This recipe uses traditional white rice; you can substitute long grain brown rice but it will take add an additional 15-20 minutes to cook. If using brown rice, add the water and salt, cover and bring to a boil; let the rice simmer for 20 minutes before adding the pigeon peas and corn, then add them and simmer another 20- 25 minutes on low heat until the rice is tender.
This dish is great paired with a flavorful salsa, such as Mango Salsa, but in Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic, spicy foods are not the norm.
Caribbean Yellow Rice and Pigeon Peas
Recipe type: Main Dish, grains, beans
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 6 to 8
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped (about 1 cup)
- 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 2 cups white rice
- 3½ cups water
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1½ cups drained cooked pigeon peas * (16-ounce can)
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cut corn
- ground black pepper to taste
- * Cooked dried peas, not green.
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a 3-quart saucepan.
- Sauté the onions and garlic for 2 to 3 minutes on medium heat, until they are just beginning to soften.
- Mix in the turmeric and then the rice, stirring until the rice is uniformly yellow.
- Add the water, salt, drained pigeon peas, and corn.
- Cover and bring to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed. Season to taste with black pepper and serve.
Notes
PER 8-OZ SERVING: 270 CALORIES, 6 G PROTEIN, 5.5 G FAT, 48.9 G CARBOHYDRATE. 418 MG SODIUM, 0 MG CHOLESTEROL.
Greetings from Tennessee!
I was wondering/hoping if anyone has ever done a nutritional analysis of Gado-gado. I love the recipe in the original and 15 year anniversary cookbook, and other recipes I’ve seen don’t look nearly as good(looking for nutrition, not because I want to try another!)If anyone has ever done one, or can do one, that would be super. Thank you!
Hi Kerri,
We’ve published a couple of other recipes for Gado-Gado. but I don’t think any include a nutritional analysis. We always make it with a good quality unsalted, all natural smooth peanut butter. We saute chopped onions in a little vegetable oil, add bay leaves and cayenne pepper, either cider vinegar or tamarind softened in warm water, a good quality aged gluten-free soy sauce, vegetable stock or lite coconut milk, and add sometimes add a little dry sherry, and a pinch of brown sugar. If you use high-quality ingredients, the result will be nutritious and very tasty. We usually top Gado Gado with freshly baked seasoned tofu, or tofu-kan, but occasionally, hard-cooked eggs. The rest of the dish is a selection of steamed vegetables (cabbage, broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, and boiled red potatoes, served on raw spinach leaves and organic brown rice, sometimes topped with tomato wedges or mung sprouts. It’s divine.
Laura
We will publish an updated version in our upcoming book Moosewood Restaurant Favorites, coming in September.
Laura