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| Mexican Rice |
I hope you have enjoyed your
trip around the world with us! Wondering what I am talking about? Okay we at
blogging marathon are off” Around the World in 30 Days”! Foodies’ hai bhai kya?
Food par he bolenge!
So let’s stop today at M
Mexico! Why it’s like Indian food! My daughters refuse to believe that I have
cooked international food today! The younger one checked it out to see if there
is something called Mexican Rice!
Shhh!
I do not know what to say? Okay I do cook up
names, fancy names but them not believing me when I am so earnestly telling
them…! Pah! I do not know what these youngsters are these days... No respect
only!!! (Ha all that ranting feels good!)
Anyway please believe me when
I say that most Mexican food is like Indian food so that is the reason it’s
popular in India. I have a big list and recipes shared with me by my friend Vidya that
I want to try in near future… so look out for some more delicious food here.
Right now before you enjoy the Mexican rice I have
dished out here some cuisine history, sorry you can skip it if you want and go directly
to the recipe and I am quoting what I read in Wikipedia so,
“Mexican cuisine is primarily a fusion of indigenous Mesoamerican cooking
with European, especially Spanish, elements added after the Spanish
conquest of the Aztec Empire in the 16th century. The basic staples remain
native foods such as corn, beans and chili peppers, but the
Europeans introduced a large number of other foods, the most important of which
were meat from domesticated animals (beef, pork, chicken, goat and sheep),
dairy products (especially cheese) and various herbs and lots of spices.
While, the Spanish initially tried to impose their
own diet on the country, this was not possible and eventually the foods and cooking
techniques began to be mixed, especially in colonial era convents.
Over the centuries, this resulted in various regional cuisines, based on local
conditions such as those in Oaxaca, Veracruz and the Yucatán
Peninsula. Mexican cuisine is closely tied to the culture, social structure and
popular traditions of the country. The most important example of this
connection is the use of mole for
special occasions and holidays, particularly in the South and Center regions of
the country.”
” Mexican
cuisine is as complex as any of the great cuisines in the world, such as those
of India, China, France, Italy and Turkey It is created mostly with
ingredients native to Mexico as well as
those brought over by the Spanish conquistadors, with
some new influences since then In
addition to staples such as corn and chilli peppers, native ingredients include tomatoes, squashes, avocados, cocoa and vanilla as well as
ingredients not generally used in other cuisines such as edible flowers,
vegetables such as huauzontle
and
papaloquelite or small criollo avocados, whose skin is edible. European contributions include pork,
chicken, beef, cheese, herbs and spices and some fruits. Tropical fruits such as
guava, prickly pear, sapote, mangoes, bananas, pineapple and cherimoya (custard
apple) are popular, especially in the centre and south of the country. It has been debated how much Mexican
food is still indigenous and how much is European. However, the basis of the diet is
still corn and beans with chilli pepper as a seasoning as they are
complementary foods.
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Mexican Rice
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Mexican Rice
Recipe Source: Vidya
Ingredients:
- 1 cup rice
- 3 cups water+8 cups
- 6 tblspn oil
- 1 tblspn red sauce( recipe coming soon)
- 2 tsp garlic paste
- ½ tsp ginger paste
- ¼ cup rajma, soaked and boiled
- 1/3 cup corn, boiled
- 2 tsp chopped green chillies
- ¼ tsp dhania/ coriander seed
powder
- ½ cup capsicum, sliced
- 1/3 cup onions sliced and
separated
- ½ cup cabbage, sliced fine
- ½ tsp oregano
- ¼ tsp pepper powder, freshly
ground
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 tsp jalapeño water (I
substituted with vinegar)
- 1 tsp dhania/ coriander
leaves
Mexican Rice
Method:
- Wash and soak the rice in 3
cups of water for 30 minutes.
- Strain and discard the water.
- Boil the 8 cups add 2 tblspn
oil add the rice. Cook uncovered till the rice is done.
- Once the rice is cooked
strain the rice in a colander.
- Cool the rice for 1 hour. Then
to cooked rice apply oil, salt and 1 tblspn red sauce.
- In a kadhai/wok heat 2 tblspn
oil add the garlic, ginger pastes. Stir.
- Add boiled rajma, boiled
corn, green chillies, and coriander seed powder. Stir fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the capsicum, onions,
cabbage and stir. The ingredients should
not cook fully.
- To this add the prepared rice,
oregano, pepper powder, butter. Stir fry for 4-5 minutes.
- Add the jalapeño water, if
using else add the vinegar and coriander.
- Serve hot.
