Arroz Blanco Hondureño
Honduras' plain white rice: long-grain toasted in oil with onion and garlic, then cooked absorption-style. Fluffy and separate, the supporting plate.
Overview
Long-grain rice is toasted briefly in oil with onion, garlic and sometimes a small piece of bell pepper. Hot water and salt go in; the pot is covered tightly and the rice cooks undisturbed for 18 minutes. Five minutes' rest off the heat finishes the steaming. The grains stay separate.
Ingredients
- 300 g long-grain rice (parboiled or Carolina)
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 onion (small, very finely chopped)
- 2 garlic cloves (crushed)
- 1 small piece green bell pepper (very finely chopped, optional)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 550 ml hot water
Method
Stage 1 - Rinse
- Rinse the rice in a sieve under cold water until the water runs almost clear. Drain well.
Stage 2 - Toast
- Heat the oil in a heavy pot over medium heat.
- Soften the onion (and pepper if using) 4-5 minutes.
- Add the garlic; cook 30 seconds.
- Add the rice; toast 2 minutes, stirring, until coated and translucent at the edges.
Stage 3 - Cook
- Pour in the hot water; add salt.
- Bring to a boil; stir once; reduce to the lowest heat.
- Cover tightly; cook 18 minutes undisturbed.
Stage 4 - Rest
- Remove from heat (lid on); rest 5 minutes.
- Fluff with a fork.
Stage 5 - Serve
- Plate alongside beans, meat and plantain.
Notes
- Toast briefly: 2 minutes is right - the rice should take on a slight gloss, not colour. Longer and it goes too nutty for the role.
- Hot water: Not cold. Cold water shocks the toasted grains and the rice cooks unevenly.
- No peeking: The 18-minute cook is sacred; the steam does the work. Lifting the lid bleeds it away.
Storage
- Refrigerate 3 days. Reheat covered with a splash of water in the microwave or over low heat.
More like this
Sinangag (Garlic Fried Rice)
Day-old jasmine rice goes into the fridge to dry the grains overnight. Garlic slices fine, fries slowly in oil until crisp gold, lifted out and reserved. Cold rice goes into the same garlic oil, stir-fries for 4 minutes breaking up the clumps. Garlic returns; salt and pepper season. Topped with the second handful of crispy garlic at service.
Adobong Sitaw
Garlic browns in oil; long beans toss in to colour briefly. Soy and vinegar pour in with bay and peppercorns; the beans braise covered until tender. Lid off; the liquid reduces to a glaze. Salt at the end, not the start, since soy is salty enough.
Mapo Tofu (Vegetarian)
Silken tofu poaches briefly in salted water (firms it up so it doesn't break). Dried shiitake mushrooms rehydrate and chop fine. Doubanjiang fries in oil until the oil reddens; mushrooms, garlic, ginger and chilli flakes follow. Stock loosens; tofu joins gently; cornflour slurry thickens. Sichuan peppercorn dust at the table.
Beef and Broccoli
Sliced beef velvets briefly in cornflour and soy, broccoli florets blanch to bright green, and the lot stir-fries hard with garlic and ginger in a soy-oyster-rice-wine sauce. Served over steamed rice.