Black Beans & Rice

As much as I enjoy rice and beans, sometimes I'm too lazy to drag out two pots and make two separate components. Lately, I've been dumping the can of beans right into the rice and have been loving the end product. So, I thought I'd share this super easy dish that serves as a delicious accompaniment to almost anything that comes off the grill.

Ingredients [serves 4 to 6]:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 oz. salt pork, diced
½ onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup medium grain rice
15.5 oz. can beans (drained, not rinsed) - black beans or red beans; both are great
1½ cups chicken stock

*If you wanted to make this vegetarian, you could omit the salt pork and use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.

Start by dicing the onion, mincing the garlic, and dicing the salt pork.

To a shallow and wide skillet over medium heat, add in a drizzle of oil and then toss in the onions, garlic, and salt pork. Toss around until the onions are translucent and the salt pork has rendered off some fat. Then, add in the rice and stir to coat in the fat and let the grains toast slightly. Stir in a can of drained (but not rinsed) beans. I like leaving the beans unrinsed because they impart a little more color to the rice and makes it look prettier. Plus, it adds a little salt.

Pour in the stock and reduce the heat to low. Pop on a lid and let the rice cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the stock has completely absorbed and the rice is cooked through.

Once the rice is done, remove from the heat and fluff it up with a fork.

Serve while it's nice and hot. We decided to have soft tacos on this particular occasion. I used my chipotle nacho beef recipe and made some pico de gallo and cilantro chimichurri. Plus, we had some grated cheese, diced red onion, and lime wedges.

This rice is super hardy and I love that it's made with pantry ingredients. It's seriously the easiest carb to whip up on a weeknight when you're feeling a bit too bleh to brainstorm meal ideas.

Here's the recipe page: