I got a little too ambitious with my meals with this week. I had planned on making a big, elaborate meal from Viva Vegan! that included the Yellow Rice with Garlic, Venezuelan-style Black Beans, and Cuban “Ropa Vieja” Style Latin Shredded Seitan. Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Well, thanks to a busy schedule, I ended up making the Yellow Rice with Garlic, skipping the seitan dish, and improvising on the black beans. Oh well, maybe next time. But the Yellow Rice with Garlic was amazing. Now that I’ve made it, I really do want to make the other dishes.
For the black beans, I did start with the onion-pepper sofrito as suggested in the cookbook. It’s basically garlic, green peppers, and onions simmered in olive oil and little salt and pepper for about 30 minutes. I added black beans, ½ cup canned diced tomatoes, cumin, brown sugar, and salt and pepper, and simmered away for about 30 minutes.
I also created the annatto-infused oil for the rice by simmering 2 tablespoons of annatto seeds in ½ cup of canola oil for about 3 minutes. The oil really made the dish. This rice recipe alone was worth the purchase of the cookbook.
Also, I doubled the recipe for the rice and beans because I wanted to have leftovers for the next day. I love to cook, but I don’t love to cook every night.
Yellow Rice with Garlic (adapted from Viva Vegan!)
Ingredients:
4 tbsp annatto-infused oil
8 cloves garlic, chopped finely
2 cups uncooked basmati rice
3 cups water
2 vegetable broth cubes
Salt and pepper
Directions:
In a large, wide pot, combine the annatto oil and garlic over medium heat until sizzling and fragrant (about 30 seconds). Stir in the rice to coat with the oil. Pour in the water and add the vegetable broth cubes. Increase the heat and bring up to a rolling boil. Lower the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed and the rice is tender. Remove from heat.
I served mine with a few slices of avocado on top.
Enjoy!
