Chicken n Rice

I cannot believe that I only have 2 chicken recipes on my blog to date! Once a meat eater, I am turning vegetarian!!! I had to cook something meaty today so I went with the basic chicken and rice.  I have come to terms that a) I do not like chicken that much and b) I need massive Indian spices to mask the chicken taste. So, I was not a big big fan of this dish. But,  hey it was worth a mention.

Ingredients:
4 chicken thighs
1 cup each chopped carrots, onions, celery
2 tsp garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
4 tbsp crushed tomatoes (I used the canned kind)
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
Dash of sazon goya seasoning
White cooking wine for deglazing
1/2 cup green peas
1 cup rice, precooked
Olive oil, salt, black pepper
Italian seasoning
Lime juice

Wash and pat dry the chicken thighs.  Rub some olive oil on the chicken and season with salt, black pepper, 1 tsp garlic paste, and ginger.  Refridgerate for minimum of 30 minutes and maximum of 2 hrs.  (The reason I do this is because the garlic/ginger paste takes away the chicken's raw smell)

Heat oil in a pan.  Add the onions. When translucent, add carrots and celery.  Add 1 tsp garlic paste and mix well.  Sautee for 3 minutes or so.  Add the tomato paste and mix well.  Add the parsely, some salt, black pepper, and goya seasoning.  Add the green peas, cover, and let cook for 3 to 5 minutes.  Set the sauce aside. 

Heat oil in a stainless steel flat pan.  Place the chicken pieces and cook for about 3 to 5 minutes.  Flip the chicken and cook for another 5 minutes.  Keep the flame on medium high.  The chicken will stick to the pan so keeping the flame on high will burn the chicken.   Add some Italian seasoning onto the chicken and cook for another minute.  Pour some cooking wine onto the pan and using a steel spatula loosen up the brown bits.  Cover and cook for  to 10 minutes.  Now add the sauce to this pan.  Coat the chicken with the sauce. Cover and cook until the chicken is cooked.  Chicken is cooked when it is white on the inside.  Thighs take a long to cook so be patient. 

In a bowl add the cooked rice, drizzle some olive oil, salt, and black pepper.  Move the sauce and chicken to one side of the pan. Add the rice to the other side. Mix some of the sauce with the rice. 

Note:  Alternatively, you can cook the chicken in an oven for 15 to 20 minutes after it has been browned on the pan.  And then return the chicken to the pan with the sauce.

Note: I also added 1/4 tsp of cumin and coriander powder to the sauce.