Yellow rice (Mexican)

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An unusual rice dish that uses ground achiote seeds (annatto powder) to colour it. Although it's a Mexican dish, it would work in place of any rice dish.

Ingredients

Yellow rice - The ingredients

• 200g (7 oz) long grain rice
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon ground achiote seeds (annatto powder)
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 475 ml (16 fl oz) good vegetable or chicken stock
• 50 g (2 oz) picked jalepeno chili slices
• sea salt
• Fresh coriander leaves, chopped

Method

1. In a sieve, rinse the rice for a few minutes under cold running water to remove excess starch. The water should run clear once done
2. Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion and garlic for 4 minutes until soft and translucent
3. Add the annatto powder and fry for a futher 3 minutes
4. Mix the rice into the onion mix and stir well to coat all of the rice
5. Add the stock, bring to the boil and simmer, covered, for 25 minutes or until the rice has absorbed all of the liquid. A sheet or so of tin-foil under the pan lid helps to make a good seal
6. Add extra water if the rice dries out before it's cooked
7. Add the chopped chillies and add salt to taste

Serving suggestions

Serve in a large bowl, garnished with coriander leaves

Variations

Serve cold as a salad.

If you don't want to add chillies, try some sliced roasted red peppers instead.