I first made this dish to take to a friends Mexican themed barbeque.  It is unbelievably good…and the perfect party dish because it’s served at room temperature. I don’t quite remember a dish that I’ve had as many requests for; it’s that good! I had a barbecue last night and I did my own ribs throwdown making two different sauces to see which one people loved the most. Their response? The rice! Like I said…it’s that good!

One word of caution; be very careful when working with serrano peppers. I was reminded of that when I saw another food blogger, Elise, of Simply Recipes tweet about how much her hands hurt after working with jalapeno peppers. Serrano peppers have a higher Scoville Heat unit than milder jalapeno chiles so either wear gloves or do what I did…except for removing the inside membrane and seeds with a paring knife I used my mini Cuisinart to finely chop the pepper. They are so strong they it actually hurt to breathe in the fumes…but used in a small quantity they are absolutely necessary for the end result flavor of this dish. The first time I used them without gloves, I must have rubbed my eye several hours later and it still burned. I’ve heard that it’s wise to use extra caution with gloves as well if you think you will be holding an infant as the Capsaicin on your fingers can burn their gentle skin.

A BONUS? Because it’s meant to be served at room temperature and there is nothing to spoil it’s the perfect food for a barbecue at your place or if you have to travel. That is if you don’t finish it off on the way. Why…you know; cause it’s THAT good!

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Cilantro Serrano Mexican Rice

Servings – 8

Rice Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced seeded Serrano chile
• 2 cups long-grain white rice
• 3 1/4 cups chicken broth
• 3/4 teaspoon salt

Rice Preparation

1. Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add onion, garlic, and Serrano and sauté until the onion is translucent, 7-9 minutes.
3. Add rice and stir 2 minutes.
4. Mix in broth and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and cook until rice is just tender and broth is absorbed, about 15 minutes.
5. Remove from heat. Let stand, covered, 5 minutes.
6. Transfer rice to bowl; cool to barely lukewarm, stirring occasionally, about 1 1/2 hours.
7. Add Cilantro Dressing to rice and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 2 hours ahead; let stand at room temperature.)

[print_recipe]Cilantro Dressing:

• 1 1/4 cups (packed) coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 cup olive oil
• 5 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon minced seeded Serrano chile

Dressing Preparation

1. Combine all ingredients in processor.
2. Blend until almost smooth.
3. Season dressing with salt and pepper.

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I’ve come a long way baby! (I hope you agree!)

If you’ve gotten this far, I’ve got a laugh for you. I first started this blog as a place to transfer a thousand recipes from my first website ever; the one I told you about in my anniversary post at http://www.creative-culinary.com. I had never bothered with photos for that site so it was a new skill set certainly. I started with an Olympus Digital Point and Shoot camera that I had purchased 8 years ago before a trip to Boston…and no one is more amazed at the difference in those early pictures and ones I now manage than me. Thought you might enjoy a laugh at my expense; here is my image from last year!

I can hear you now, in chorus…LOL!

Tagged as: barbecue, cilantro, mexican, rice, serrano