Arroz con gandules is Puerto Rico’s nationwide dish for a purpose! Served for the vacations, this flavorful and genuine Puerto Rican rice with pigeon peas is made with gandules (pigeon peas), salty inexperienced olives and flavorful sofrito.
Why You Will Love This Arroz Con Gandules Recipe
Every chew is extra addictive than the final with a mix of textures and many Puerto Rican taste. Right here’s why I do know you’ll find it irresistible:
- Genuine: Each household makes theirs a bit of in a different way, however that is how I grew up making arroz con gandules in my abuela’s kitchen in San Juan. The pegao, crispy rice backside, is the most effective half!
- Flavorful: This dish is full of taste from the standard sofrito, tomato sauce, gandules, salty olives and mixture of Puerto Rican spices.
- Vacation Favourite: A heaping serving of arroz con gandules beneath mouthwatering pernil, with a glass of coquito, is the last word Puerto Rican vacation dish! Making this meal is essentially the most scrumptious solution to elevate your Christmas dinner.
Components Wanted For Puerto Rican Rice
You’ll want the next elements to make this traditional Puerto Rican rice with pigeon peas. Examine the recipe card on the backside of the put up for actual quantities.
- Oil: I grew up utilizing vegetable oil, nonetheless olive oil or avocado oil will each work simply advantageous. Some households use achiote oil for an added layer of taste and shade.
- Gandules: Frozen or canned pigeon peas (small sized inexperienced peas with an oval form which have a barely nutty taste).
- Tomato Sauce
- Inexperienced Olives: Elective. You’ll be able to go away these entire or slice them.
- Sofrito: Sofrito, a Puerto Rican delicacies staple, is a mix of tomatoes, onions, peppers, cilantro, and garlic. You need to use selfmade or retailer purchased sofrito.
- Sazon: I used my selfmade sazon seasoning, however you can even use retailer purchased Sazon con culantro y achiote. This provides the traditional taste and shade to the rice, you cannot skip it.
- Seasonings: Moreover sazon, you have to adobo, salt, black pepper and cumin powder.
- Water
- Rice: I exploit arroz Rico, however you should use any model of medium grain white rice that’s rinsed to take away any further starch.
- Ham or Bacon: Elective, however provides a whole lot of taste.
Learn how to Make Arroz con Gandules
Whereas there are just a few steps, this Puerto Rican rice recipe is simpler than it appears to be like. For full detailed instructions, head to the recipe card on the backside of this put up.
- Meat: Warmth a big dutch oven, or a standard caldero, and cook dinner the meat till crispy. Take away meat, however leaving the drippings. (If not utilizing meat, add oil.)
- Taste: Add the gandules, tomato sauce, inexperienced olives, sofrito and seasonings. Stir to totally mix. As soon as the combination of elements turns into aromatic, pour within the water and produce it to a boil over excessive warmth.
- Add Rice: As soon as boiling, add the rice and stir till rice is submerged and pigeon peas are distributed evenly. Cut back the warmth, cowl, and cook dinner for about 25 minutes. Historically the rice could be lined with a banana or plantain leaf. Nevertheless, a decent becoming pot lid will work simply advantageous!
- Stir: About half means by means of cooking, take away the lid and stir by folding rice from the underside up, however don’t disturb the rice on the backside of pan. (Some Puerto Ricans insist that you simply don’t stir the rice whereas cooking to get the most effective pegao, crispy rice backside. Nevertheless, I discover stirring it as soon as cooks every part extra evenly. No matter you do, be sure you solely stir it as soon as or the rice can turn into sticky/mushy.)
- Steam: Take away the arroz con gandules from the warmth and let it sit for a further 10 minutes earlier than serving. That is referred to as letting the rice “steam”. The rice is finished as soon as all of the liquid is absorbed. Fluff and stir the rice, then serve!
Ideas For Success
Listed here are some ideas to assist assure your Puerto Rican rice dish seems good:
- Rinse The Rice: It’s tremendous vital that you simply rinse your rice. Use a advantageous mesh sieve and rinse your rice with water within the sink. This fast step will prevent a whole lot of heartache later by supplying you with completely cooked rice.
- Varieties Of Rice: Medium grain rice is the standard rice utilized in Puerto Rico to make Arroz Con Gandules. If for some purpose you cannot discover medium grained rice, the subsequent finest substitute is to make use of lengthy grain rice. Brief grain rice is the worst selection as a result of the ultimate dish will simply be too sticky.
- Don’t Over Stir: You can’t stir this Puerto Rican rice over and over, in any other case you’ll wind up with mushy rice and and not using a crispy pegao on the underside. I like to recommend solely stirring it if you add the rice after which as soon as once more halfway by means of cooking.
- Tight Becoming Lid: Be certain your pot or caldero has a decent becoming lid to make sure your rice will get the right texture. If you happen to don’t have one, make one with foil.
