Many years ago I was introduced to Cuban style cooking. My first visit to a local Cuban restaurant was an introduction to fabulous flavors. I am sure I’m not alone when sitting at our table I expected chips and salsa to be served. Boy was I wrong!
The spices used in this style of cooking are warm and citrus flavors. Not spicy like you would think.
One favorite dish my husband and I always get is Tostones Con Pollo. I am still trying to replicate this dish, almost there but not quite exact.
Last night I made a Chicken bowl with Cuban flavors. My husband said I needed to make this dish weekly. It was so good.
There’s 3 stages of making this dish. One is the chicken, it needs to be marinated about an hour before cooking but preferably overnight. The second stage is the black beans, I like to cook a big pot of black beans in the Ninja, but you can use canned if you prefer. The third stage is the rice. Most Cuban dishes are made using a white rice, like Jasmine rice. I prefer brown rice and thankfully last night I had some leftover rice from a previous meal and used it last night. The rice needed more cooking time so this worked perfectly for me. In this picture the rice is yellow because the leftover rice had tumeric.
I love plantains fried and felt this dish needed some brightness. I made a mango salsa, easy peasy. Dice a ripe mango, half a small red pepper diced, jalapeno diced, as much as you like, I used less than half good size one, seeded and ribs removed, about a teaspoon lime juice and handful of chopped cilantro. If your mango isn’t sweet add a little sugar.
Ingredients for chicken
2 large skinless boneless chicken breast
2 – 3 Tablespoons oil, canola works for this
2 Tablespoons ground cumin
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon Mexican oregano – crushed
salt and pepper to taste
4 garlic cloves minced
1 orange (use the zest and juice)
1 lime (use the zest and juice)
Instructions:
Dice chicken and place in a ziploc bag.
Add remaining ingredients in a blender and blend till smooth.
Pour half the marinade in the bag of chicken and reserve the remainder for later use.
Marinate at least an hour, overnight is best.
After chicken has marinated, medium high, add oil to pan and cook chicken for about 10 minutes, until browned and cooked through. Add the remaining marinade and cook till it reduces a little, 3 or 4 minutes.
Ingredients for Black beans
2 Tablespoons oil
1/2 onion diced
3 garlic cloves minced
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
salt and pepper
Instructions
Add oil to skillet and sauté onion for about 4 minutes, add garlic and sauté for another minute. Add the drained beans and spices. Stir to combine and cook over medium heat for 5 – 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and mash half the beans and then combine.
Ingredients for the Cilantro Rice
1 and 1/2 cups Rice of your choice, brown or Jasmine or white
3 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon of oil
1/2 onion diced
2 tablespoons lime juice, I used the bottle kind, you can use the zest and juice of 2 limes
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
salt and pepper
Sauté the onion until soft, add the rice and toast for about a minute or so. Add the chicken broth, increase your heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce to low or simmer, cover and cook for about 15 minutes or till rice is cooked. Brown rice seems to take longer so you may need to cook more if using. Cook till most of the liquid is absorbed and remove from heat. Leave it covered for about 5 minutes, add the lime juice and zest if using, cilantro and salt and pepper.
To assemble your bowls:
Add the rice first, cover with the chicken and add black beans. Top with the mango salsa and add some fried plantains.
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