bologna muse: Kalyn's Kitchen?: Slow Cooker Greek Rice Recipe with Red Bell ...

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Kalyn's Kitchen?: Slow Cooker Greek Rice Recipe with Red Bell ...

I haven't moved for 25 years, and there's no question that I had completely blocked all the memories of just how awful moving really is, so it's a good thing I'm excited about the hew house!? It's now pretty much sorting through stuff and packing for the move every spare minute around here, but a few weeks ago before the new house frenzy switched into overdrive I made this delicious Slow Cooker Greek Rice with Red Bell Pepper, Feta, and Kalamata Olives with Jake.? This is one of those slow cooker recipes that could be made on the stove, but cooking the rice in the slow cooker means you don't have to watch it much at all. ? Definitely this could be a nice side dish for a meal with Greek flavors, but I think this rice also makes a nice vegetarian main dish with all the flavors going on here.? The rice didn't end up being overly photogenic, but if you like these flavors, I guarantee you'll love this rice.

Heat the olive oil and saute the rice until it's nicely browned.? Put rice in the slow cooker.

Then add the onions and cook until they start to brown, about 4-5 minutes.? Add the garlic, Greek seasoning, and dried oregano and cook a couple minutes more.

Then add the chicken or vegetable stock to the pan, scraping off any browned bits.?

Add the onion/stock mixture to the rice in the slow cooker and cook on high about 1 hour and 30 minutes. While the rice cooks, finely chop the red bell pepper.? Add it to the rice and cook 15 minutes more. Slice the olives and crumble the Feta while the red bell peppers cook with the rice. Stir in the sliced olives and crumbled Feta and cook 15 minutes more. Then stir in the parsley and lemon juice and serve rice hot. Slow Cooker Greek Rice with Red Bell Pepper, Feta, and Kalamata Olives
(Makes about 6 servings; recipe adapted from Greek Rice in Crock-Pot 365 Year-Round Recipes.)

Equipment:
I used my favorite Crock-Pot 3-1/2-Quart Slow Cooker for this recipe.

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1 3/4 cups Uncle Ben's Converted Rice
1 onion, chopped small
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. Greek Seasoning (I like Greektown "Billygoat" Seasoning from The Spice House.)
1 tsp. dried oregano (preferably Greek oregano)
2 cans (14 oz. each) chicken or vegetable stock (3 1/2 cups total)
1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and finely chopped
3/4 cup sliced Kalamata olives (or regular black olives will also be good)
3/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1 T fresh-squeezed lemon juice

Instructions:

Heat the olive oil in a large heavy frying pan, add the rice and saute until the rice is nicely browned (watch it carefully.)? Put the browned rice into the slow cooker.??

Add the onions and cook until they start to brown, about 4-5 minutes.? Then add the garlic, Greek seasoning, and dried oregano and cook a couple minutes more.? Add the stock and scrape the pan to remove any browned bits; then add the onion/stock mixture to the slow cooker with the rice.? Cook on high for 1 1/2 hours.

While the rice cooks finely chop the red bell peppers, and after 1 1/2 hours (or when the rice is fairly softened, but not completely done) add the bell peppers and cook 15 minutes more.? While rice and peppers cook, crumble the Feta and slice the olives, then add the the slow cooker and cook another 15 minutes.??

Chop the parsley and squeeze the lemon juice.? Check to be sure the rice is as cooked as you'd like it, then stir in the chopped parsley and lemon juice and serve hot.

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South Beach Suggestions:

Nutritional Information?
I chose the South Beach Diet to manage my weight partly so I wouldn't have to count calories, carbs, points, or fat grams, but if you want nutritional information for a recipe, I recommend entering the recipe into Calorie Count, which will calculate it for you.
More Tasty Ideas with Rice for Meatless Monday:
(Recipes from other blogs not always South Beach Diet friendly; check ingredients.)
Vegetarian Taco Rice ~ La Fuji Mama
Spicy Slow Cooker Rice with Green Chiles, Green Onions, and Cheese ~ Kalyn's Kitchen
Persian Crispy Rice ~ Herbivoracious
Mujadarra - Middle Eastern Lentils and Rice with Caramelized Onions ~ Kalyn's Kitchen
Saffron Rice Pilaf ~ Simply Recipes
(Want even more recipes? I find these recipes from other blogs using Food Blog Search.)

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