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Homemade Moro de Habichuelas (Rice and Beans) dish photo

Moro de Habichuelas (Rice and Beans)

A classic Cuban rice-and-beans dish (moro) made by cooking long-grain rice with seasoned red kidney beans, herbs, tomato, olives and capers for a flavorful one-pot meal.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings: 6 servings
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Cuban
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Ingredients
  • 5 tablespoonsvegetable oil (I prefer olive oil) divided
  • 1 tablespoonchopped cilantro
  • 1 tablespoonmashed garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoondry thyme leaves or a 3 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 1/4 cupchopped celery
  • 1/8 cuppitted green olives sliced (optional)
  • 1 teaspoonoregano dry, ground
  • `1 cubanela cubanelle pepper, diced (or green bell pepper)
  • 1/8 cupcapers (optional)
  • 2 tablespoonstomato paste or a cup of tomato sauce
  • 2 cupboiled red kidney beans or canned
  • 2 teaspoonssalt (or more, to taste)
  • 4 cuprice long grain rice, Carolina

Equipment

  • 1 gal [4 liters]-cast aluminum or cast iron pot with tight-fitting lid

Method
 

Instructions
  1. Prep all ingredients: chop cilantro and celery, mash garlic, dice the cubanelle (or green bell) pepper, slice olives (if using), measure thyme (½ tsp dried or 3 sprigs fresh), oregano, capers (if using), tomato paste (or 1 cup tomato sauce), beans, salt, rice, and measure the oil (5 tablespoons total).
  2. Heat a heavy pot (cast aluminum or cast iron preferred) over low heat. Add half the oil (2 1/2 tablespoons).
  3. Add the chopped cilantro, mashed garlic, thyme (dried or fresh), chopped celery, sliced olives (optional), oregano, diced cubanelle pepper, and capers (optional). Sauté, stirring, about 1 minute or until the ingredients become fragrant.
  4. Stir in the tomato paste (2 tablespoons) or the 1 cup tomato sauce until evenly distributed.
  5. Add the 2 cups boiled (or canned) red kidney beans and the 2 teaspoons salt. Stir and heat the mixture through.
  6. Pour in 5 cups water and increase heat to bring the pot to a rolling boil. Taste the broth and adjust salt if needed (the recipe calls for 2 teaspoons as a baseline; you may add more to taste, keeping in mind the rice will absorb salt).
  7. Once the liquid is boiling, stir in the 4 cups long-grain rice. Stir once to distribute and prevent clumping.
  8. Reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and stir frequently for the next few minutes to prevent excessive sticking; use a spatula to gently loosen and remove any rice that sticks to the bottom.
  9. When most of the surface water has evaporated (the pot is no longer loose and you see the top of the rice), cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and reduce heat to very low. Simmer undisturbed for 15 minutes.
  10. After 15 minutes, uncover and drizzle the remaining oil (2 1/2 tablespoons) over the rice. Gently stir to combine and loosen the rice.
  11. Cover again and let sit on very low heat for 5 minutes.
  12. Check the rice: it should be firm but tender inside. If it needs a bit more cooking, cover and leave another 5 minutes over very low heat. If the rice appears too dry before the inside is done, add 1/4 cup boiling water, stir gently, then cover and continue cooking.
  13. Remove the pot from heat. Fluff gently with a fork and serve.

Notes

Cook's Notes
If you boil the beans yourself, use the water in which they boiled in place of (or partially) the 5 cups of water called for in the recipe.
If you use canned beans, throw away the liquid in which they came in the can and use fresh water. The liquid in the can is loaded with sodium and doesn't taste very well.