I did this for Super Bowl Sunday, decided to do a repeat this last week. That first time, the rice wasn’t really done until halftime, if i recall correctly. Most cookbooks call for slow cooker rice to be parboiled (or converted) rice. Think Uncle Ben’s. I picked up a box at the store. Then put it back. I have a weird bias against instant rice. i have weird feelings about rice in general, i think. probably because of all the rice i ate growing up. i digress, but it was a lot of rice. I’ve mentioned this before, i know. ANYWAY. The Uncle Ben’s at the store is found at the very bottom row, which should tell buyers something about converted rice, amiright?
I decided to experiment cooking with real rice, in my case short-grain brown rice. I added all ingredients except chicken, shrimp and green peppers and cooked on high for hour one. Added chicken and switched to low for 4-5 hours. Added shrimp and green pepper, back to high for 15 minutes. Stirred the pot a few times in between (more than my normal). Rice was more cooked, I’d call it a moderate success.
Due to the time it takes the rice to cook, this is a dish that tastes better the next day. I enjoyed leftovers for a couple of days. A nice break from eating out all the time at lunch.