Pico De Gallo Rice

As I was thinking about making the chicken taco salad super flavorful, I was also wondering what to serve with it…

As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I was disappointed with my lunch at Restaurant Serenade and was in the process of replicating it. The original entree was served with a mixed salad. I wanted to serve rice with it as well as a tomato salad. To save time, I thought of combining the two and came up with this rice dish- it is yummy.

I started with cooking rice in chicken broth with salt and smoked paprika. I wanted to infuse tons of flavor into the rice even before it finished cooking. As the rice cooked, I prepared the rest. I chopped the tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, etc and mixed them with some lime juice. I also had queso fresco in the fridge which as a great salty flavor and is used in many Mexican and Latin dishes. I decided to slice some and add it to the mix.

Once the rice was cooled off- I added all the veggies and the cheese and I had a delicious, flavorful side dish to serve with the taco salad.

Definitely try this one- it is great to make with any entree!

• 1 cup basmati rice
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

Bring the chicken broth, oil, salt and paprika to a boil in a medium bowl. Add the rice and return to a boil. Turn the heat down to medium and cover half way. Cover all the way once bubbles appear on the surface and turn the heat down all the way. Cook for twenty minutes. Take the rice out onto a plate and let cool.

• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 3 green onions, chopped
• ½ cup cilantro, chopped
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Juice of 2 limes
• ½ cup queso fresco, grated or cut into small pieces

Place the cooled rice into a large bowl. Add the tomatoes, green onions, cilantro, salt, lime juice and cheese. Mix well and serve with the taco chicken salad.