In the Southern states of the U.S., there is a popular (and tasty) dish that makes use of some ingredients that may have fallen out of favor in other parts of the country. Like most recipes from the south, everyone's got a different way to prepare dirty rice, including a few recipes that don't even call for chicken livers and gizzards. Here's a simply, yet full-flavored, version of dirty rice that even those in the South will approve of.

Dirty rice is named "dirty" because of the inclusion of chicken livers which gives the rice a fine-grained brown coating - making it look like it's dirty. In my book, if the dirty rice doesn't have livers and gizzards, then it isn't dirty rice. Be sure to purchase your livers and gizzards the same day you prepare this dish for the best flavor. Livers and gizzards tend to go bad much faster than the rest of the chicken, so it's best to get them as fresh as possible. A quick survey of my local supermarkets revealed that about half of them carried livers fresh in plastic containers in the refrigerated meats section, but none carried fresh gizzards. All the supermarkets sold gizzards and hearts together in a plastic wrapped tray in the frozen meats area. These work just fine for this recipe.

Start by laying out your ingredients (clockwise from top left): 4 cups chicken stock, one medium onion, one celery rib, one red bell pepper, 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, 1/2 pound chicken livers (about 5 livers), 1/4 pound chicken gizzards (about 6 gizzards), 3 cloves garlic, and 2 cups rice.

Finely chop of the onion, celery, and bell pepper. Mince the garlic. Chop up the livers and gizzards into small pieces (to about 1/4-in. or 5-mm cubes).

Heat a medium saucepan with a tablespoon of vegetable oil, butter, or bacon drippings until the fat just shimmers. Brown the gizzards over medium heat for about 5 minutes, turning occasionally to evenly brown. Add the chopped liver (the ingredient, not your sous chef), to the mixture and cook until the liver is just browned. Some moisture will probably seep out of the livers as they cook, so they won't brown up as nice as the gizzards, but that's okay. As soon as the livers aren't red or pink anymore, move to the next step.

Add the onions to the liver and gizzards. Cook, while stirring, for another couple minutes until the onion just starts to turn translucent and tender.

Mix in the bell peppers and garlic and cook for another three minutes while stirring occasionally.

Pour the rice into the pan and stir to mix.

Once the rice has been completely mixed, pour in the chicken stock and season with the ground black pepper and cayenne pepper. Add salt to your taste. If this is a dish to accompany others, you may want to use only a couple pinches of salt, but if this is your main entree, then go ahead and use a teaspoon of table salt (assuming your stock was unsalted). Bring the stock to a boil. (If your pan doesn't distribute heat effectively, hot spots may cause the rice and food at the bottom to cook onto your pan. If you suspect that may happen, then stir while brining the stock to a boil.)

Once the mixture is boiling, cover and reduce the heat to low - just enough to keep the mixture simmering. I check this by listening for the steady sound of small bubbles popping (or use a glass lid). Allow the rice to simmer for twenty minutes, then remove from the heat. Fluff the rice and cover again for ten more minutes. Serve.


Dirty Rice (serves 8)

1 tablespoon (15 mL) vegetable oil	heat	brown	cook until not pink	cook until tender	cook 3 min.	mix	add	season to taste	bring to boil	simmer 20 min.	fluff and rest 10 min.
1/4 pound (110 g) chicken gizzards (about 6)	chop
1/2 pound (225 g) chicken livers (about 5)	chop
1 medium (110 g) onion	finely chop
1 celery rib (25 g)	finely chop
1 medium red bell pepper (120 g)	chop fine
3 cloves (10 g) garlic	mince
2 cups (390 g) rice
4 cups (945 mL) chicken stock
1/2 tsp. (1.0 g) ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. (0.45 g) cayenne pepper
salt

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