{"id":45039,"date":"2025-07-22T21:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-07-22T21:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/familiakitchen.com\/?p=45039"},"modified":"2025-08-15T17:48:26","modified_gmt":"2025-08-15T17:48:26","slug":"arroz-con-habichuelas-puerto-rican-rice-and-beans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/familiakitchen.com\/es\/arroz-con-habichuelas-puerto-rican-rice-and-beans\/","title":{"rendered":"Arroz con Habichuelas, arroz y frijoles puertorrique\u00f1os"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cArroz con habichuelas, claro, nena.\u201d That was Mom\u2019s usual response to what we were having with dinner when my sister and I were growing up in San Juan, Puerto Rico. (It remained her answer once we moved to the States after middle school). Because no matter the main meal, rice and beans made it better: Any kind of chicken<\/a> and arroz con habichuelas. Black bean soup<\/a> and arroz con habichuelas.  Pork chops or chuletas<\/a> (one of my favorite words, by the way, ever<\/em>) and arroz con habichuelas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rice and beans is pretty much the perfect side: Comforting, savory, and predictably delicioso in a basic kind of way. It was what my mom Marisa grew up eating, too. That same mound of white rice topped with kidney beans cooked in sofrito<\/a> and stewed calabaza (squash) <\/a>was also on her dinner plate almost every night of her childhood. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dinner just wasn\u2019t dinner if it didn\u2019t include rice and beans, Mom always said. It\u2019s the Puerto Rican way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Origin of Rice and Beans in Puerto Rico<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Rice and beans have been served on Boricua tables since the 16th<\/sup> century. The dish represents the history of island\u2019s cultures in one plate: Taino, Spanish, African. That what food historian Cruz Miguel Ort\u00edz Cuadra told writer Kathleen Squires<\/a> when she interviewed him for Familia Kitchen about the history of Puerto Rican food. \u201cBeans were a pre-Hispanic crop that [the indigenous people] the Ta\u00edno planted systematically.\u201d The rice was brought in by the Spanish colonizers. And the way rice is cooked \u201cupwards in a pot\u201d as opposed to horizontally (like paella) shows the dish\u2019s \u201cdefining African influence,\u201d Ortiz Cuadra explained. Arroz con habichuelas truly is home cooking Boricua-style.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My Friend Michelle\u2019s Arroz con Habichuela Recipe<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You can find my grandmother\u2019s family rice and beans recipe here,<\/a> and I love it deeply. But I got curious. How different is mi abuela Nani\u2019s version from others\u2019 recipes? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I emailed one of my favorite Puerto Rican-food cooks and childhood friend Michelle Ezratty Murph<\/a>y.<\/a> How did she make her arroz con habichuelas? Michelle sent me hers that very day. It\u2019s pretty similar to my mine, but there are notable departures. (My abuela\u2019s recipe calls for adding green pepper, onion, tomato, potato and a little sugar. Michelle\u2019s uses cooked ham and chicken broth instead of water. One day I\u2019ll make them side by side and report back.) \u2014 Kim Caviness<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n

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Arroz con habichuelas or rice and beans have been served on Puerto Rican tables since the 16th century.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Q: Michelle, you and your husband grew up in Puerto Rico. How often do you make arroz con habichuelas now that you both live in Arizona?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michelle: \u201dRice and beans are still a a staple in our household. While white rice is always on our stove top, rice and beans are usually prepared at least two times a week and eaten as leftovers all week long.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: What do you think is the secret to making truly great rice and beans?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michelle: \u201cThis recipe is really all about the sofrito<\/a>. There are no other spices in the beans, except for a pinch of salt to help bring out the flavor.  My sofrito <\/a>is made with onions, garlic, aji dulce (or another pepper like Cubanelle if you don\u2019t have access to aji dulce). And of course, cilantro.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSofrito gives it a flavor like no other, and when mixed in with the tomato sauce and ham, it\u2019s pure Puerto Rican food that can be eaten just with rice, or as a side with any Puerto Rican favorite dish. We like eating rice and beans with a side of maduros<\/a> or tostones<\/a> for a lighter dinner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Q: And then there\u2019s Puerto Rico\u2019s use of calabaza, which makes our arroz con habichuelas unique. How does your recipe use this ingredient to maximum effect?<\/strong>

Michelle: \u201cMy husband remembers his aunt struggling with the calabaza, then cubing it and cooking it on the stove with the beans. In today\u2019s world, squash is easily accessible. I usually buy it at the grocery store, already cubed, either frozen or fresh. I then roast the prepared squash in the oven with olive oil and salt, and sometimes with a little rosemary or garlic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI like to roast the squash al dente. A fork should be able to go into the squash to test for doneness, but needs help to be pulled out. Then you know that the squash can stand another 5 minutes of cooking in the beans without getting mushy. That\u2019s the other secret to making great rice and beans, besides using sofrito.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ready to Make Michelle\u2019s Puerto Rican Arroz con Habichuelas?<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Arroz con Habichuelas: Puerto Rican Rice and Beans<\/h2>\n\n
\n \t\t \t\t\tRecipe by Michelle Ezratty Murphy<\/span>\n \t\t\n
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