Rice is a staple side dish to any Puerto Rican household. Now add some chicken and sausage and you got yourself a party. Entrees not required.

This is a jack of all trades type of dish – add or delete seasonings, protein or vegetables (namely beans). But in the end make it how you want it. Thanks to our good friend Digna, we have this wonderful recipe to share and inspire us.

The Rice

I don’t know if you heard the saying “Rice is Life.” But in the Filipino and Puerto Rican culture, this is true. Since this is a Puerto Rican dish, it’s important to choose the right type of rice. The recipe calls for medium grain rice. You can certainly change it to brown rice but know that you may need more water and the texture and taste will be different. Then if you choose to use a short grain or sushi type of rice then the outcome will be more sticky or in Digna’s words “soggy.”

WASHING and RINSING the rice also plays a huge role. Not rinsing and repeating means the starch coating the rice congeals and makes the rice stick together; ie clumpy rice. It’s not what we’re going for here, though you can keep it in mind for other recipes that require a stickier, softer rice texture (looking at you musubi and sushi).

The Seasoning

This is a biggie. Now you can use whatever seasoning you have on hand, but a Puerto Rican knows to use good Adobo and Sazon. The sofrito debate is also ongoing, but these are seasonings that can usually be found at the local supermarket. Digna has her own sofrito that she makes, and we will be sharing it with you in a separate post. Trust me it’s delicious and you’ll want to try it. For now, the local grocers Sofrito will have to suffice.

The recipe also calls for broth to add more flavor. Here you can also change it up from the beef broth we used.  There’s good ol’ water, chicken or even vegetable broth.

Rice to Water Ratio

First, since this is stove top rice cooking, make sure you use the correct pot. The best is a heavy bottomed pot, made to evenly  distribute the heat. Also don’t use a large pot with a small amount of rice and vice versa. If using a large amount of rice, allow at least 2-3 inches of space from the water level to the edge of the pot (because boiling water). With that being said I know of a few ways to figure out if you have the correct water to rice ratio.

One way is the 1:1 ratio. One cup of rice means you must add 1 cup of water. 2 cups of rice = 2 cups of water and so on and so forth. (However, there’s a caveat. Heat plays a factor here and sometimes you may boil off the water faster than the time it takes the water to fully cook the rice. So if the water is all but gone and you try the rice and it’s still crunchy, it’s time to lower the heat and add a bit more water. About 1/2 a cup of water at a time, and stir to incorporate).

The Filipino way calls for you sticking your middle finger into the pot. Once your finger touches the rice, the water level must reach the first line on your finger. (CAUTION: I don’t suggest this if your water is hot/boiling.) You can technically measure approximately where your finger line is on a spoon and then use the spoon to measure the depth.

Another  way passed down from Grandma to my hubby, is to  do the 1:1 ratio, then stick your wooden spoon in the center of your rice until it touches the bottom of the pot. If the spoon falls you added too little water.  If the spoon stands up straight then you are good to go.