Mexican Pork and Rice

October 6, 2010 By Julie 20 Comments

What’s your favorite part about the autumn season? Is it the cooler weather? The beautiful leaves? Maybe it’s Halloween or Thanksgiving that tickles your fancy. I know for my husband it’s the return of his beloved college football team, the VT Hokies. For me it’s all of the above (except swap out bucky badger for the maroon and orange turkey).

I didn’t always love the fall. Growing up in Wisconsin, summer took the cake. I had off from school, I could go to bed late, and I spent my days playing with friends from dawn till dusk. Autumn on the other hand, meant summer was over, school was back in, and winter was on the the way. And if you’ve ever spent a winter in Wisconsin then you’ll know what I mean. By god I love the place but dang if the winters aren’t really, really cold. And grey. And long. Really long. By the time you hit March, you’re were ready to pull your hair out only you don’t actually do it because you need every strand you have just to keep yourself from freezing into a block of ice right there in the parking lot between your car and the grocery store.

Fast forward 20 years and I’m now living in the South where fall signifies a break from the intense southern summer heat, school starting back up (funny how you learn to love school being in as an adult almost as much as you loved it being out as a child), beautiful foliage, football, and of course the imminent approach of the “great crazy triad” as my mother-in-law calls it; Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Above all things, though, I’ve learned to adore the flavors of fall. I love the warm, hearty spices and the ability to cook really tasty “stick to your ribs” dishes that wouldn’t be featured as highly when the weather’s warmer. I suppose this love of winter dishes has followed me from my childhood to now. Maybe winter in Wisconsin wasn’t that bad after all.

One final word before we get to the recipe. I want to thank Dawn of Dawn’s Goodies for bestowing the Versatile Bloggers Award on me and Julie over at the Reason for My Insanity for presenting me with the One Lovely Blog Award. Thank you guys! I’m so touched that you would think of me!

Ingredients Needed:

1 Pd of Pork Chops
Cumin for Sprinkling
Chile Powder for Sprinkling
1 Green Pepper, Chopped
1/2 Onion, Chopped
2 Cloves of Garlic
1 Can of Diced Tomatoes
1/4 Cup of Salsa or Picante
1/2 Lime, Juiced
1 Can of Green Chiles
1 Can of Black Beans
1/2 tsp of Cumin
1/2 tsp of Chile Powder
1 Cup of Chicken Stock
1 Small Bunch of Cilantro, Chopped
1 Cup of Rice, Uncooked
Salt to Taste

Start it off by sprinkling your pork chops on both side with a bit of cumin and chile powder. Throw the chops into a large pan heated on medium high heat and let them sear about for about 2 minutes on each side.

Remove the chops from the pan and add in a swirl of oil, letting it heat up for a minute. Then throw in your chopped pepper, onion, and garlic. Let it cook up for a 3-4 minutes.

(note: if you’re using frozen pepper like I did, you can add it in the next step instead of sauteing it here)

Put the seared chops back in the pan. Now add in your tomatoes, picante, lime juice, green chiles, black beans, spices, and stock.

Mix it up good and then add in your chopped cilantro.

Last but not least, add in the rice and mix it in good.

Bring the dish to boiling and then cover it and drop it down to low. Let it cool for 10-15 minutes to allow the rice to absorb the liquid and the pork to finish cooking through. And here’s what you should have when all’s said and done.

Ole, I say! Where’s my fork and knife, this gringa’s hungry!