For our Mexican feast this Saturday, I made some tasty and tangy green poblano rice, called arroz verde in Spanish, to accompany the pork chops. This is a simple dish that combines lots of fresh healthy veggies and herbs with spicy poblano pepper and rice. It makes a lovely accompaniment for grilled meats.
Poblanos are large, mild peppers, somewhere between a bell pepper and a jalepeno on the spicy scale. They add an intensity and heat to the dish without too much spice. Combined with cooling herbs, in this case cilantro and mint, it adds a lot of flavor to this simple dish.
There are many ways to make this dish, and you can use a number of different herbs, types of rice, or veggies to make it your own. I used the various things I had just grabbed at the farmers market: spinach, spring onions, baby leeks, cilantro and mint. But parsley and basil can also add some fabulous flavors. I made a big batch of this planning for some leftovers and I have not been disappointed. I brought some cold for lunch today and it was fantastic. I think next time I may add some nuts for crunch.
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Read more for the full recipe!
Note: The amount of liquid needed is wholly dependent on the type of rice you use. I use the slow cooking kind, so this amount of liquid is appropriate. If you’re going with different types of rice, add the veggie broth 1/2 cup at a time to make sure you don’t add too much liquid.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 leek, washed, greens removed and sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp fresh cilantro
1 tbsp fresh mint
1/2 cup water
1 cup of rice (I used 1/2 cup brown, and 1/4 cup each wild and basamati)
2 cups low sodium veggie broth
2 tbsp lime juice (approx 1/2 lime)
Step by Step Instructions:
1. In a large saucepan, saute onion, leek and garlic in olive oil 3-4 minutes, until softened
2. In a food processor, combine spinach, poblano, cilantro, mint and water, puree until smooth
3. Add rice to pot, add spinach puree, lime juice and veggie broth
4. Bring to a boil
5. Cover and reduce heat to med-low
6. Simmer until liquid is absorbed and rice is cooked 30-40 minutes, depending on the type of rice you use.
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A nice accompaniment to your pork chops. The simmering time seems a little long but I'm assuming it's with the other ingredients…Nice!
Yummy! Delicious
Maybe I'll try this one tomorrow 
This looks like a delicious side dish to your chops!
Looks pretty and delicious! What a great rice!
Please can I have some of this?? It sounds so good! I've never made anything like this but I want to.
this looks really good and healthy
This sounds so good! I never thought about adding spinach to green rice but it sure fits and adds extra nutrition!
I have never heard of green rice till now but boy do I regret it! This looks fabulous
Cheers
CCU
Oh rice…how I love thee in all your ways. Especially in this gorgeous arroz verde! Beautiful color.
What a great, versatile side! And I looove poblanos…
Wow! This must have made for quite the treat for your mexican night! Must try your recipe soon.
holy cow – that is some flavorful rice! sounds delicious!