Crock Pot Brazilian Saffron Chicken and Rice

Rainy Days and Mondays.
God Love Karen Carpenter.... what a tired Monday, yet life doesn't slow down to say, "oh hey, we know you're tired, long weekend, poor thing...you need sleep and we're going to slow it down for you"...

So the band carries on and our first meal in Brazil was a crock pot dish (ok, so I was somewhat organized today), Brazilian Saffron Chicken and Rice. I had to brown the chicken and chop up onions and peppers before work and then race home over lunch to turn it on. Home at 8:20pm to enjoy it after my taxi shift, grocery store and gas stop this evening.

The chicken fell off the bone, delicious. Elie and Katy liked the chicken, not the rice. Must have been too fancy with red pepper, onion and ham in it. Hannah didn't eat! Poor thing came home with a tummy ache after swimming. I'm crossing my fingers that she gets over her sick feelings soon. State meet is 3 days away... Andy thought the chicken was kind of bland... come to find out, I left out the sliced olives step which would have made a huge difference. My other curious question is why the recipe is called "saffron" chicken when there isn't a mention of using saffron as an ingredient. I was going to add a pinch but of course, forgot. And while I'm at it, I couldn't find any history about this meals origin. Which makes me think the recipe I found was a knock-off on Brazilian cooking? I ponder. I also forgot to snap up pictures of the meal. Signs of the tired...

All and all, it served its purpose, to feed a tired family after a great weekend. Looking forward to an energetic Tuesday!

Crock Pot Brazilian Saffron Chicken and Rice
4 lbs broiler-fryer chickens , cut up 
3⁄4 teaspoon garlic salt 
1 tablespoon olive oil 
3 ounces chopped fully cooked smoked ham 
1 medium onion , chopped
1 medium red bell pepper , chopped 
14 ounces chicken broth 
8 ounces yellow rice mix 
1⁄3; cup sliced pimento stuffed olive

Directions:

1 Sprinkle chicken with garlic salt. 

2 Heat oil in 12 inch skillet over medium-high heat

3 Add chicken and cook until brown on all sides; drain.

4 Place chicken in 4 quart slow cooker.

5 Top with ham, onion, and bell pepper. Add broth.

6 Cover and cook on Low 5 to 6 hours until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut.

7 Remove chicken from crock pot. Stir rice mix into mixture in crock pot, add chicken. 

8 Cover and cook on High about 1 hour or until rice is tender. 

9 Serve chicken and rice sprinkled with olives.