Pigeon Pea Rice Arroz De Gandules Recipes

ARROZ CON GANDULES (RICE WITH PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• In a Dutch oven, cook Sofrito in oil over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add rice and sazon; cook and stir until rice is lightly toasted, 3-4 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer until rice is tender, 15-20 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

ARROZ CON GANDULES (PUERTO RICAN RICE AND PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• 1. Heat a large heavy bottomed pot, or a caldero if you have one, over medium heat. If using ham or bacon, slowly cook the meat until crispy, remove meat from pot and set aside leaving the drippings. If not using meat, add olive oil before continuing with the next step. 2. Then, add the gandules, tomato sauce, green olives, sofrito, salt, adobo seasoning, sazon, ground black pepper and ground cumin. Stir to fully combine. 3. Once the mixture becomes fragrant, pour in the water and bring it to a boil over high heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and then add the rice. Stir until rice is submerged and pigeon peas are distributed evenly. 4. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for about 25 minutes. You can add your ham or bacon back in now if you want, or wait to add it in again before serving. Traditionally the rice would be covered with a banana or plantain leaf. However, a tight fitting pot lid will work just fine! 5. About half way through cooking, remove the lid and stir, making sure to scrape up any rice stuck at the bottom of the pan. This is a very touchy subject - some Puerto Ricans insist that you don't stir the rice while cooking. That the crispy bottom bites are the best part! While others would prefer more evenly cooked rice. Whatever you do, if you do stir the rice, make sure you only do it once or the rice can become sticky. 6. After simmering for 25 minutes, remove the arroz con gandules from the heat and let it sit for an additional 30 minutes before serving. This is called letting the rice "steam". The rice is done once all the liquid is absorbed. 7. After letting the rice rest for about a half hour, remove the lid. Fluff and stir the rice, then serve warm with fresh cilantro, if desired.

PIGEON PEA RICE: ARROZ CON GANDULES

Steps:

• Place a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the oil and bacon. Fry, stirring, until the bacon is crisp. Add the onion and cilantro. Continue to cook for 5 minutes until the onion is soft. Add the rice, tomatoes, oregano, cumin, salt, achiote, and pigeon peas. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes until the rice is opaque. Stir in the tomato paste and water and bring to boil. When all the water is absorbed, cover tightly and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes until tender. Serve on a decorative platter and garnish with cilantro.

PIGEON PEA RICE "ARROZ DE GANDULES"

Steps:

• Put the pigeon peas, bay leaves, and garlic in a large pot, cover with 3 quarts of cold water, and place over medium heat. Cover and cook the beans until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Check the water periodically; add more, if necessary, to keep the peas covered. Drain the pigeon peas and reserve 4 cups of the cooking liquid.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Coat a large Dutch oven or other ovenproof pot with the achiote oil and place over medium heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the onion, minced garlic, and peppers. Cook, stirring, for 10 minutes, until the vegetables have softened, without letting them brown. Stir in the cumin, coriander, and cayenne. Mix in the rice and stir. Add the reserved pigeon peas cooking liquid and stir. Add the peas, salt and lime juice. Top with a lid and place into the oven. Continue to cook until the liquid is evaporated, about 20 to 30 minutes, until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.
• To make the achiote oil, pour the oil and achiote seeds in a pot or skillet. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes; the oil will be reddish-orange from the achiote. Strain the oil and discard the achiote seeds.

ARROZ CON GANDULES (PIGEON PEAS RICE)

Steps:

• In a food processor, pulse the onion, bell pepper, garlic and cilantro until all is chopped very small to make the sofrito.
• In a large cast-iron pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute the sofrito mixture, tomato sauce, chicken bouillon cubes, sazon, oregano, adobo, black pepper and alcaparrado for about 2-3 minutes until vegetables begin to release aroma.
• Add the pigeon peas with it's liquid and 2 cups of water. When the water begins to boil, add the rice, stirring occasionally to avoid from sticking to the bottom of the pot.
• Once the rice has soaked up all the water and begins to dry up, lower the heat to low. Cover and let cook for 25 minutes. Then, stir the rice carefully and cover for an additional 5 minutes.
• Serve warm.

ARROZ CON GANDULES (PUERTO RICAN RICE WITH PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• Heat your caldero or Dutch oven to medium heat, and add your olive oil, bacon/ham (if using) and sofrito. Stir constantly until fragrant and tender, but not browned, about 4 minutes.
• Next add in the Sazon, tomato sauce or paste and chicken bouillon. Stir to combine.
• Add in the drained pigeon peas, Italian seasoning or oregano, bay leaves, and water/broth. Add the cilantro and/or olives, if using. Allow the liquid to come up to a boil, and taste it for salt. If it needs more saltiness, add in another chicken bouillon cube. You want this liquid to be highly seasoned, as it will determine the final seasoning of the rice.
• Once the mixture is boiling, add the rice. Stir the rice to get it submerged and distribute the pigeon peas throughout.
• Cover and allow the rice to absorb all the visible liquid. Once most of the visible surface liquid is absorbed, stir the rice, and cover again. Lower the flame to low, and allow it to steam for 20-25 minutes. It's done with all the liquid is absorbed and the grains are fluffy and fully cooked.

