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RICES / ARROZ
YELLOW RICE
Add annato seeds to 1 tablespoon of warm olive oil. Allow a few minutes for the color to leach out,
then remove the seeds.
Add about 1 cup of any brown rice variety (uncooked and unrinsed) to the saucepan with the tinted oil.
Add your favorite red/orange coloring spices -paprika, turmeric, saffron... and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Mix in a few tablespoons of uncooked wild rice for a colorful touch.
Pour plenty of water and cook for almost 1 hour. If the rice dries up before it is fully cooked,
add more water and keep the heat on.
If the rice is fully cooked and you still have liquid left over, enjoy the soupy rice and remember this fact for next time!
There are many varieties of rice: fluffy long grain, short, aromatic, sticky good for sushi. Try with different ones for different effect. White rice cooks in 15 to 20 minutes; wild rice and brown rices take almost 1 hour. Therefore to combine white and brown you must cook them separately.
ARROZ con GANDULES
Follow above instructions to cook rice; remember that brown rice may take up to an hour!
Follow above recipe's olive oil, achiote (annato seeds), saffron, paprika, turmeric - to give rice a rich orange color.
Use an assortment of savory ingredients: onion, garlic, cilantro
Make sure you add sufficient water and 1/2 cup plain tomato sauce
Cook the rice until almost done before adding a can of cooked gandules (pigeon peas) for this signature dish from Puerto Rico.