Seskoulorizo - Greek rainbow chard with rice

Σεσκουλόρυζο

Published originally on my blog on 10 May 2018

I came back from the market the other day with a bagful of rainbow chard and when I was done staring at it, admiring its gorgeous colors and photographing it, I started contemplating what to do with it and couldn’t wait to taste it in a dish. I’m sure you know that these greens are not all show; they are delicious too.

I didn’t want to make a Greek pie, which is a common way to use chard in my country, but wanted something a bit different. And then it hit me; I would make a riff on the classic, traditional spanakorizo (Greek spinach rice) using my beautiful, multicolored chard instead of spinach.

That’s what I did, and the result was amazing. There’s so much creaminess, flavor and warmth in this dish. Tasty, smooth and comforting, with fresh flavors from the chard and the herbs, richness from the olive oil and rice, and of course plenty of lemon squeezed over the whole dish to bring it to life and add a much welcomed acidity.

With some good, tangy Greek feta on the side and a few slices of dark, crusty bread, it’s one of the simplest, healthiest and quickest dishes to make.

Seskoulorizo - Greek rainbow chard with rice

The rice used in this dish is Karolina rice, a very typical kind of white, starchy, medium-grain rice used a lot in Greek cooking, but the Italian Arborio would work perfectly as well.