The Gringo Cook

I spent Monday at Alejandro's family's house.  Alejandro's father is in many respects an old fashioned Mexican male, which means that his cooking skills are nil.  He always relied on his wife to do the cooking, and since she passed away, the cooking responsibilities have fallen upon Alejandro and his sister Sandra.  The main meal of the day in Mexico is in the afternoon, and Dad expects his dinner around three o'clock.  Alejandro and Sandra both work during the day, so they have to make sure that there is something prepared ahead of time that their father can heat up in the microwave.  

I figured that I would give them a break from cooking.  Monday morning I took the Metrobus a couple stops down the avenue to the shopping plaza and picked up some groceries at Walmart.  I returned to the house and whipped up one of my one-pot concoctions.  I threw together chopped onions, bell peppers, minced garlic, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, zucchini, garbanzos, and whole kernel corn.  I added a bag of pre-cooked shredded chicken breast and some rice that I had cooked separately in chicken broth.  It looked like slop, but it was pretty tasty.

If I had been making this for myself I would have chopped up a jalapeño or chipotle pepper or two.  However, Alejandro's seven year old nephew has not yet developed a taste for "picante".