Chicken & Rice

So today my son decided to go camping with some friends and asked to borrow a couple of my Dutch Ovens- of course I said sure - then he asks for some ideas what to cook for his friends. Being 21, and having a limited income, of course this had to come from my pantry..... So I went in search of recipes - one I already have here it is the Blackberry Apple Cobbler - I had some home canned pie filling so it was just sending up the rest. The other is Cavatini - and until I prepare it and taste it I won't post it - it is a sort of pizza casserole, so..... that's another post.

So on to my topic - as I was looking for recipes that I had the ingredients for that he could take, I found an old book of mine that has a bunch of Dutch Oven recipes so I thought I'd share with you one of the 1st dishes I learned to cook in a Dutch Oven.

Sorry I don't have a picture of this - so here is my generic photo.  :o)

Chicken & Rice

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (chopped into bite sized pieces)
1 lb baby carrots
8 oz fresh chopped mushrooms
1 lb frozen peas (optional)
chicken bouillon
4 C long grain rice
8 C water
1 Green pepper (chopped)(optional)

Preheat a 12" Dutch Oven with a small amount of oil and brown the chicken pieces. Remove excess oil and spread chicken evenly over the bottom of the oven. Pour dry rice evenly over the chicken followed by the remaining vegetables. Mix water with about twice the chicken bouillon used for 8 cups, so the bouillon is strong. Carefully pour this mixture over the vegetables. Bake for 1 hour with 10 briquettes on the bottom and 16 briquettes on the top.

Some variations:
add 2 tablespoon of Curry powder, or
add 1/2 medium onion chopped and sauteed with the chicken till soft, or
instead of the peas toss in a bag of mixed frozen veggies

Pretty basic and feeds a lot of people.

Give this basic recipe a try and get those Ovens outta the basement or the garage.
A little plug here - if you are in the area I will be teaching a Dutch Oven 101 Class at For Your Kitchen on 6/30/2012. Check out the link for more information.

Have Fun Cookin'
Cyndi