Colombian Yellow Rice (Arroz Amarillo)
Everything goes into one pot: rice, turmeric or ground saffron for the colour, onion, garlic, and diced potato if you want it. There is no sofrito to fry first, which is what makes this the quick version. Cooked in chicken broth rather than water it stops being a side dish. Serves four.
Servings: 4
Calories: 290kcal
Ingredients
- 1 cup white rice
- 2½ cups water or chicken broth broth is worth it; it is the single biggest difference in the finished dish
- 1 onion, finely chopped a regular onion; the original calls it cebolla de huevo
- Oil
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric, or Colombian ground azafrán for the colour; a teaspoon of real Spanish saffron would be ruinous and bitter
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 pound potatoes, diced, optional this is a lot against 1 cup of rice: with it the dish becomes a meal rather than a side
Instructions
- Put the water or broth into a pot over medium heat.
- Add the salt, pepper, oil, the teaspoon of turmeric or ground azafrán, and the finely chopped garlic and onion.
- When it comes to the boil, stir in the rice, and the potatoes if you are using them.
- Let it boil uncovered until the liquid on the surface has gone, then turn the heat down low.
- Cover the pot and leave it for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice is done. Do not lift the lid while it cooks: the rice is finishing in trapped steam, and letting it out leaves the top layer hard.
Notes
The colour comes from turmeric or from the yellow powder sold in Colombia as ground azafrán. Neither is Spanish saffron, and a teaspoon of the real thing would cost more than the rest of the meal and taste medicinal. Chicken broth instead of water is the change worth making. If you use the potato, remember a pound against one cup of rice makes this a dish in its own right rather than a side. Peas, carrot, diced chicken or beef all go in happily.
Nutrition
Calories: 290kcal | Carbohydrates: 57g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 599mg | Potassium: 551mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 62IU | Vitamin C: 24mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 1mg