Native Southwest: authentic pueblo flavors on the Santa Fe trail - Food Adventures in Cooking

Sunset, Oct, 2002 by Jerry Anne Di Vecchio

* When the Spanish marched into the Southwest more than four centuries ago, pueblo dwellers expanded their culinary repertoire to include ingredients that many of us assume are indigenous. Chilies, for example-the Spanish brought them up from Mexico along with Old World foods such as wheat, rice, lamb, and chicken. The tale of these foods' integration into pueblo culture was shared with me long ago by Helen Cordero and was later confirmed by Juanita Tiger Kavena, two fine Native American cooks.

In the Cochiti Pueblo of New Mexico, I lent a hand as the now-late Cordero, fabled potter, cooked for a feast day Among the dishes was chicken and rice (arroz con pollo), which had a pleasant, subtle flavor that puzzled me. The chicken was seasoned with onions, mild chilies (fresh green and powdered red), and a wild herb (the mystery taste).

From Kavena, who married into the Hopi Pueblo and has studied and written about native and cultivated plants, I learned that the mysterious nuance was likely from a wild mint (Mentha arvensis). She also taught me that wild onions (Allium cernuum) abound in the region and that wild greens are often added to chicken and rice for a one-pan meal. Lamb's quarter (Cbenopodium album, also called wild spinach) is the probable choice-I've seen it at the farmers' market in Santa Fe--but regular spinach substitutes nicely Native pinones (Pinus edulis), or any market variety of pine nuts, make a dressy finish.

Cordero used a whole chicken that had scratched in the earth for its living and required a fair amount of cooking. I've adapted the recipe to modern time constraints by using just thighs or breasts-a reasonable compromise in the interest of getting a traditional dish on the table quickly.

RELATED ARTICLE: Cochiti arroz con polio

PREP AND COOK TIME: About 1 hour

NOTES: Instead of bone-in chicken thighs, you can use 6 boned, skinned chicken breast halves (about 21/4 lb. total): Lightly brown them in oil as directed for skinned thighs in step 2, for 5 to 8 minutes. But instead of adding chicken in step 4, add breasts after rice has simmered for 10 minutes in step 5, pushing then down into liquid; turn over after 5 minutes and continue to cook, stirring occasionally until rice is tender to bite and breasts are no longer pink in center of thickest part (cut to test), 5 to 8 minutes longer. Then complete step 6.

Instead of the canned green chilies, you can use fresh: Rinse and dry 6 green Anaheim chilies (about 1 lb. total); lay slightly apart on a baking sheet and broil about 3 inches from heat, turning as necessary, until charred on all sides, 10 to 15 minutes total. Let stand until cool enough to touch, then pull off and discard tough skin, discard seeds, and trim and discard stem ends. Cut chilies in half lengthwise.

       MAKES: 6 servings

  1/4  cup pine nuts
    2  tablespoons salad oil (if using
       skinned chicken; otherwise omit)
    6  chicken thighs, with or without
       skin (about 2 lb. total), rinsed
       and patted dry (see notes)
    1  onion (about 8 oz.), peeled and
       chopped
    2  tablespoons chili powder
    7  cups fat-skimmed chicken broth
    2  can (7 oz. each) whole green
       chilies (see notes)
1 1/4  cups long-grain white rice
    8  cups lightly packed rinsed
       spinach leaves (about 8 oz.)
    5  tablespoons chopped fresh
       mint leaves
       Salt and pepper

1. In a 6- to 8-quart pan over medium heat, stir pine nuts until lightly toasted, 2 to 3 minutes; pour from pan.

2. If using skinned chicken, pour oil into pan and turn heat to medium- high. When pan is hot, add thighs, skin side down, in a single layer (brown in batches if they don't all fit); turn occasionally until lightly browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

3. Add onion to pan and stir often until limp, about 5 minutes; add chili powder and stir for about 10 seconds.

4. Add broth to pan and increase heat to high. Cut green chilies in half lengthwise. When broth is boiling, return chicken and any drippings to pan; add green chilies. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes.

5. Stir rice into pan, making sure all grains are submerged. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until rice is tender to bite, 20 to 25 minutes.

6. Uncover pan and turn heat to high; add spinach and 1/4 cup mint, pushing down into liquid, and stir gently until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle mixture into wide bowls, then sprinkle with remaining tablespoon mint and the toasted pine nuts.

Per serving: 511 cal., 39% (198 cal.) from fat; 36 g protein; 22 g fat (5.7 g sat.); 41 g carbo (4.4 g fiber); 501 mg sodium; 100 mg chol.