Dirty Rice

Today's recipe will not make everyone's mouth water.  You will need to be a lover of chicken livers and gizzards and I am.

I have chicken livers and gizzards in my freeze that I just took down to thaw so I can make dirty rice.  I'm making a traditional dirty rice with ground chicken liver, gizzards or giblets. The name comes from the dark color of the dish which comes from the browning the meats. It is an old soul food that warms the soul.  It is inexpensive and if you add some greens or a green salad, you have a complete meal at very little cost. The livers and gizzards cost about $1.60 total.  You can’t beat that.  Plus I know I'll get a lot of meals out of it.

Dirty Rice

¼ pound chicken gizzards

½ pound chicken livers

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 onion

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups uncooked long white rice

4 cups chicken broth

Salt to taste

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Green onions (optional)

Prep:  Rinse, trim and clean gizzards and livers.  Finely chop the onion and cloves of garlic.

Pulse gizzards in food processor, then pulse livers or you can chop them finely by hand.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan.  Sauté onion and gizzards over medium heat, stirring constantly, until meat begins to brown (about 5 minutes). Add livers and garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until brown (about 3 minutes).

Add rice and stir until coated with oil. Add broth, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to simmer. Cover and cook about 20 minutes, until rice has absorbed all of the liquid. Sprinkle with green onion and serve.

Variation - You don’t like chicken livers and gizzards, then try link sausage or hamburger.  My family fights over the gizzard from a bird. I love them and buy them often because they are such an extremely inexpensive piece of protein (love to make a noodle soup with the gizzards too).  If you use another protein like sausage, your rice will still be “dirty” because the meat colors it. 

You may also use wild rice or brown rice if you like. 

I bought just one Cornish game hen for me and am going of use dirty rice to stuff it.  I’ll rub it with olive oil, salt and pepper it and will rub it with a rub mixture of garlic powder, onion powder and paprika.  Close it up with some tooth picks.   Bake the hen for about 1 ½ to 2 hours at 350.

I haven't had Cornish hen for some time.  I'm really looking forward to it along with the dirty rice.  As Phil Robinson (Duck Dynasty fame) would say....happy, happy.  I feel my soul warming just thinking about it.

Be happy and may God bless you and yours.