Growing up, we’d occasionally go to Bojangles. When it came to Bojangles’ sides, the dirty rice was always my number one pick (biscuits > anything else on the menu). While thumbing through the latest Cooking Light, I came across a blackened chicken and dirty rice recipe and knew that my kitchen would have dirty rice on the menu very soon. The recipe even made picking out a wine to accompany the dish easy.
Instead of chicken breasts, I used chicken thighs (great substitution – thighs have much more flavor). And yes, if you look at the rice recipe it does, in fact, call for chicken livers. And yes, I said “ick.” But I did use chicken livers. In hindsight, I would use sausage in place of the chicken livers. The livers gave it the “meatiness” that dirty rice needs but it did not give the spice that I wanted. Don’t get me wrong, the rice was awesome – it just needed a little something else.
To sip, a “soft, velvety white”: A California gewürztraminer packs a combo of tropical fruit flavors and enough heft to make it a terrific alternative to conventional chardonnay.
Perfect match.
Delicious and dirty.
