Serves 4-6 Prep time Overnight Cooking time ~1hr
This side is one of my abuelito’s favorites. My abuelita would always make extra, and would re-heat it with a fried egg on top for breakfast the next day.
Note: Make sure you soak the lentils in water overnight before cooking. That will ensure they cook evenly and faster. Also, you can use a pressure cooker to speed up the process, just make sure you don’t overcook into a mush.
Ingredients
1/2 cup of lentils (you can use a full cup here - depends on the ratio you prefer)
2 cups of long grain rice
1 white onion
3 garlic cloves
1 bell pepper (any color)
1 bunch of cilantro
~3 tablespoons of Abuelita's aliño
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
Optional Ingredients:
1 teaspoon of achiote oil (I didn't have any, so I didn't use this time)
Small chunk of jamón serrano
Night before Prep:
Soak the lentils in water overnight. Make sure there is enough water to completely cover all of the lentils.
Lentils Prep:
Drain and rinse the lentils and add into a deep medium sized pot.
Add in 4 cups of water, 2 whole garlic cloves, 1/2 chopped white onion, 2 tablespoons of Abuelita's aliño, the cilantro (no stems) & a small chunk of jamón serrano.
Cook on medium heat for about 30-45 mins, or until the lentils are soft.
*Make sure you save a 1/2 cup of the water you used to cook the lentils in. Drain the rest of the lentils, remove the chunks of garlic and set aside.
Rice Prep:
In a smaller sized deep pot, add 2 cups of rice, 2 tablespoons of salt, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 whole garlic clove and 4 cups of water.
Cook uncovered, on high heat until the water boils.
Cover and cook on low heat for 20 mins.
Turn off heat + let sit covered for 10 mins.
Combine it all together:
In a medium sized deep pan, make a refrito with 1/2 finely chopped white onion + 1 bell pepper (any color) and optional 1 teaspoon of achiote oil (you can also use regular olive oil).
Add in 1 tablespoon of Abuelita's aliño + 1/2 cup of the lentil water & cook on medium high heat until reduced.
Add in the two cups of cooked rice and mix with the refrito.
Then, add in the lentejas and and gently combine together.
Let sit covered, on low heat for 5 mins before serving.
Enjoy!