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Portuguese Tomato Rice (Arroz de Tomate)

Name: Portuguese Tomato Rice (Arroz de Tomate)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 1 h 5 min
Cuisine: Portuguese
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 1 tablespoon bacon fat (use lard if you don’t have bacon fat, but we don’t recommend using vegetable shortening since it won’t add much flavor to this dish); 1 cup diced onion; 2 teaspoons minced garlic; 2 cups fresh tomatoes cored and cut into large one inch chunks (save any juice from cutting); 1½ cups broth (we used vegetable, but chicken or beef will also work); 1 cup long-grain white rice; ¼ teaspoon salt; ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4.7 /5

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Portuguese Tomato Rice - also known as Arroz de Tomate. A simple and delicious rice dish that is a favorite recipe from Portugal!

Over the last few months, we’ve been trying quite a few recipes from the cookbook, “Food of Portugal” and this Arroz de Tomate – or Portuguese Tomato Rice – is now one of our go-to side dishes.

According to the cookbook’s author Jean Anderson, this recipe is a favorite all over Portugal – but best prepared in the Province of Alentejo in the South-Central part of Portugal, where plump juicy tomatoes grow red and ripe and full of flavor thanks to favorable growing conditions.

In any case, try to prepare this Portuguese Tomato Rice using the ripest, reddest fresh tomatoes you can find! It’s a dish that is super easy to prepare – and also very delicious! Diced onions and garlic are sautéed in bacon fat and the tomatoes are then added and allowed to simmer so they too pick up the wonderful, smoky bacon flavor. Finally rice and broth are added – and it all cooks together until the rice is tender.

We’ve seen some other variations of Portuguese Tomato Rice that have green bell peppers added, as well as meat such as sausage, pork or chicken. Either way – this is a versatile dish that can be enjoyed in many different ways!

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Martha

Martha is part of the husband-wife team that creates A Family Feast. She loves to cook and entertain for family and friends, and she believes that serving a great meal is one of the best ways to show someone that you care. Martha is a self-taught home cook, who loves to read cookbooks and try new recipes. After a decades-long career in business and online marketing, she now runs A Family Feast full-time. Her specialties are baking, desserts, vegetables and pasta dishes.

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