Taking help from your local grocery store is not something you should ever feel guilty about. For weeknight meals, I’ll use the grocery store as my sous chef.  I’m always taking advantage of what I call “shortcuts”. There’s nothing better than adding a few great ingredients to quick-cooking rice to make it into something special. This is my Brown and Wild Rice Medley.

“Minute Rice”  now offers a brown wild rice variety in single-serving cups. The rice is ready to serve in sealed cups.

For this dish, I’m using a store-bought fresh Cantina-style salsa. I love this variety of salsa, so it’s a staple in my house. This is a side dish that pairs great with chicken, pork, or fish.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yields: 2 to 4 servings
Equipment: 1 (12-inch) sauté pan, serving bowl, chef’s knife, cutting board

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon of olive oil
2 (4.4-ounce) cups of ready-to-serve Minute Rice (Brown and Wild Rice Medley)
1 (15-ounce) can of black beans, reduced-sodium, drained and rinsed
1 (11-ounce) can of shoepeg white corn, drained and rinsed
1 Roma plum tomato, seeded and finely diced
1/2 a green bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1/2 a Spanish (white) onion, seeded and finely diced
1 tablespoon of kosher salt
1 teaspoon of black pepper, freshly-ground
2 tablespoons of fresh Cantina-style (restaurant-style) salsa (14-ounce container available in most produce departments of local grocery stores)
2 tablespoons of cilantro, roughly chopped

Instructions:
Drain and rinse the black beans and shoepeg corn. Seed and dice the plum tomato. Chop the cilantro.

Follow the directions for the rice. Pull (or cut) the film from the cup. Place the cup in the microwave and heat on high for 1 1/2 minutes (cooking time for 2 cups).

Important: Carefully remove the cups from the microwave using an oven mitt or potholder.

In a sauté pan over medium heat, add olive oil, the diced onions, green peppers, and tomatoes. Sprinkle with the Kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper, stir to combine. Cook the vegetables for 3-5 minutes, or until soft. Add the cooked, ready-to-serve rice.

Next, add the drained and rinsed black beans and shoepeg corn. Continue stirring, allowing the vegetables to warm through for another 2-3 minutes. Add the salsa, and stir to combine. Remove the pan from the heat, and add the chopped cilantro. Serve warm or at room temperature.

There you have it, my Brown and Wild Rice Medley.

Note:
1) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.

https://lindalouhamel.com/2019/07/10/summer-time-flowers-and-herbs/