#haven't written out a recipe in a long while so i hope it's readable!!

[cranialisotope]

did the kielbasa thing again!! this has solidified itself as a excellent dish that, with a little care in the cooking process, turns out absolutely BANGIN. simple but robust 🤌 quick little recipe for ya:

about 3oz of kielbasa or other smoked sausage (though tbh any saussage or other protein would slap)

3oz of broccoli

3oz of yellow onion (half of med/small one!)

4 cremini mushrooms

1-2 cloves of garlic, up to you!

1 cup of medium grain white rice (or sub whatever rice you like best!)

butter and flour

chicken or veg stock (splash of cream as well if you like)

spices that compliment your protein choice; i used paprika, dried onion & garlic, thyme, and parsley. and salt and pepper of course

some kind of hard salty cheese for topping!

get your mises en place: sausage and broccoli should be chopped/broken down into bite-sized pieces. slice your mushrooms somewhat finely; i like to chop them in half from the top, then slice. chop your onions however you like them best, i like mine finely diced but anything aside from large chunks will work perfectly. i grated my garlic on a sharkskin, but you can also mince it!

get a pan/pot that you'll cook your rice in. start with the kielbasa alone on medium heat, and fry! make sure to turn them to get color on all sides of every piece. fry to your desired crispyness.

while the kielbasa browns, consider steaming your broccoli! i do so with a special steamer basket in a frying pan. you could easily use frozen broccoli here too, in which case you can defrost in whatever way you prefer. if you steam fresh broccoli, do so until just tender, but still bright green.

when your kielbasa is browned, get them out of the pan and set aside but leave the oil! cook your onions in this. sweat them, and about 1 minute before they're perfect toss in your garlic. once both are done, set aside with your kielbasa, and do get as much oil out of the pan (and into the kielbasa/onion bowl) as you can. no need to wipe away excess, you just don't want enough to soak into your mushrooms because...

now you cook your mushes! don't add any oil or butter just yet, let them chill in the pan on med-low heat until they start releasing water. once they start to take color and shrink a little, you can add a little butter if you like! once those are cooked down to your preference, put them aside with the kielbasa and onions. (your broccoli should be more than ready now!)

using the same pan, add the rice and cooking liquid! i use Nagi's cooking method, here. no rinsing needed, and no fuss; it makes great rice every time. she also has directions for other rice types if you're subbing! i use both stock and water for the rice to give it some extra flavor. essentially, if you're using medium grain white, you want 1.5 cups liquid for 1 cup of rice; liquid and rice on med-high heat (no lid) until it gently boils, then plop everything but the broccoli onto the top (DON'T STIR) and cover. turn heat down to low, cook for 13-15 minutes or until your liquid is absorbed. then remove from heat entirely and rest without removing the lid for 10 additional minutes!

while the resting is going on, if you want to make a bit of sauce, now's a good time! in a separate pan make a roux—equal parts fat and flour—first. i did a tiny one, only about a teaspoon and a half of each, because i didn't need much sauce at all. just wanted to add a little bit of extra flavor and moisture to the end result! butter first until melted, on med-low heat. add the flour, stir stir stir until there are no dry lumps, then keep stirring so it doesn't burn. this is a pale roux, so you only need to cook it for 2 minutes or so. add stock slowly and gradually and stirstirstir until you get the consistency you like. i did mine about the thickness of an alfredo sauce, thin enough to spread through the rice easily, but not so thin that it leaves a puddle at the bottom of my bowl. you want it to stick to your food! add a splash of cream if you want, add your spices and pepper to your liking, and salt well! cook with your spices added for another minute or so, that way everything opens up and rehydrates and gets flavorful.

once your rice has rested for 10 minutes, you can open 'er up, toss your broccoli in, and fluff! i added the sauce to the whole dish so that it would spread evenly throughout, but you can add it per serving if you prefer. dole out into bowls, grate some hard salty cheese on top (i used a mahón menorca, but a parm reg or pecorino romano would be perfect too!), and dinner is ready!! cheap, not too intensive, and a good fair portion for two people.