Ana’s Arroz con Pollo, Cuban-Style
- October 2023
- By Ana Osadzinski (Colet)
- Recipe from Cuba
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- (4)

Arroz con pollo comes in almost as many different variations as there are Latino families living in the U.S., but we assure you that Ana Osadzinski (Colet)’s Cuban-style arroz con pollo is truly special. The Illinois abuela’s take on this hearty dish popular across Latin America (and especially in Cuba and Puerto Rico, we’ve found)‚ calls for starting with an entire chicken, a bright mix of peppers and aromatics, and at least double the amount of dried herbs we’re used to seeing in this dish. A highlight is the dish’s signature raspadura: cooked rice that is caramelized and crispy, clinging to the edges of the pot. (This is the another name for the famously fought-over, crispy, bottom-of-the-pan rice that Puerto Ricans calls pegao and Dominicans call concón. We call it delicioso.)
Though arroz con pollo is a complete meal on its own (protein, starch, vegetables), Ana’s family loves eating it (and all of her Cuban family dishes) with a side of platanos maduros and/or yuca with mojo.
Ana, who was born in Bayamo, located in Cuba’s Oriente province, and moved to the States at age 14, is the go-to daily cook in her family, even though her husband was an executive chef by profession. It’s a job she takes very seriously. Luckily, Ana has lots of extended family members in the Chicagoland area where she lives, meaning plenty of family get-togethers with lots of hungry people to feed.
Most of Ana’s traditional Cuban dishes were passed on to her by her mother, and she’s added her own spin over the years. Ana especially likes to healthy up her favorite Cuban dishes, reimagining them as low-salt and substituting extra spices and garlic for high-fat ingredients.
Now, Ana is teaching her family-famous recipes to her children and grandchildren, passing on the torch of abuela-style Latino cooking. One of her and her oldest granddaughter Olivia’s favorite parts of making this dish is the ”sofrito (the traditional cooking base) that is at the foundation of this dish. And we love the crispy rice on the bottom and sides of the pot after it has cooked,” says Ana. While they cook, Ana, who Olivia calls “Ita,” short for Abuelita, also like to sneak in impromptu Spanish lessons.
Of course, their favorite part of each the cooking class is sampling the final product. Cecilia says she especially loves the flavor of this dish’s savory rice mixed with the drumstick’s dark meat. And ”she even gnaws on the chicken bone just like her Ita,” says Ana, proudly.
This Cuban abuela is equally family-famous for these other traditional dishes from her birthplace, including picadillo, yuca con mojo, ropa vieja and bistec encebollado. Find more variations on family-famous arroz con pollo recipes by our Familia Kitchen community of homecooks here.
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