Arroz con Gandules (Puerto Rican Rice with Pigeon Peas)

Ingredients

• 2 cup Long-grain rice
• 1 15 oz can Pigeon peas with liquid (Also called gandules; use the peas and their canning liquid.)
• 2 tbsp Canola oil
• 1 tsp Salt (Add half initially, taste, then add the remaining half if needed; the recipe ultimately uses the full teaspoon.)
• 1 packet Ham-flavored concentrate (The video identifies this as accidentally vegan ham flavoring.)
• 1 packet Sazón con culantro y achiote
• 1 tsp Ground cumin
• 1 tsp Dried oregano
• 3 tbsp Sofrito (The creator refers viewers to her website for a sofrito recipe.)
• 1.5 cup Water (The creator initially mentions about 2 cups, but adds 1 1/2 cups during cooking.)

Steps

1. 1

   Place the canola oil and sofrito in a pot over medium-high heat. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring, until the sofrito darkens and the vegetables are cooked.

2. 2

   Add the oregano, cumin, ham-flavored concentrate, and sazón con culantro y achiote. Stir to combine the seasonings with the sofrito and oil.

3. 3

   Add the pigeon peas together with their liquid. Stir and cook until the mixture begins to boil, allowing the peas to absorb the sofrito and seasonings.

4. 4

   Add the 2 cups of long-grain rice and stir it into the boiling pigeon-pea mixture.

5. 5

   Add 1 1/2 cups of water. Stir to distribute the liquid throughout the rice.

6. 6

   Add half of the teaspoon of salt, stir it in, and taste the liquid. Add the remaining salt if needed; the creator ultimately adds the full teaspoon.

7. 7

   Keep the pot at medium-high heat, described in the video as setting 7 on a 0-to-10 stove. Stir to ensure the salt is incorporated, then cook uncovered until most of the water has evaporated, about 5 minutes.

8. 8

   When the rice is still moist but most of the liquid has evaporated, turn the rice from the bottom and center of the pot so it is redistributed.

9. 9

   Lower the heat to medium, described as about 2 1/2 on the creator's stove. Cover the pot and cook undisturbed for 15 minutes.

10. 10

    After 15 minutes, stir the rice again from the bottom and around the pot. Continue cooking for about 10 more minutes, then serve hot.

Notes

The video gives a total covered-and-uncovered cooking sequence of about 25 minutes after the rice is added: approximately 5 minutes until most of the liquid evaporates, 15 minutes covered, then about 10 additional minutes. The creator notes that arroz con gandules is commonly served at parties and special occasions.

Nutrition per serving

• main
• side dish
• Caribbean
• Puerto Rican
• rice
• vegetarian
• vegan-friendly
• one-pot