Mexican Rice- Arroz Mexicano and a Procook cast Iron pan review.

A delicious protein packed aromatic Mexican rice with fragrant cumin and coriander.

Ingredients:

250 g / 8 oz white basmati rice
500 ml boiling water
250 g /  8 oz precooked cannelloni beans
1 green capsicum  finely chopped
1 white onion finely chopped
1 large carrot peeled and grated
2 medium potatoes peeled and finely diced
125 g / 4 oz precooked sweetcorn kernels
60 g / 2 oz finely chopped fresh coriander
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground cumin powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander powder
1 teaspoon chilli powder

Method:

1. Wash the rice and soak it in cold water for 30 minutes.
2. In a large pan heat the oil when it is hot add the onions and sauté them on low heat until translucent.
3. Drain the rice and add it to the onions and sauté the rice until all the grains are coated in the oil.stir the rice gently so that the grains don't break.
4. Add the carrots, potatoes,cannelloni beans, pepper sand sweet corn. Mix the vegetables with the rice.
5. Add the salt, chilli powder,cumin powder and coriander powder and half the amount of fresh coriander.(reserve other half for garnish) Stir all the spices into the rice and vegetables.

6. Add 500 ml boiling water to the rice and bring the rice to a slow boil.
7. Once rice is boiling, reduce the heat to the lowest setting and cover the pan with the lid.
8.Cook the rice on lowest setting for 22 minutes.(During this time do not open the pan lid)
9.After 22 minutes open the lid, all the water will have been absorbed with the rice and grains should be soft and fluffy.
1. Garnish the rice with remaining fresh coriander.
Serve Hot.

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Singapore five spiced rice

The Aubergine shallow Cast Iron Casserole featured in this recipe was recently sent to me to review by ProCook Kitchenware. It it is hand cast from molten iron which makes it very strong and durable with an integral handle.It is topped with a smart, stainless steel handle and enamelled inside and out.The pan is 28 cm round with a capacity of 3.5l. The added feature is that it is suitable for all hobs and ovens including induction.The pan can be used for cooking and serving as it looks elegant even when taken straight from oven to table.The pans are available in cream, black red and aubergine in various sizes.
I used the pan for cooking on a gas stove and the oven, I found that it worked well on the stove and equally well in the oven.However I did find that cooking casseroles and rice worked best in this type of pan as trying to cook anything with less liquid in the pan caused the ingredients to stick to the bottom of the pan. The pan hand washed well although it is not suitable for dishwasher.I loved the look of my pan, the aubergine colour looked very elegant.Although it did not bother me for anyone who may be frail, be warned the pan is very heavy to lift and may prove difficulty in handling.I also found that the knob on the pan lid got very hot and required an oven glove to open the pan lid.The pan is available on the ProCook website for £ 42.00 almost half the price compared to high street shops.It is also guaranteed for 25 years.

Thankyou to ProCook for sending me the pan to review, all the views and opinions in this post are my own.

Submitting to:
Flavours of Mexico event by simply.food guest hosted by Jagruti of j cooking odyssey