"Target of Mine" - Chicken Escabeche over Mexican Red Rice

Recipe (printable PDF)

The Night Stalkers #10
EXCERPT:
Nikita slowed her stride. Finally grinding to a halt in a part of Belize City a lot less nice than the Baymen. But the sign said Tavern, so she turned in.
It wasn’t like a ’Bama bar, all battered pickups and neon beer signs out front. Inside also wasn’t all battered tables and country boys nursing long-neck Budweisers.
The only thing lined up out front were poor people. The only thing inside were people with enough money to buy a beer and maybe a bowl of chicken escabeche soup. Shorts, short-sleeve shirts, and flip-flops were the dress code. She and Sugar must look like aliens from another planet.
The walls had once been white and the floor was still concrete. But the beer bottle handed across when she asked was as beaded with sweat as the one in the peeling poster of a bikini-clad babe holding it between her breasts.
She dropped into a wooden chair at a table that rocked a good ten degrees when she set her bottle on it.

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Note: I’ve never made this as the soup noted in the book, but we DO enjoy this meal.
Active time: 45 minutes / Cook time: 45 minutes / Total time: 1 hour / Serves: 4-6
MEXICAN RED RICE
Ingredients

• 1-1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1/2 white onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1 cup long-grain white (or we use a wild rice blend), uncooked
• 1-3/4 c. chicken or vegetable broth (2 c. for wild rice)
• 2-1/2 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 jalapeno pepper
• 1 lg. sprig Cilantro (optional)

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat.
2. Sauté onion until translucent but not golden (4-5 minutes).
3. Clear a space and add garlic, sauté until aromatic (10-15 seconds).
4. Add all other ingredients.
5. Simmer covered until all water absorbed (20-30 minutes depending on the rice).
6. Off heat, let rest 10 minutes, covered. (This makes it into a nice, sticky rice.)

QUICK-PICKLED JALAPENOS (purchase or make for recipe below)
Ingredients

• 1/2 c. vinegar (white or cider)
• 1/2 c. water
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1-1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 clove garlic, coarse chopped
• 2 lg. or 3-4 sm. jalapeno peppers

Instructions

1. Bring all except garlic and jalapenos to a boil.
2. Add the garlic and peppers, stir, and remove from the heat.
3. Let sit at least 10 minutes. Use right away or store in the fridge up to 2 months.

CHICKEN ESCABECHE
Ingredients, Spice Rub and Chicken

• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp. dried marjoram
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 3 skinless boneless chicken breasts
• 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Ingredients, Vegetable Sauté

• 1 lg. white onion, sliced 1/8” thick across the grain
• 2 lg. carrots, peeled and sliced thin on the diagonal
• 3 lg. garlic cloves, minced

Ingredients, The Finish

• 1 cup shitake or cremini mushrooms, stemmed, caps sliced 1/8” thick (optional)
• 1/4 c. cider vinegar
• 1 c. chicken broth
• 2 pickled jalapeno peppers
• 1/2 cup green beans, fresh or frozen (optional)

The Spice Rub and Chicken

1. Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel.
2. Combine the spices. Sprinkle 1/2 of mix over the chicken breasts. Pat in.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Cook the chicken 3-4 minutes per side until well browned. (This is a good time to start the rice if you haven’t already.)
5. Set aside on a plate, leaving the oil behind (replenish a little if necessary).

The Vegetables

6. Sauté the onion and carrots until the onion is browned (7-8 minutes or longer depending on pan size).
7. Clear a space and sauté the garlic until strongly aromatic (20-30 seconds).

The Finish

8. Add the remaining ingredients and the rest of the spice rub mix.
9. Nestle the chicken in so that it is mostly covered.
10. Cover and simmer on medium-low for 15 minutes and until chicken tests at 165°F.
11. Salt to taste. Serve over rice.

A lovely feast.	The sharp spice and the lovely tomato rice were meant for each other.
	Recipe (printable PDF)