Arroz con Gandules

Method

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1. Blend the peppers, onion, garlic and coriander to a coarse purée to make the sofrito.

   Mark done

2. Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat and fry the ham for 3 minutes. Add the sofrito and cook for 5 minutes, until most of the liquid has gone.

   Mark done Start 3 min timer

3. Stir in the tomato paste, annatto, cumin and oregano and cook for 2 minutes.

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4. Add the rice and stir for 1 minute to coat. Add the pigeon peas, olives, stock, bay leaves and salt and bring to a boil.

   Mark done Start 1 min timer

5. Boil, uncovered, until the liquid has almost gone from the surface of the rice, about 5 minutes, then stir once from the bottom.

   Mark done Start 5 min timer

6. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to low and cook for 20 minutes without lifting the lid. Take the lid off and cook for 3 minutes more over medium heat to crisp the bottom.

   Mark done Start 20 min timer

7. Stand for 10 minutes, then fluff, scraping the crisp layer from the bottom and stirring it through.

   Mark done Start 10 min timer

Chef’s Tips

• Stir only once, after the liquid has boiled down. Stirring later makes the rice sticky.
• Cook the sofrito until the liquid has gone. Wet sofrito makes soggy rice.
• Scrape the pegao from the bottom of the pot and serve it. It is the best part.

Common Substitutions & Variations

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the usual stand-in when you are out of fresh garlic — it will not caramelise the same way, but it carries the flavour.
• Vegetable stock in place of the chicken stock makes this meat-free without changing the method, if that is what you need.
• Fresh herbs work in place of the dried oregano at roughly three times the quantity — a teaspoon of dried is about a tablespoon of fresh, chopped.

Pairing Suggestions

• Pernil
• Tostones
• Avocado salad

Storage & Reheating

Keep in the fridge up to 4 days. Reheat with a splash of water. Freezes for 2 months.

Common questions

Nutritional Highlights

Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list. Treat these as an estimate — brands and cuts vary.