Arroz con Pollo a la Margarita

Happy Friday, everyone! Let me tell you something. I'm not sure who this Margarita is, or why she has a chicken dish named after her, but it definitely doesn't matter because she sure knew what she was doing when she came up with this chicken idea!

I snatched this recipe from this Kraft Comida y Familia magazine, I receive in the mail. I knew I wanted to try it right away, because it is a low-sodium recipe and as you know with my chronic kidney disease, I practically live to try these recipes out!

What is so lovely about this recipe is the color and the spices used instead of salt to make it super tasty and healthy. As the daughter of a very traditional Mexican mother, it was a little hard to have my mom completely agree with my new "cooking adventures," because she has a very specific way of making her rice and her chicken. (She's also great at working with the low-sodium thing, but I love to help)! And when I'm in the kitchen, I think she is still a little scared. Fortunately, my madre is the bomb-diggity, bomb-bomb, and allows me her kitchen space when I am experimenting. And, then my dad gets to try it out. It really works out for everybody.

So without further wait! Here's how you can get started on dinner! :)

Arroz con Pollo a la Margarita

Preparation: 20 minutes     Total: 50 minutes      Makes: 6 servings

Ingredients

1/2 cup of Kraft Zesty Lime Vinaigrette Dressing, quantity divided (I made my own)

1 chicken for baking or frying, cut into pieces (3 1/2 lbs.)

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 medium onion, diced

1 can (14.5 oz) reduced-sodium vegetable broth

1 1/2 cup of white long-grain rice, not cooked

1 tsp. cumin powder

2 tbsp. cilantro, diced

Instructions

1. Heat 2 tbsp. of the dressing in a big pan on medium-high heat. Add the chicken, cook 4 minutes on each side, or until each side is nice and golden. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside for now.

2. Add the red bell pepper and onion to the pan, and stir for 5 minutes, or until it's tender. Add the broth, rice, cumin, and the rest of the dressing; stir. Let it boil! Place the chicken on top and cover the pan.

3. Cook the dish on medium-low heat, maintaining a soft simmer for 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked and the rice is tender.

4. Remove from heat. Let the rice and chicken rest covered for 5 minutes. Sprinkle the dish with cilantro! And you are done! Enjoy and bon appétit!

I hope you guys enjoy this dish. My dad gave it a nod, and if you guys knew my dad that translates to "I did pretty awesome"! :)

Nutritional Information: Cal 470, Fat/sat 18/4.5, Sodium 390, Carb 42, Fiber 1, Protein 32 (I will try to include nutritional information from now on).

Peace out,

Maria :)