• In a large pot or Dutch oven, add the oil and chicken pieces. Turn on the heat to medium-high. You want to add the chicken to the cold oil so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot (pro tip!). Once you start hearing the oil sizzling, brown the chicken on all sides.
• Reduce heat to medium. Add in the sofrito (onions, green bell peppers, and garlic) with the chicken. Carefully fold the chicken with the sofrito and cook for 1-2 minutes. Make sure the sofrito doesn't burn, keep an eye on it. Make sure the sofrito doesn't burn, keep an eye on it.
• Add the vino seco (dry cooking wine), tomato sauce, chopped red pimientos, Sazon Goya, oregano, cumin, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir gently to combine. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
• Meanwhile, let's make the homemade chicken stock. Dissolve 1 chicken bouillon cube into 1 cup of hot water. If you're using chicken bouillon powder, use 1 tablespoon. Stir until it is completely dissolved.
• Add the homemade chicken stock to the pot with the remaining cups of water and the rice. Bring to a boil, uncovered, stirring slightly so nothing gets stuck to the bottom of the pot. Reduce heat to LOW and cover the pot. Simmer with the lid on. No peeking! Cooking LOW and SLOW will ensure the rice doesn't burn or dry out.
• After 30 minutes, remove the lid and stir the rice so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Cover with the lid again and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
• After 40 minutes, give the rice another stir and make sure it is cooked. The rice is cooked when it has absorbed most of the liquid and has become tender. Test it out by tasting a small spoonful.
• If the rice is not yet cooked, turn the heat off, place the lid back on, and let it continue to cook with the residual heat for another 5-10 minutes. If the rice is cooked, remove from the heat. Stir in the frozen peas so they warm through with the residual heat. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Enjoy!
• Optional: Remove the chicken pieces and shred them with two forks then place them back into the pot before serving. Mami does this so it is easier for guests to serve and eat.
• Final thoughts: Authentic Cuban arroz con pollo is all about that perfect texture: tender, moist, slightly sticky, and just a tad bit oily. It's like the goldilocks of rice dishes – not too dry, not too moist, just right. That moisture? It's all thanks to the juicy chicken and the flavorful broth that gets soaked up by the rice as it cooks. When it comes to arroz con pollo, a little stickiness is actually a good thing!

Traditional Method: Soaking Dry Black Beans

• In a large pot, add 6 ounces of dry black beans with 3 cups of water (save the remaining 5 cups for tomorrow). Cover and soak overnight.
• The next day, drain the beans and then add 5 new cups of water to the pot. Bring to a boil and cook them for 60 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Be careful not to let the beans dry out completely. You can add 1 cup of water if they are absorbing the water too quickly. Keep an eye on them. You can remove a few beans from the pot and squish them with the back of a spoon to make sure they have softened.
• After softening the beans for 60 minutes, transfer them to a bowl with 1 1/2 cups of its cooking liquid. Set aside.
• In a Dutch oven, add bacon slices and fry until fully cooked and crispy. Do not discard the bacon fat. Transfer the bacon slices to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Roughly chop them. Set aside.
• In the same Dutch oven with the bacon fat, add green peppers and onions. Sauté for about 2-3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• Add rice, softened black beans with 1 1/2 cups of the cooking liquid from softening the beans, ground cumin, dried oregano, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Cover, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 30 minutes. DO NOT OPEN THE LID. The steam is what cooks the rice.
• After 30 minutes, remove the lid and give it a big stir so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook for another 5-10 minutes until the rice is fluffy and cooked.
• Remove from heat but keep the lid on for another 5-10 minutes. Fluff with a fork then stir in the chopped bacon. Serve and enjoy!

Quick, Time Saving Method: Using Canned Black Beans

• In a Dutch oven, add bacon slices and fry until fully cooked and crispy. Do not discard the bacon fat. Transfer the bacon slices to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Roughly chop them. Set aside.
• In the same Dutch oven with the bacon fat, add green peppers and onions. Sauté for about 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
• Add rice, black beans with the liquid from the can, 1 cup water, cumin, oregano, bay leaf, salt, and pepper. Cover, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 30 minutes. DO NOT OPEN THE LID. The steam is what cooks the rice.
• After 30 minutes, remove the lid and give it a big stir so it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook for another 5-10 minutes until the rice is fluffy and cooked.
• Remove from heat but keep the lid on for another 5-10 minutes. Fluff with a fork then stir in the chopped bacon. Serve and enjoy!

• First things first, you must rinse the rice thoroughly. This will remove any dust, debris, and starch so it doesn’t clump up while cooking. Using a strainer, rinse the rice under cool, running water until the water is clear.
• In a large saucepan, add 1 cup of rinsed rice to 2 cups of water. Add the vegetable oil and 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil.
• Reduce the heat to low. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes until the rice is tender and the water is absorbed.
• Don't remove the lid while cooking or the steam may release too early and cause the rice to dry out. You don't want to risk it becoming hard or crunchy. So, no peeking! Just let it cook, undisturbed, until all the water is absorbed.
• Remove from the heat, but do not open the lid for 5 minutes.
• Fluff with a fork. When you use a spoon, you run the risk of the rice getting mushy. Using a fork releases the rest of the moisture and steam, which is how it retains its fluffiness. Also, I wouldn’t mess with it too much. Don’t fluff the rice for more than 30 seconds.
• The result is soft, fluffy white rice, not mushy nor wet. It's perfect!
• Using a 2:1 water-to-rice ratio should result in approximately 3 cups of cooked rice because long-grain rice triples in volume when cooked with enough water. Enjoy!

• In a saucepan, add the rice with water, lemon zest and cinnamon stick. Cook until the rice is soft, about 10-15 minutes.
• Remove the cinnamon stick and drain off any excess water. (Most of the water should be absorbed into the rice.) Place saucepan back on the stove.
• Add milk, condensed milk, salt, and vanilla extract to rice and cook over low heat, uncovered, stirring occasionally until thick, for about 1 hour.
• Remove from heat. Serve, sprinkle with ground cinnamon and enjoy!

• Soak the dried black beans in a pot full of 3 cups of water overnight.
• The next day, drain and then add 5 new cups of water to the pot. Bring to a boil and cook them for 60 minutes, stirring frequently. Be careful not to let the beans dry out completely. You can add 1 cup of water if they are absorbing the water too quickly. Make sure to keep an eye on them. After softening them for 60 minutes, drain and transfer to a bowl. Set aside.
• In a saucepan, sauté green pepper, onions, and garlic at medium heat for 5 minutes until softened.
• Next, add the softened black beans, water, olive oil, red wine vinegar, sugar, salt, oregano, cumin, pepper, and a bay leaf. Stir to combine and bring to a boil.
• Place the lid on top and reduce to low heat. Cook for 20 minutes until you get a thick, silky and creamy consistency. Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed.
• In the meantime, make the rice. In a large saucepan, add the rice, water, oil, and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for about 15 minutes until the rice is tender and the water is absorbed. Remove from the heat but do not open the lid for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. The result is soft, fluffy white rice, not mushy nor wet.
• Serve the white rice with cooked black beans on top. Enjoy!