Ode to Chicken and Rice

Cooking is therapeutic. Not only therapeutic, but creative and exciting. There is nothing more fun than to search through seemingly empty cabinets and bare, cold refrigerators and somehow, out of nowhere, magically concoct some delicious masterpiece of a meal. My go-to magical fare that seems to have come from nothing seems to almost always consist of what? Yes, you guessed it! Chicken and rice. There is no other meal so basic than that, but so versatile, that using the same basic ingredients, one can procure fantastically different results each and every attempt.
Have a frozen whole chicken? Defrost it, make an herb rub with some softened butter, massage it under the skin and roast away to perfection all the while using stock and herbs and maybe even some frozen veggies with the rice and you have a delightfully delicious comfort food! Voila!

Chicken and rice tortilla soup
Stuffed chicken breast with basil rice
Chicken picatta with risotto balls
Chicken enchiladas with spanish rice

Should I go on?

Chicken divan
Cheesy chicken and rice casserole (a la Campbell's Soup- Hey, don't knock it 'til you've tried it!)
Chicken cacciatore and rice with peppers and onions
Classic arroz con pollo
Chicken curry with jasmine rice

Chicken and rice are the easiest ingredients to manipulate into a delicious anything, in my opinion. With the weather getting cooler and with the onset of the fall season, it's easy to get busy and frazzled with the demands of the coming holidays and then the demand for comfort foods increase. Chicken and rice is mine and when there is nothing else left, or so it seems, and the next trip to the store is days away, I know I can pull out the ten pound bag of Uncle Ben's and the frozen bag of Tyson skinless boneless chicken breasts and whip up something new, and creative and comforting for my family. Give it a try. I dare you!

If you need any rice cooking tips or new ideas for chicken, just let me know. My mother can attest to the fact that after her third trip to the supermarket in as many days and still saying there was nothing in her kitchen to cook, I have gone in there and made two or three meals out of her "nothing." It saves money on food and gas and keeps you creative! Don't be afraid to pull out the dusty old cookbooks or check out epicurious.com or foodnetwork.com. And most importantly, don't be afraid to fudge (haha) with ingredients. If you are eating it, then cook what you want!

Ground chicken browned with sesame oil and chinese vegetables with sticky white rice
Spicy chicken with wild rice
Chicken jambalaya with rice
Teriyaki chicken with ginger cilantro and lime rice

I could go on, but I will leave you with that. Enjoy!