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Smoky Tomatillo Rice with Avocado and Mango Salad

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mexican-rice-with-turkey-and-tomatillosOnce in a while I come up with an absolutely genius one pot meal. Well, this is it- I even surprised myself when I tasted it. I wanted to make something with spanish and mexican flavors but didn’t want to make the normal quesadillas or fajitas or even burritos. I thought about it for almost the whole day and then finally came up with this fabulous dish. I had bought some ground turkey from Trader Joes the day before- I was actually planning to make meat balls with veggies but somehow didn’t feel like it. I have noticed that if I force myself to cook a dish, it doesn’t taste very good… I have to really want to make it – I usually visualize it in my head before I cook the dish- it sounds a little cooky but that is how my brain works. Anyway, I wanted to incorporate the ground turkey somehow in the dish, so I decided to pair it with rice and beans. When I think of Mexican food- tomatillos come to mind – I love using tomatillos– they have a very tart and creamy flavor.  I also wanted to create a smoky dish but didn’t want to add any heat since I wanted Sia to enjoy it- so I decided to use smoked paprika which has a little bit of heat but a lot of flavor. I also decided to use one of my favorite ingredients- roasted frozen corn.  It also has a nice roasted smoky flavor.  I blended the tomatillos, garlic, cilantro and vidalia spring onions and used that as the underlying flavor for the rice.  I don’t know if you all have noticed huge vidalia spring onions every where??  They are delicious- mild enough to use in salads but also have a lot of flavor for sauces, etc.  Once the rice was cooked with all the delicious ingredients, I decided to take it to the next level and add cheese. My first thought was to add queso blanco but then I remembered I had a blend of shredded mexican cheeses in my fridge.  It included monterey jack, queso blanco and a bunch of other cheeses- perfect!  I love sweet and savory flavors in my dishes and decided to add raisins- they are optional but I would highly recommend them.  The little burst of sweet juice midst the smoky rice was very pleasant.  Now as we all know my daughter is obsessed with mangoes- so we have plenty in the house at all times.  I wanted to make a cool salad to go with the rice and decided to combine avocados with mangoes.  I thought very hard about this since both the ingredients have similar textures- my initial idea was to add some crunch to it but at the end I decided to keep it simple- some salt, lime juice and cilantro.  I served the salad on top of the hot rice- it was out of this world!!!  If you cook just one dish from this blog I would recommend this one- it was truly delicious.  All the flavors went really well together- the hot smoky rice with the cool creamy salad- a match made in heaven!

  • 4 medium tomatillos, roughly chopped
  • 2 large Vidalia spring onions, roughly chopped including the green parts
  • ½ cup cilantro, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 2 serrano chilies, deseeded and chopped
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
  • 1 pound ground turkey (dark meat is ideal)
  • 1 15 ounces black bean can
  • 1 cup frozen roasted corn
  • 1½ cups basmati or jasmine rice
  • 3 cups chicken broth
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
  • ½ cup chopped golden raisins
  • 1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

Blend the tomatillos, onions, cilantro, garlic and chilies till smooth. In a wide frying pan, heat the olive oil and add the cumin seeds. Cook for a minute and add the turkey meat. Cook the meat while pushing it down with the spatula while stirring constantly. Cook on medium heat for 5 to 6 minutes or till the meat turns golden brown. Add the blended green sauce and cook with the meat for another 5-6 minutes. Add the black beans, corn, and raisins and mix well. Add the rice, sauté for a minute and add the broth. Add the salt and smoked paprika. Taste for seasonings. Bring the dish to a boil. Lower the heat once bubbles start to form on the surface. Cover the pan once the liquid has evaporated and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes. Once the rice is done, add the cheese and check for seasonings.
Avocado and Mango Salad
avocado-mango-salad

  • 1 large or 2 medium mangoes, chopped
  • 2 avocadoes, chopped
  • ½ cup cilantro, chopped
  • Juice of 2 limes
  • Salt to taste

Add the mangoes, avocadoes, cilantro, limes and salt to a medium bowl. Mix well and let stand for 30 minutes before serving.

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5 Comments
Shalini Yajnik
at

The tomatillo rice looks delicious. !!
Will definitely give it a try.
Can i use chicken instead of turkey for the dish??
– Shalu

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You can absolutely use chicken…

Geeta
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Mona

Anil is one lucky man…getting to eat all these amazing dishes….!!!

at

Yes, I should remind him again- soon!

at

Good to know. I have subscribed you…

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