Recipe: Semi-Homemade Spanish Rice

Yellow rice packed with flavor from briney green olives, caramelized onions, garlic, and chorizo. Let’s dig in.

There are a couple of things I took away from the thirteen give or take years that The Ex and I were together.

Adding green olives to yellow rice.

And an introduction to chorizo (a spicy, cooked Spanish sausage).

Of course, there are likely a few more things, but today, we’re talking about take-aways in terms of the kitchen and rice. Focus.

The Ex used to take forever to make rice. He used a rice cooker and made a mess in the kitchen that he didn’t clean up, but rice was unequivocally his domain and I was a-ok with that.

Since the first time he made it, adding green olives to yellow rice was forever a thing. I can’t think of not doing it, and the kids are just as much a fan of it as I am.

Ok, well, it turns out just one kid. Because as Madeline informed me last night, “Mom, you know I don’t like green olives,” and she carefully picked them all out.

That’s ok, Nick and I covered for her.

I don’t own a rice cooker (gave it to The Ex when he moved out), and I don’t have the patience to make rice on the stove. Mostly because I usually have two other things on the stove at the same time, and burned rice at the bottom of a pot is no joke.

So instead, rice is one of those short cuts I am happy to take, via Old El Paso and Goya packages.

But, of course, I can’t leave well enough alone, and that’s where this Semi-Homemade Spanish Rice dish came about.

Adding the green olives, natch, and chorizo, along with a bit of garlic, and a caramelized onion.

All combined, it makes for a flavorful rice dish that leaves you feeling reasonably accomplished. You might have started with a box, but you made it your own with other homemade mix-ins.

And as the kids know, taking a shortcut here and there in the kitchen, means more time for baking, and I promised Nick another batch of the Cinnamon Crescent Rolls.

So everyone is happy.

But man cannot live by Semi-Homemade Spanish Rice and Cinnamon Crescent Rolls alone.

Which is why I made these Steak Quesadillas as a main course. They’re part of a new line of frozen entrees released by the folks at Old El Paso. Although I do a lot of from-scratch cooking, I’d be lying if I said it was every.single.meal. With work, school, homework, scouts for both kids, and, you know, life, it’s just not realistic for three meals a day, seven days a week. I probably cook from scratch about eighty percent of the time. The other twenty percent sometimes relies on quick freezer-to-table meals like this one. Add the semi-homemade rice and a fresh, chopped vegetable salad, and I’ve got all my bases covered. It meant I didn’t spend a ton of time in the kitchen, but everyone was well fed and out the door in time for a play date pick-up and a Boy Scout meeting drop-off.

Tomorrow? September Instagram photos in review.

Semi-Homemade Spanish Rice
Recipe courtesy of Cate O’Malley

1 package of yellow rice, prepared following package instructions
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 3.5 oz package of chorizo, rough dice
1/4 cup green olives

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add one tablespoon olive oil and the diced onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is slightly golden. Add the diced chorizo, and cook for another 1-2 minutes, until warmed through. Remove pan from heat and add the onions, garlic, chorizo, and green olives to the cooked yellow rice. Stir to combine.