Arroz con Gandules
The island's signature rice dish, cooked with pigeon peas, sofrito, and pork in one pot until the bottom forms a prized crust called pegao. It appears on nearly every Puerto Rican celebratory table.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Servings
- 6
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Calories
- 410 kcal
Equipment
- •Caldero or heavy pot with lid
Nutrition
Per serving, approximate
- Calories
- 410 kcal
- fat
- 12
- carbs
- 62
- protein
- 14
- calories
- 410
Instructions
- 1
Heat achiote oil in a caldero (heavy cooking pot). Saute the ham or salt pork until lightly browned.
- 2
Add sofrito. Cook for 2-3 minutes until it smells fragrant.
- 3
Stir in tomato sauce and sazón. Cook briefly until the color deepens.
- 4
Add gandules and olives. Stir well to coat them in the sofrito mixture.
- 5
Pour in chicken broth. Bring the liquid to a boil.
- 6
Stir in rice. Once liquid reaches the level of the rice, reduce heat to low and cover tightly.
- 7
Cook undisturbed for 25-30 minutes. Wait until the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender.
- 8
Fluff gently from the top and serve. Keep the crusty pegao (crispy bottom layer) intact.
Chef's tips
Do not stir once the rice simmers. Leaving it alone allows the crispy pegao crust to form at the bottom of the pot.
Storage
Refrigerate up to 4 days in an airtight container.
Reheating
Reheat with a splash of water, covered, in a skillet or microwave to restore moisture.
Common mistakes to avoid
- •Adding too much liquid, which makes the rice mushy
- •Lifting the lid often, which lets out steam needed to cook the rice
Serving suggestions
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