ARROZ CON GANDULES (YELLOW RICE WITH PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, heat oil and salt pork over medium-high heat. Add sofrito and cook 1 minute. Add tomato paste and mix well, cook for 2 minutes. Add rice and cook 2 minutes being careful not to scorch the rice, turning all the time. Add saffron and gandules and stir constantly. Add liquid, stirring constantly. Add salt and pepper to taste and bring everything to a boil. Lower heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes. Do not disturb. After 15 minutes, check the rice. Stir. Recover. Turn off heat and let steam for 5 minutes more. Serve immediately with pernil asado or alone. The rice should be fluffy and separate. The color should be golden.
• Mix together all ingredients and set aside to let flavors meld together.

PIGEON PEA RICE (ARROZ DE GANDULES)

Steps:

• Put the pigeon peas and bay leaves in a large pot, cover with 3 quarts of cold water, and place over medium heat. Cover and cook the beans until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Check the water periodically; add more, f necessary, to keep the peas covered. Drain the pigeon peas and reserve 4 cups of the cooking liquid.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Coat a large Dutch oven or other ovenproof pot with the achiote oil and place over medium heat. When the oil begins to smoke, add the onion, garlic, and peppers. Cook, stirring, for 10 minutes, until the vegetables have softened, without letting them brown. Pour in the chicken broth and continue to cook until the liquid is evaporated. Stir in the cumin, coriander, and cayenne. Mix in the rice and reserved pigeon peas. Pour in the reserved 4 cups of pigeon pea cooking liquid, lime juice, and salt; stir everything together. Cover and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed.
• To make the achiote oil, pour the oil and achiote seeds in a pot or skillet. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 to 10 minutes; the oil will be reddish-orange from the achiote. Strain the oil, discard the achiote seeds and set aside to cool.

ARROZ CON GANDULES

Steps:

• Rinse the rice with cold water, drain and set aside.
• Heat the oil and sofrito in a 6-quart Dutch oven or caldero over medium-high heat, 2 minutes. Stir in the gandules with liquid, tomato sauce, olives, sazón, adobo and black pepper to taste then bring to a simmer. Stir in the rice, add 2 cups water and bring to a boil until the water begins to evaporate. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the rice is tender, about 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and let sit for 20 minutes.
• Before serving, fluff the rice and add the cilantro.

ARROZ CON GANDULES (PUERTO RICAN RICE WITH PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• Lay 1 banana leaf (or more, if needed) flat on a large cutting board, then set the lid of a large Dutch oven or similar pot on top. Use a paring knife to trace around the lid, and cut the leaf (or leaves) so that they will fit properly inside the pot. Cover with a clean dishcloth and set aside.
• In a small saucepan, cook the neutral oil and annatto seeds over medium heat, allowing the seeds to infuse the oil. After 2 to 3 minutes, when the oil begins to bubble and the seeds start to crackle, turn off the heat and allow the oil to cool completely. Pour the cool oil through a fine-mesh strainer, reserving seeds for another round of infusing, if desired.
• Make the sofrito: Use a food processor or high-speed blender to pulse the onion, red and green bell peppers, cubanelle pepper, garlic, cilantro, scallions, ají dulce peppers (if using) and culantro (if using), adding 1 to 2 tablespoons of water if needed to achieve a smooth, salsa-like consistency. Stir in 3/4 teaspoon sazón and set aside. (The sofrito makes about 2 cups. Refrigerate it for up to 5 days or portion it into ice cube trays or plastic containers, and freeze up to 6 months.)
• Set the large Dutch oven or similar pot over medium-high heat. Add 3 tablespoons annatto oil and the ham or fatback. Sauté until crisp and most of the fat has rendered, about 6 minutes. Add 1/4 cup sofrito, the olives and 1 tablespoon sazón, stirring until sofrito is fragrant, about 3 minutes.
• Next, add pigeon peas and sauté for another 3 minutes. Season with adobo, salt and black pepper to taste.
• Reduce heat to medium. Add rice, stirring until grains are all coated, seasoned and starting to toast. If there isn't enough oil to generously coat all of the rice and peas in the pot, add the remaining tablespoon of annatto oil. This will help form a delicious golden bottom crust called pegao.
• Once the rice is toasted, stir in the beer and cook for about 3 minutes, then add the reserved pigeon-pea liquid (or 2 1/2 cups water) and roasted red pepper brine. Taste the cooking liquid and adjust salt as needed; it should be pleasantly salty.
• Gently stir rice, then spread about half the thinly sliced roasted red pepper over the rice. Drizzle with olive oil. Cover rice with prepared banana leaves, then cover pot with its lid and cook for 22 minutes.
• Once the time has passed, remove the lid, open the banana leaves and gently fold the rice onto itself from the outside in to form a mound in the center of the pot. Reduce heat to medium-low, replace banana leaves and lid and continue cooking for 20 to 25 minutes to allow pegao to form at the bottom of the pot.
• To serve, spoon rice atop a platter layered with fresh banana leaves. Garnish with remaining sliced roasted peppers. Use a metal spatula to scrape pegao out of the pot and serve on a separate plate. Be careful, because everyone will fight over it!