Mexican Rice

Doña Martha  begins by heating vegetable oil in a skillet that has a lid.

The rice has been  soaked in water for about half an hour then drained and added to the hot oil.

The rice is fried in the oil uncover and with frequent stirrings until it has begun to change color.

While the rice cooks in the oil, she begins the sauce.  4 plum tomatoes are halved and placed in the blender with a clove of garlic, half of a large white onion, a sprinkle of coriander seeds, and salt.

The sauce is pureed until smooth.

About a cup of the sauce is added to the rice and then topped with water to cover the rice.

One cube of Caldo do Pollo is crumbled into the rice along with a can of mixed vegetables.  The rice is stirred well and covered to simmer until the water is absorbed.  Along the way she checks on the absorption, and if the water is about gone and the rice does not have the desired texture, she will add more hot water.  

The pan of frijoles you see on the stove was left over from lunch -- bean and cheese burritos.  

In the other pan, chiles are cooking for the sauce for Asado de Cerdo which she was making at the same time.

She made a lot more sauce than required for this pan of rice.  The rest she saved for next time.

Doña Martha usually cooks with only fresh ingredients.  This dish is one of the very few in which I have seen her use a canned product where fresh could have been used.  In fact she does not even have a can opener in her kitchen; she borrowed one from her daughter to open this can.