Arroz con Pescado 1960 (Fish with Rice)

Josefina Velázquez de León, Los 365 menus del año : recetas prácticas, económicas, para resolver el diario problema de la alimentación (México, D.F. : Ediciones J. Velázquez de León, 1960), 14. [TX716.M4 V393 1960]

Kitchen tested by Alexandra Zuzula, Manager of Volunteer Services, UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures

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Arroz con Pescado

250 grs de arroz
150 grs de jitomate
1 cebolla
2 dientes de ajo
1/8 de litro de aceite
5 filetes de 100 grs de pescado robalo o huachinango
1 chile verde
1 ramita de yerbabuena
1 cucharada de perejil picado

Las rebanadas de pescado se lavan muy bien, se frien en el aceite y se retiran; en el aceite se frien los dientes de ajo, se apartan y se agrega el arroz remojado durante 15 minutos en agua caliente, lavado y escurrido, cuando ha tomado un color dorado, se la quita la graza y se la agrega el jitomate asado, molido con la cebolla y colado; cuando reseca se agrega ¼ de litro de agua fria, sal y la yerbabuena, cuando vuelve a resecar se añadem ½ litro de agua caliente, el chile y las rebanadas de pescado frito, se déjà hervir a fuego suave hasta que el arroz esté cocido y seco; entonces se retira, se le quita la yerbabuena, se vacía al platón, se espolvorea con el perejil picado y se sirve inmediatamente.

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Fish with Rice

9 oz rice (I used long grain brown rice)
5 oz tomato (I used pre-roasted in can)
1 onion (I used a yellow onion, minced)
2 cloves of garlic (I used pre-minced from a jar, equaling 2 tsps)
1/8 liter oil (I used olive oil)
5 100-g fillets of fish (bass or huachinango) (I used three fillets of cod totaling just under 1 lb)
1 green chili (I used a jalapeno and sliced it thin)
1 sprig of mint
1 Tbsp chopped parsley

1. Make sure fish is washed and sliced. Heat oil, then fry. Remove fish from pan. I fried the fish over medium heat for 2–3 minutes on each side.
2. Add more oil if necessary then add garlic.
3. Add rice and heat until golden brown. I toasted the rice for around 4 minutes.
4. Take off heat and add roasted tomatoes. I didn’t take the pan off heat at all, which seemed to work fine.
5. Add minced onion and sauté. until onions are soft.
6. Add ½ liter of water and the sliced chili and mint. Boil over low heat until rice is cooked. Once the rice was boiling, I covered and cooked for 40 minutes. It maybe could have used an extra 5–10 minutes.
7. When rice is cooked, take out mint.
8. Sprinkle rice with parsley and service with the fish immediately. I also seasoned the dish with salt and pepper.

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Commentary

I chose this recipe because I like fish and it seemed simple. After translating the recipe, I was worried the fish would turn out bland. The rest of the ingredients looked great, so I was excited to get started.

Overall I had an easy time finding ingredients, except I substituted cod for bass. My comments in parenthesis are exactly how long I cooked things and my modifications. My smallest fillet fell apart a bit during the frying, and be sure to watch for bones when eating the fish – just in case! Overall, the fish was a bit bland (I would add some sort of additional seasoning), but the rice was delicious. I would also add additional peppers or spices to add more heat to the dish.