How to Cook White Rice Peruvian Style

Peruvian food, similar to other Latin-American foods, relies heavily on rice. When done well, Peruvian-style white rice is exquisite and rich, you can even eat it by itself. In Peru this style of rice is called "Arroz Graneado", literally meaning "grained" rice, because the grainy texture that should be accomplished.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup oil
• 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
• 2 cups regular white rice
• 2 1/2 cups of water
• a cube of chicken boullion (optional)

Steps

1. In a medium/large pan, put 1/4 cup of oil and heat it until medium-high.
2. Add 2 tbsps. of chopped garlic and let it fry until brown. This just takes a few seconds.
3. Add 2 cups of regular white rice that has been washed and rinsed, so it's wet. Stir with a wooden spoon and mix with the garlic.
4. Add 2 1/2 cups of water. You may add also a cube of chicken bouillon diluted in the water.
5. Turn up the heat and make the rice mixture boil for a few seconds.
6. Cover and simmer gently for 15-20 minutes without lifting the lid.
7. Turn off the heat, uncover and fluff the rice with a fork. The grains should be plump and soft, and not pasty.

Tips

• "Simmering gently" can be tricky. Usually in an electric range it would be 2/10 of the highest temperature, or a little bit above the "low" setting. Cooking it too low will cause the rice to cook only on the outside and not the inside, and that is unfixable. Cooking too high will cause it to cook unevenly and possibly burn the bottom.
• Rice usually goes with a main dish by its side, usually some type of "estofado" or stew.
• Some rice has been enriched with powdered vitamins and minerals. It is best not to rinse this type of rice.

Warnings

• Do not lift that lid before the 15 minutes have gone up. If you do, put it back immediately. This can alter the texture of the rice and ruin it.

wikiHow