Momma Braga’s Portuguese Style Rice Recipe

Being a daughter of Portuguese parents I have been exposed to the world of Portuguese cuisine and I am a fan of it. I truly enjoy Portuguese food and even though I am not a food expert there are a few things that I have learned to make such as the rice that is usually accompanied by many Portuguese dishes.

Rice is a favorite in my household and goes well with many of the foods that I make. It is always a favorite when I am hosting guests for dinner and when I shared a photo of the latest rice dish I made, I had a special request to share my recipe. I have never done a recipe before as I usually eye and taste my food as I am cooking it. That is a trait that I got from my mom as she has always eyed her ingredients.

So here is my first recipe blog post and hopefully your results will taste as yummy as mine do. However, do keep in mind to considerate your own normal measurements for ingredients as some people may like more salt for example then what I suggest.

Portuguese Style Rice

Ingredients

• 3 cups of parboiled rice, wash and drained (feeds up to 6 people)
• 6 cups of water
• 1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or salt whichever you normally use)
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon of paprika
• 1 teaspoon of olive oil
• 1 cube of knorr of chicken
• 1 teaspoon of butter
• Optional: tomatoes, red pepper or shrimp

Directions

• First wash and drain the rice. Once washed and drained place the rice in a pot.
• Add the following ingredients to the rice: finely chopped onion; 3 minced garlic cloves; 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt; 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper; 1 teaspoon of paprika; 1 teaspoon of olive oil, 1 cube of Knorr of chicken; 1 teaspoon of butter. Once all the ingredients are added, then you add the 3 cups of water. *Tip: If you only make two cups of rice then you would only use 2 cups of water. Always match the amount of rice and water.
• Optional: Many people also add tomatoes, red pepper or shrimp into their rice and it adds that extra flavour. You can add all of them but I would recommend picking just one of those ingredients into your rice. For the tomatoes and red pepper, just finely chop them up before adding them to the pot.
• Once all your ingredients are all in the pot, stir it.
• Place on the oven and put the heat on medium.
• As the rice is cooking, keep stirring to make sure that the rice does not stick to the bottom of the plate. Tip: Rice sticks fast and when the rice sticks to the bottom it smells and taste horrible. So it would be a waste of food. I have done this in my trial and error of cooking.
• Once the water is almost all gone then the rice is done.
• Remove the rice from the pot to a serving bowl and wait until it cools down a little before serving or just warn your guests of some hot rice.
• If you want to add some kick to your rice you can squeeze lemon over the rice (my personal favourite) or you can add some Portugallo Sauces (you will learn more about this awesome product soon on Momma Braga). You can also add some olives on top for a little extra 😉

There you have it, the very first Momma Braga recipe! It is very simple to make and tastes delicious!

Let me know if you tried it and how it turned out. Share your photos too as I would love to see it! If you enjoyed this type of post and would love to hear more recipes, comment below.

Until next time…Happy Parenting!

– Momma Braga