Arroz Con Pollo

I was skimming through The Joy of Cooking searching for something to prepare for dinner when I came upon this recipe. It looked simple enough and I had most of the ingredients, so it became the winner. Once it was done, I was a little disappointed in the recipe. The flavor was okay and the aroma was wonderful, but the rice was a little on the gummy side for me. I will look for another version and try it at a later date. The only thing I did differently was I added 3 cloves of garlic as opposed to 1 tablespoon and I omitted the green olives.

Arroz Con Pollo

3 1/2 to 4 1/2 lbs. chicken parts
Salt and Pepper
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
4 oz. ham, finely diced
2 cups medium or long grain white rice
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
3 cups chicken stock
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1/4 tsp. loosely packed saffron threads
1 cup unthawed frozen peas
1/3 cup drained roasted red peppers cut into 1-inch thin strips

Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a Dutch oven heat oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken in batches, and brown on both sides. Remove chicken to platter. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of fat from pan. Reduce heat to medium-low and add onion, peppers and ham. Cook , stirring occasionally, until onions are tender but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add rice, cook, stirring, until all grains are coated with fat. Add garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Cook , stirring for 1 minute. Add stock, oregano and saffron. Bring to a boil over high heat, scraping the bottom to loosen brown bits. Place the chicken in the rice and pour in any accumulated juices. Cover pan and simmer over medium low heat for 20 minutes. Stir in peas and red peppers. Cover and cook until rice is tender, about 10 minutes.