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Created by Chef Remy
Humble white rice transformed into something extraordinary with ground pork, chopped chicken livers, and the holy trinity, every grain stained with rich, savory goodness that feeds the soul as much as the belly.
They call it dirty rice because of the way it looks. The chopped liver and ground pork turn every grain a deep, rich brown. Some folks hear chicken livers and back away. That's a mistake. Those livers are the whole point. They give this dish a depth of flavor you cannot achieve any other way.
My grandmother Evangeline made dirty rice every Sunday. She'd have a pot going by the time we got back from church, and the smell would hit you before you opened the screen door. Onions, celery, and bell pepper cooking down in pork fat. Garlic hitting the pan. That warm, meaty aroma that told you something good was coming. Four generations of Boudreaux cooks have stood at that same stove, building this dish the same way.
This is poor folks' food. That's not an insult. That's a badge of honor. Cajun cooks took the parts nobody else wanted and turned them into something people line up for. At Lagniappe, we serve dirty rice as a side to blackened fish and grilled sausage, but plenty of customers order it as a main course with nothing but hot sauce and a cold beer. Good food is honest food, and dirty rice doesn't pretend to be anything other than what it is: simple ingredients, cooked with care, seasoned with love.
Quantity
1 pound
Quantity
8 ounces
trimmed and finely chopped
Quantity
4 ounces
trimmed and finely chopped
Quantity
1 tablespoon
Quantity
1 large
finely diced
Quantity
2
finely diced
Quantity
1 large
finely diced
Quantity
4 cloves
minced
Quantity
2 cups
Quantity
3 cups
Quantity
2 teaspoons
Quantity
1 teaspoon, plus more to taste
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
freshly ground
Quantity
1/4 teaspoon, or to taste
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
Quantity
2
Quantity
4
thinly sliced, whites and greens separated
Quantity
2 tablespoons
chopped
Quantity
for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| ground pork | 1 pound |
| chicken liverstrimmed and finely chopped | 8 ounces |
| chicken gizzards (optional)trimmed and finely chopped | 4 ounces |
| vegetable oil or bacon fat | 1 tablespoon |
| yellow onionfinely diced | 1 large |
| celery stalksfinely diced | 2 |
| green bell pepperfinely diced | 1 large |
| garlicminced | 4 cloves |
| long-grain white rice | 2 cups |
| chicken stock | 3 cups |
| Cajun seasoning | 2 teaspoons |
| kosher salt | 1 teaspoon, plus more to taste |
| black pepperfreshly ground | 1/2 teaspoon |
| cayenne pepper | 1/4 teaspoon, or to taste |
| dried thyme | 1/2 teaspoon |
| bay leaves | 2 |
| green onionsthinly sliced, whites and greens separated | 4 |
| fresh parsleychopped | 2 tablespoons |
| hot sauce (optional) | for serving |
Heat a large cast iron skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the oil and let it shimmer. Crumble in the ground pork, spreading it into a single layer. Now leave it alone. Let it develop a proper brown crust before you touch it, about four minutes. Then break it up and stir, cooking until no pink remains. The fond building on the bottom of that pan is pure flavor. That's what we're after.
Push the browned pork to the edges and add the chopped chicken livers and gizzards to the center of the pan. They'll sizzle and protest. Good. Cook them hard for three to four minutes, breaking them up with your spoon until they lose their pink color and turn gray-brown. The livers should be cooked through but still tender. Overcooked liver turns grainy and bitter, and nobody wants that.
Add the onion, celery, and bell pepper to the meat mixture. Stir everything together and let the vegetables cook down, about eight minutes. You want the onions translucent and sweet, the celery softened, the peppers tender. The vegetables will pick up all that beautiful fond from the bottom of the pan. Scrape it up. That's concentrated flavor.
Stir in the garlic, white parts of the green onions, remaining Cajun seasoning, salt, black pepper, cayenne, and thyme. Cook for one minute until fragrant. Your kitchen should smell like Louisiana right about now. If it doesn't, something went wrong.
Add the rice directly to the pan and stir to coat every grain with the rendered fat and spices. Toast for two minutes, stirring constantly. The rice will turn slightly translucent at the edges and take on a nutty aroma. This step builds another layer of flavor and helps the grains stay separate when cooked.
Pour in the chicken stock and drop in the bay leaves. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover tightly and simmer for eighteen to twenty minutes without lifting the lid. The rice is cooking in all those beautiful meat juices and spices. Trust the process. Walk away if you have to, but don't peek.
Remove from heat and let stand, still covered, for five minutes. This resting time allows the rice to finish steaming and the moisture to distribute evenly. Remove the bay leaves, then fluff with a fork, folding in the green onion tops and parsley as you go.
Here's the most important step: taste it. Adjust the salt if needed. Add more cayenne if you want more heat. At Lagniappe, we serve dirty rice in a big cast iron skillet right at the table, with hot sauce on the side for those who want it. The dish should be rich, savory, and satisfying, every grain coated with that beautiful dirty color.
1 serving (about 275g)
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