rice and beans

i’ve yet to master traditional mexican rice and beans (why, when my husband’s aunts and mom do it so very well?) but i’ve fashioned my own version of rice and beans that is tasty, cheap and easy. and did i mention tasty?

put rice in pot. i make rice in a haphazard fashion that involves eye-balling and sticking my finger in it. any true azn knows, the way to measure how much water to put into rice is: put rice in pot. pour water in pot. put finger in pot. when water comes to the first line of the index finger, you have the right amount of water. now boil!

of course, the alternative is to use a rice cooker. i have two. this food works in that contraption as well.

anyway, so you have your rice (i like to use brown but white would work too) and you have your water, and now you have your heat on. start chopping an onion. chop up the whole thing! (if you like onions. if you don’t, you could use less onion – or no onion!) today i experimented and used a small white onion (had to fight through the tears…mind over tears…) and most of a medium-ish red onion. pretty colors = yay. the white onion went in first. then i chopped up some jalapeno peppers (i went with about five – take out the seeds first, obvi). added peppers to the mix. then the red onion. stir. throw in some adobo seasoning (which has salt, so no need to salt separately) and chili powder. stir. watch it bubble. decide to be productive – so go on to the next step.

open can of black beans. open can of corn. look in pot. poke with spoon/stirring implement. hum. (humming optional)

chop up a tomato. when the rice looks close to being done (and the onions and peppers are soft and edible), add the black beans and corn and tomato. stir. add more seasoning if you didn’t put in enough the first time. let it finish cooking – when the rice is done, it’s all done. yay!

top with lots of cheese and let it melt. can also top with cilantro – cilantro is yummy. spoon into a warm tortilla if desired. eat lots. be happy.

but be warned, jalapeno peppers will burn your skin! no matter how many times i wash my hands after chopping them, it takes a few days before i can touch my eyes safely.

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