Red Rice

This is one of my favorite meals because it's quick, cheap, and easy, and it's a one-pot dinner that usually leaves us with leftovers for a day or two. It's also incredibly versatile, you can use almost any vegetables or meats with it. It's great for finishing off those last little awkwardly sized amounts of frozen or leftover veggies or meat. If you want to serve it as a side dish, simply omit the meat and/or veggies!

Ingredients:

2 c. chicken broth or beef broth (I prefer chicken broth if I'm serving it as a side dish)

1 c. uncooked long grain rice

2 tblsp. tomato sauce, your choice. I really like Classico Tomato and Basil.

1 tblsp. olive oil

salt & pepper

For meal: 2 veggies of your choice, frozen, fresh, or canned. I really like potatoes (I know that makes for a lot of starch but they really absorb the tomato sauce nicely) with broccoli. Peas and carrots are great too.

1 pound of ground beef OR 1 large boneless skinless half chicken breast, chopped. I like to use beef if I used chicken broth or chicken if I used beef broth, it just makes the flavor richer! Sausage is also really really good, and I like it with either kind of broth.

Optional for meal or side: 1 egg for protein and texture, 1 tsp. soy sauce or worcestershire sauce, 4 shakes of any seasoning you like. I occasionally like to use garlic salt, rotisserie chicken seasoning, chili powder, crushed basil, but not all together.

Equipment:

Dutch oven or large pot with lid

Serving spoon

In dutch oven, combine broth, rice, tomato sauce, & olive oil. Bring to a boil over med-high heat. Add all other ingredients except for salt and pepper, stir once. Cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer 15 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat; let stand, covered, 5-10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 4-6 for a meal, 8-10 as a side.

Edit added 11/17/07: Just tried this with baked beans, I wasn't sure if it would be any good but now I can say confidently that baked beans do not work well with this recipe.