Easy Yellow Rice With Seafood

This Easy Yellow Rice With Seafood is a fantastic recipe that can be put together in no time for dinner. A versatile recipe that is comforting and perfect for the entire family. The seafood medley can be replaced with shrimp. 

Seafood Rice

I am always looking to make easy dinners for my family. Last Saturday, I was digging in the pantry and also the freezer for something to cook when I found a box of Arborio rice. 

Arborio rice is a short-grain rice that is popular in Italy. When cooked, the grain is slightly firm but creamy and blends really well with other flavors. For that matter, it is perfect for risotto and rice pudding(see recipe here).

Arborio rice needs a little bit more liquid than other types of rice, which brings me to this question:

How much liquid do you need to cook rice

The ratio for cooking rice, in general, is roughly 2 cups of water for 1 cup of dried rice. However, because I used Arborio rice, which behaves slightly differently when cooked, I used 2 ½ cups of liquid for 1 cup of rice.

I also did not want to rinse the rice because I wanted the starches to blend with the rest of the ingredients and make the entire dish creamier.

Seafood

I used a Trader Joe's bag of seafood blend I had in the freezer. This bag had small shrimp, calamari rings, and bay scallops, a pretty good amount to make this quick dinner.

Ingredients

To make this recipe, you will need just a few simple ingredients that most people have in their pantries: onions, garlic, turmeric, olive oil, salt and pepper, and my secret ingredient- roasted red peppers.

Roasted peppers make this recipe colorful, full of flavor, and different. You will also need frozen peas. They are nutritious and beautiful in the dish.

This easy recipe can be made in 30 to 45 minutes maximum, which is pretty fast if you think about it. It takes more time to order food and wait for delivery than whip up this dish.

How to make

Step 1.

Dice an onion and a few garlic cloves. Heat the oil in a 10-12" cooking pan over medium-high heat. Place the onions and garlic in the pan and stir for 2 minutes until the onion becomes translucent.

Step 2.

(I have an excellent technique to cook rice, which I learned from cooking Mexican dishes. In Mexico, rice is fried in oil first, together with onions and garlic, before the liquid is added to the dish, so I did that. This technique adds a nutty and delicious taste to the rice)

Add the rice to the pan and stir for another 2 minutes until the rice becomes a delicate golden brown. Stir occasionally to ensure that rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan.

Step 3.

To make the rice yellow, add turmeric, a great ingredient to bring color and flavor to the dish. 

Step 4.

Add the liquid and stir to combine. Also, add salt and pepper to your taste. Bring the water to a boil and reduce the heat to medium-low.

Step 5.

Cover the pan and let it simmer for about 25 minutes or until the rice is cooked and the liquid is almost absorbed. Fifteen minutes after you have covered the pan, you can add the frozen peas, chopped roasted peppers, and seafood. 

Remove the pan from the heat, stir gently to combine, and serve.

Note: This dish can be made with water or chicken stock.

Can I replace the seafood with other ingredients:

Absolutely! The recipe goes really well with only shrimp if you don't have seafood. Cooked chicken or even sausages are good if you are allergic to seafood.

Turmeric Substitutes

Turmeric is used in this recipe mainly for color, so if you don't have that, there are some options: saffron or annatto. Also, curry is a suitable replacement, but the rice will take the flavor of the curry, which is not necessarily a bad idea.

Arborio Rice Substitutes

Of course! You only have to adjust the amount of liquid for the type of rice you use. In general, the ratio is 1 cup of rice and 2 cups of liquid.

If you are not sure, look at the rice package you will use and see if there are some instructions on how to cook it. 

Does it go well with wine?

You might think automatically that this dish would go well with white wine. However, in my opinion, I think you can go safe with a rose wine or even a red one.

It all depends on the type of protein you add to this dish. A Spanish wine would be fantastic, like Rioja or Garnacha.

This dish is also well served at a relaxed family gathering, so I wouldn't advocate anything too grand. Keep it simple and enjoy!

If you look for more rice recipes, try this Dal Bhat, a lentil dish served with rice, specific to Nepal. An excellent dish for meatless days.

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Yield: 4 servings

Easy Yellow Rice With Seafood

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This Easy Yellow Rice With Seafood is an awesome recipe that can be put together in no time for dinner. A versatile recipe, comforting and perfect for the entire family. Seafood can be replaced with shrimp.

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 medium onion chopped
• 3-4 garlic cloves
• 1 cup Arborio rice
• 1 pound frozen seafood medley
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 4 oz Roasted red peppers

Instructions

1. Chop the onion and dice the garlic cloves.
2. Heat the oil in a 10-12″ cooking pan over medium high heat. Place the onions and garlic in the pan and stir for 2 minutes until the onion becomes translucent.
3. Add the rice to the pan and stir for another 2 minutes until the rice becomes a delicate golden brown. Stir occasionally to ensure that rice does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
4. Add turmeric and stir to combine.
5. Add the liquid and the salt.
6. Bring the water to a boil and reduce the heat to medium low.
7. Cover the pan and let it simmer for about 25 minutes or until the rice is cooked and the liquid almost absorbed. 15 minutes after you covered the pan, add the frozen peas, chopped roasted peppers and the seafood.
8. Remove the pan from the heat, stir gently to combine and serve.

Notes

CAN I REPLACE THE SEAFOOD WITH OTHER INGREDIENTS:

Absolutely! If you don’t have seafood, the recipe goes really well with only shrimp. Cooked chicken or even sausages are good too if you are allergic to seafood.

I DON’T HAVE TURMERIC IN MY PANTRY, WHAT ELSE CAN I USE:

Turmeric is used in this recipe mainly for color, so if you don’t have that, there are some options: saffron or annatto. Also curry is a good replacement, but the rice will take the flavor of the curry, which is not necessarily a bad idea.

I DON’T HAVE ARBORIO RICE, CAN I USE WHATEVER RICE I HAVE IN THE HOUSE:

Of course! You only have to adjust the amount of liquid for the type of rice you use. In general, the ratio is 1 cup of rice and 2 cups of liquid. If you are not sure, look at the rice package you are going to use and see if there are some instructions on how to cook it.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 338Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 92mgSodium: 498mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 3gSugar: 4gProtein: 29g

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