How To Serve Arroz con Gandules
Historically, this rice is made to be served with pernil. Nevertheless, if you’re Puerto Rican, you realize that identical to rice and beans, we serve arroz con gandules with every part!
Storage
Retailer leftovers within the fridge in an hermetic container for as much as 5 days.
To reheat, simply add the rice to a microwave secure bowl and pour in 2 teaspoons of water and stir. This may hold it from drying out. Set the microwave to 1 minute, stirring as wanted.
To freeze, switch cooled arroz con gandules to an hermetic freezer secure container. Freeze for as much as 3 months. For finest outcomes, switch to the fridge to thaw earlier than reheating.
Extra Puerto Rican Recipes
Yield: 8 servings
Arroz Con Gandules (Puerto Rican Rice and Pigeon Peas)
Arroz con gandules, also called Puerto Rican Rice with Pigeon Peas, is Puerto Rico’s nationwide dish for a purpose! It is a flavorful rice dish made with gandules (pigeon peas), inexperienced olives and sofrito.
Components
- 4 slices bacon or ham, elective
- 2 tablespoons oil, vegetable oil, olive oil, or achiote oil
- 1 cup canned gandules, or frozen, drained from the water
- ¾ cup tomato sauce
- ½ cup inexperienced olives
- ¼ cup sofrito, thawed if utilizing retailer purchased frozen sofrito
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon adobo seasoning
- ½ packet Sazon con culantro y achiote, or selfmade sazon seasoning
- ½ teaspoon floor black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon floor cumin
- 3 ½ cups water
- 3 cups arroz Rico, medium grain white rice, rinsed
Directions
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Warmth a big heavy bottomed pot like a dutch oven, or a caldero you probably have one, over medium warmth. If utilizing ham or bacon, slowly cook dinner the meat till crispy, take away meat from pot and put aside leaving the drippings. If not utilizing meat, add oil earlier than persevering with with the subsequent step.
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Add the gandules, tomato sauce, inexperienced olives, sofrito, salt, adobo seasoning, sazon, floor black pepper and floor cumin. Stir to totally mix.
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As soon as the combination turns into aromatic, pour within the water and produce it to a boil over excessive warmth. Convey the combination to a boil after which add the rice. Stir till rice is submerged and pigeon peas are distributed evenly.
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Cut back the warmth to medium-low, cowl, and cook dinner for about 25 minutes. You’ll be able to add your ham or bacon again in now in order for you, or wait so as to add it in once more earlier than serving. Historically the rice could be lined with a banana or plantain leaf. Nevertheless, a decent becoming pot lid will work simply advantageous!
-
About half means by means of cooking, take away the lid and stir by folding rice from the underside up, however don’t disturb the rice on the backside of pan. (It is a very sensitive topic – some Puerto Ricans insist that you do not stir the rice whereas cooking to get the most effective pegao, crispy rice backside. Nevertheless, I discover stirring it as soon as cooks every part extra evenly. No matter you do, be sure you solely stir it as soon as or the rice will turn into sticky/mushy.)
-
After simmering for 25 minutes, take away the arroz con gandules from the warmth and let it sit for a further 10 minutes earlier than serving. That is referred to as letting the rice “steam”. The rice is finished as soon as all of the liquid is absorbed.
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After letting the rice relaxation for a few half hour, take away the lid. Fluff and stir the rice, then serve heat!
Notes
Freeze: Switch cooled arroz con gandules to an hermetic freezer secure container. Freeze for as much as 3 months. For finest outcomes, switch to the fridge to thaw earlier than reheating.
Rinse The Rice: It’s tremendous vital that you simply rinse your rice. Use a advantageous mesh sieve and rinse your rice with water within the sink. This fast step will prevent a whole lot of heartache later by supplying you with completely cooked rice.
Totally different Varieties Of Rice: Medium grain rice is the standard rice utilized in Puerto Rico to make Arroz Con Gandules. If for some purpose you cannot discover medium grained rice, the subsequent finest substitute is to make use of lengthy grain rice. Brief grain rice is the worst selection as a result of the ultimate dish will simply be too sticky.
Don’t Over Stir: You can’t stir this Puerto Rican rice over and over, in any other case you’ll wind up with mushy rice and and not using a crispy pegao on the underside. I like to recommend solely stirring it if you add the rice after which as soon as once more halfway by means of cooking.
Tight Becoming Lid: Be certain your pot or caldero has a decent becoming lid to make sure your rice will get the right texture. If you happen to don’t have one, make one with foil.
Capers: If you wish to use capers (with or instead of the olives), add a few tablespoons of capers – with out juice – when the recipe requires olives!
Diet
Serving: 1 serving, Energy: 441kcal, Carbohydrates: 77g, Protein: 9g, Fats: 10g, Saturated Fats: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fats: 2g, Monounsaturated Fats: 5g, Trans Fats: 0.03g, Ldl cholesterol: 7mg, Sodium: 786mg, Potassium: 263mg, Fiber: 5g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 148IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 27mg, Iron: 4mg
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