Vegan Arroz con Pollo
A classic Dominican recipe, arroz con pollo, now veganized! Both Ivannoe and I grew up eating this dish and have been thinking about how we might be able to make a plant based, vegan version. We figured it out! Very excited to share this recipe, using mushrooms to imitate chicken and a classic seasoned rice.
Take a look!
The Details
Usually, the rice and the chicken are cooked together in one pot, but, since we were using mushrooms to imitate the chicken, we didn’t want to risk over cooking. Instead, we cooked the mushrooms separately and added them in afterwards.
For the Rice
The rice is pretty much the same. We used vegetable stock instead of water since many people use bouillon cubes or seasoning packets. The goal was for the rice to be flavorful but skip some of the more processed ingredients. First, we sauteed the seasonings we used for the rice. Then, we added the rice and sauteed for another minute. Next, we added the veggie stock and let it cook down a little bit. People make rice differently, but my mom likes to let it boil down until the liquid is just above the rice. Once it gets there, we lower the heat and cover until the rice is nice and soft. Dominicans oftentimes like their rice graniao or more granulated. We find this technique gets you there!
For the Mushrooms
To substitute the chicken, we shredded two drum mushrooms. We coated them in oil in a glass pan with a teaspoon of adobo and stuck them in the oven for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
Here’s a picture of the mushrooms we used from our instagram story:
When everything was done we combined them and that’s it! Usually, as the chicken is cooked with the rice, it has more color. We decided we wanted the mushrooms to stand out a bit and not give them color. If you want more flavor or color, feel free to sautee the mushrooms with a little sauce. About 1 teaspoon of tomato paste, 3 tablespoons of water, and a dash of garlic, onion, and cumin will to the trick. The mushrooms will blend even more!
We made this recipe two days in a row to get it just right. Each time, we ate the whole thing! Hope you like it just as much, let us know what you think!
If you recreate this recipe, tag us or use the hashtag #cocoverdevegan so we can see it!
Vegan Arroz Con Pollo
Course Main Course
Cuisine Latino Vegan
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 4 people
Ingredients
Rice
1/2 Yellow Onion (diced)
1/2 Red Pepper (diced)
1/2 Green Pepper (diced)
5 cloves Garlic (diced)
2 tbsp Tomato Paste
1/2 cup Pitted Green Olives
2 tbsp brine from the olive jar (can omit but I think it really adds to the flavor!)
1 tsp Each: black pepper, salt, adobo, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano
2 cups White Rice
4 cups Vegetable Stock
Pollo (Mushrooms)
2 Drum Mushrooms
1 tsp Adobo
3 tbsp Olive Oil
Instructions
For the Mushrooms
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Shred the mushrooms using a fork or your hands lengthwise, the result will look like shredded chicken. Using 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil, coat the mushrooms. Continue to toss with the adobo. Place in a glass or oven safe pan and bake for 30 minutes, mushrooms will be starting to crisp and turn brown. Take out of the oven and cool.
For the Rice
In a pan over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the diced onions and peppers and allow to soften for a few minutes. As the onions are starting to turn translucent, add the olives, all of the spices, and the tomato paste. Cook while strirring for 1 minute.
Add the rice and continue to cook and stir for another 2 minutes. Add all 4 cups of the vegetable stock. Stir once to let everything settle and come together.
Allow the rice to come to a boil and watch as the stock cooks down. You want to wait until it's come down and there is just a little bit of stock covering the top of the rice, about 10 minutes. Give the rice 1 stir (really just one, my mom always says you don't want to bother the rice). Cover the pot and bring down the heat to just below medium. Cook until all of the liquid has been absorbed by the rice, about 20 minutes.
We served ourselves bowls of rice, mixed in the mushrooms, and dug in! Up to you if you want to mix all of the mushrooms with the rice or serve in a dish with the mushrooms on top. Either way, serve and enjoy!
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