Yellow Rice (Arroz Amarillo)

This is a dish of yellow fried rice and the ingredients other than rice (shown below) are anything you want. In my version, the rice is flavored with Peruvian Aji Amarillo chile powder, garlic, jalapeno, shallots (could be sweet onions) chicken stock, and chopped poblano chilies. Top the rice with your choice of protein to make a whole meal.

Rice Ingredients

Pinch of Turmeric

½ teaspoon American Spice Yellow food coloring (Colorante Amarillo) or Badia Yellow Coloring

Pinch saffron

Pinch Aji Amarillo

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon garlic powder

3 ½ Cup water

2 cups Thai jasmine long grain rice

Use a sauce pan equipped with a tight fitting oven safe lid. (If you do not have an oven safe lid, use three layers on tin foil making a tight seal.) Place water in sauce pan; bring it to a full boil. Add colorants, spices, and rice. Cover with tight fitting lid. Bring back to boil. When boiling, place pot in a 350 F preheated oven. Set timer for 35 minutes. After 35 minutes, remove from oven with oven mitts. Remove lid. Spill out rice on a half sheet pan with a lip. Cool then place uncovered in the refrigerator to get cold.

1 Teaspoon Aji Amarillo chile powder

1 chopped seeded jalapeno (red ones look good)

1/3 Cup homemade chicken stock or more as needed

1 chopped poblano chile

1 Clove chopped garlic

3 Chopped shallots

3 Scallion greens chopped

3 tablespoons corn oil

Correct seasoning with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper

Heat a wok until hot, add oil, jalapeno, poblano, shallots, and garlic and stir-fry briskly. Stir in cold rice; stir-fry flipping with spatula to separate rice grains. Add Aji Amarillo chile powder and chicken stock. Stir in scallions. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and correct seasonings as needed. Serve hot.

The yellow collorant is to be found in the Mexcian section of a Mexican market or online. To make this into a whole meal, top with broiled lobster, or large gulf shrimp, or broiled chicken.