Cafe Rio Style Salad

Taylor told me to get on the ball and post this recipe because a few people were requesting it. :) I have a minute so I'll post it now before I forget. Included are the recipes for the rice, meat, and ranch dressing for a Cafe Rio style salad. The meat is made like the sweet pork, however, chicken or beef can be substituted. Enjoy!

Meat Ingredients:
1-32oz can of red enchilada sauce
1 cup brown sugar
1 can of sprite or coke*
3 cups of water*
1 3-4 pound pork roast, or equivalent of beef or chicken

Meat Directions:
Cut off any fat from the meat and place in crock pot. Cook roast in 1 can of sprite or coke and 3 cups of water for 6-8 hours on low in crock pot; drain and shred. Mix in sauce and cook for 1 more hour. *When using chicken breasts I just cook it in the enchilada sauce and omit the sprite and water. I add the brown sugar after I shred the meat (which shreds easily in the crock pot) and cook a little bit longer to dissolve the sugar. I prefer chicken over the pork because there is less fat and fewer steps to follow. The chicken also takes less time to cook - 4-6 hours.

Rice Ingredients:
2 cups water
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon
4 teaspoons garlic, minced
1/4 bunch cilantro
1/2 can green chiles
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon butter
1/4 onion, diced
1 cup white rice

Rice Directions:
Blend cilantro, green chiles, and onion together in a food processor. Bring water to a boil and add all ingredients. Simmer covered for 20 minutes, or until rice is tender.


Ranch Dressing Ingredients:
1 cup Mayonnaise or miracle whip
1 cup milk
4 Tablespoons ranch powder
2 tomatillos
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 or 2 garlic cloves
1 jalapeno (remove seeds for a milder dressing)

Ranch Dressing Directions:
Remove outer papery covering from tomatillos and core, roughly chop cilantro, garlic, and jalapeno; Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth.

Serve over chopped Romaine lettuce, tortilla chips, or a warm tortilla, and black beans. Garnish with tomatoes, or pico de gallo, if desired.

This could also be made into a burrito. I would just substitute a green sauce for the ranch dressing.

**Taylor has successfully frozen the ingredients for the ranch dressing, minus the milk and mayonnaise, for a quick dressing in the future. For the rice, she froze the spices, green chiles, and garlic in ice cube trays.