A side of rice doesn’t have to be ho hum when you can make this Mediterranean Rice with Capers, Olives and Artichokes.
I like to rinse my rice to get rid of some of the starch so it will not be sticky and glue-y.
Then I quickly saute it in olive oil and wine to give the base a bit more of a complex flavour.
Then I add the flavour features and bake it. Gets me perfect rice every time!
This rice would go perfectly with these Artichoke, Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts.
I served it with this Orange Champagne Salmon and it was delicious.
You can have fun with this – there are so many different kinds of gourmet olives. You can find olives stuffed with garlic, marinated in orange oil. You could switch up the olives to complement whatever you are serving it with.
I was tempted to add some roasted red peppers as well but when I went to find them I was out of them. I will definitely try that next time.
This makes a good side dish for a mild fish because it has its own flavours going on.
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain rice
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup dry white wine divided 1/2 cup + 1/2 cup
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 lemon juice and rind grated
- 24 green olives pitted
- 1 14 oz can artichoke hearts
- 1/4 cup capers
Instructions
- Rinse rice in cold water. Let rice soak submerged in water for about 20 minutes. Drain through a strainer and rinse again. This step is optional but it goes a long way to making your rice fluffy and not sticky.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray a 9 X 13" oven proof baking dish with cooking spray.
- Roughly chop the artichokes and olives. You can pulse a few times in a food processor but do not over process. You don't want a paste - you want a rough chop.
- Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add rice and stir to coat. When rice is hot (a couple of minutes) add 1/2 cup of wine. Wines should bubble and evaporate almost immediately. Add the lemon juice and zest and stir to incorporate.
- Remove rice from heat. Stir in artichokes and olives.
- Transfer rice to the baking dish. Add 3 cups of chicken broth and the remaining 1/2 cup of wine.
- Cover with foil or a lid and bake about 55 minutes. Check to ensure all the broth has been absorbed. Remove rice from oven, stir in capers and allow rice to sit 5 minutes before serving.
