chicken thighs because of the extra flavor and because that’s what my husband prefers, but you could easily sub in white meat breasts if that’s your thing.

Honestly, I use to be scared to cook with bone out skinless chicken thighs. They have a lot of extra fat and look scary, so I use to trim the hell out of them! They were a mess by the time I was ready to cook, and really I was just butchering those little chicken thighs, so I stopped using them for a long time.

But then one day I felt bold, and I decided to trim off the obvious excess of fat and the little skin left on, and just cook them how they were, without being afraid of the result. And you know what? They were delicious! The fat renders off, the thighs plump up, and what you get is juicy, flavorful chicken that you just will never ever get with a boneless skinless chicken breast. That’s a fact.

So, give thighs a shot! I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Chicken and Rice can be pretty boring, but this Spanish Chicken and Rice has so much flavor from the onions, oregano and paprika.

You get the crispy bits from letting the chicken and rice brown on the bottom of your dutch oven, you get a little soft sweetness from the caramelized onion and red pepper, and you get a savory warmth from all of the spices, textures and flavors melding together.

It’s a homestyle comfort food that will surprise you with its depth of flavor and sophistication.

Serve it with an herbaceous salad and a bold red wine, and you have a dinner worthy of guests or perfect for a calm, quiet night in.

What’s your favorite homestyle comfort food? Let me know in the comments, and I’ll put my own flavorful, whole food twist on it!

Recipes like this really NEED a heavy bottomed dutch oven pot if you want to develop that deep flavor in the bits on the bottom, because they hold heat so much better than a normal soup or pasta pot. If you don’t already have one, here are some dutch ovens that I think are really great. I personally use a La Creuset dutch oven that my mom gave me for my wedding, but if that’s not in your budget, I provided some more affordable options here, too.

Vanessa at The Cheerful Kitchen

Yields Serves 4 as an entree

Spanish Chicken and Rice

Spanish Chicken and Rice is gluten-free and dairy free, and gives traditional chicken and rice a little zing with fresh oregano and bright paprika.

30 minCook Time

30 minTotal Time

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Ingredients

For Chicken
• 1 1/2 lb organic boneless skinless chicken thighs cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp salt
• Olive oil for cooking
The Rest
• Four cups cooked brown rice
• Two red peppers, diced
• One large onion, diced
• 3-4 carrots, peeled and small diced
• 1/2 cup sliced green olives
• 1 Tablespoon fresh oregano leaves, or 2 tsp dried
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp Pepper
• 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons organic grass fed butter (optional)

Instructions

• Heat a large heavy bottom pot over medium/high heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
• Cook chicken pieces until they are browned and cooked through, about 6 minutes, then remove to a plate. Set aside.
• In the same pot, add 1 more tablespoon of oil and saute peppers, onions and carrots for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add back the chicken.
• Stir around and then add in the cooked rice, green olives, oregano, paprika, salt, pepper and butter.
• Stir to distribute everything evenly, and cook for another 10 minutes to crisp up the rice a bit, scraping the bottom and stirring around every couple of minutes.
• Serve hot.

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