Learn how to make Puerto Rican Arroz con Costillas, a delicious rice dish where tender pork ribs cook together with the rice, giving it incredible flavor. Serve it with a side of habichuelas guisadas for a classic Puerto Rican meal.
If there’s one food Puerto Ricans are are going to have on the table, it’s rice. We grew up eating it with just about everything, from arroz con habichuelas to arroz amarillo and plenty of white rice in between. So it only makes sense that we’d throw some pork into the pot and call it dinner! With arroz con costillas, the ribs cook right along with the rice, giving it tons of flavor…add a side of habichuelas guisadas and you have a another Puerto Rican rice dish I would never say no to.
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Ingredients
| medium grain or long grain rice | bay leaf |
| rack of ribs | oregano |
| tocino (pork belly fat) | pimiento olives |
| sazon with annatto | vegetable oil |
| chicken bouillon | fresh cilantro |
| tomato paste | salt |
Scroll all the way down to my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements and full instructions.
Instructions
Prepare the Ribs
Step 1: Cut the ribs into individual pieces. (You can also cut the ribs into smaller pieces using a meat mallet.) Sprinkle the ribs with the adobo, garlic powder, and paprika, making sure they’re evenly coated.
Cook the Tocino and Brown the Ribs
Step 2: Heat the oil in a large caldero or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the tocino and cook for a few minutes until lightly golden.
Step 3: Add the ribs and brown them on all sides. Work in batches if needed to avoid overcrowding the pot. Once all the ribs are browned, return them back to the pot.
Build the Flavor Base
Step 4: Add the sofrito, tomato paste, sazón, chicken bouillon, bay leaf, oregano, and olives.
Add the Water and Rice
Step 5: Pour in the water, stir everything together and bring the mixture to a gentle boil. While the water is heating, rinse the rice in a colander until the water runs clear.
Tip: Although rinsing your rice is a personal preference, it does help to remove the talc coating “peril” that helps preserve the rice.
Step 6: Add the rice to the pot and stir well to combine. Season with the salt and stir.
Tip: You know you have added enough water to rice when a large spoon is almost fully covered by the liquid in the pot.
Cook the Rice
Step 7: Cook uncovered until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Stir the rice and reduce the heat to medium low, immediately cover the pot with a lid. Cook for 20 minutes without lifting the lid.
Tip: When stirring the rice, do not disturb the “pegao” (crispy rice bottom) that has built on the bottom of the pot. You do not want to distribute the pegao into the rice.
Step 8: After 20 minutes, uncover the pot and gently stir the rice again. Cover and continue cooking for another 20 minutes without disturbing the rice.
Fluff and Serve
Step 9: Remove the lid, stir the rice again and top with chopped cilantro. Rice is done.
Serving Suggestions
In Puerto Rico, we traditionally always serve this dish with a side of habichuelas guisadas, a side of garlic tostones or platanos fritos and a few slices of avocado. If you want something a little lighter, a simple green salad goes really well with it too.
Cathy’s Expert Tips
- Brown the ribs first. Don’t skip this step! Browning the ribs adds a ton of flavor to the rice. For the best results, sear the ribs in batches and avoid overcrowding the pot. If the caldero is too crowded, the ribs will steam instead of developing a nice brown color.
- Rice pot. Use a nonstick pot for the best results. If you do not have a caldero, use a Dutch oven pot instead.
- Don’t keep checking the rice. Once you cover the rice with the lid, let the rice do its thing. Every time you lift the lid, steam escapes, the steam is what cooks the rice properly. Wait until it’s time to stir before uncovering the pot.
Recipe FAQ’s
Absolutely! You can make it ahead of time, allow it to cool some and then refrigerate up to 4 days. When you’re ready to eat, heat on the stove over medium low for 25 minutes or until heated through.
Absolutely. Just make sure to use boneless ribs that have some fat on them. The fat flavors the rice and also keeps the ribs moist.
Wait for the rice to cool some and then store in the refrigerator in the same pot it was cooked in. You can also store the rice in an airtight container and refrigerate.
Other Puerto Rican Rice Dishes You Will Love
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📖 Recipe
Puerto Rican Arroz con Costillas
Ingredients
- 4 cups medium grain rice rinsed
- 3¾ cups water
- 2 pounds ribs
- 2 tablespoons chicken bouillon
- 2 packets sazon with annatto
- 3 tablespoons sofrito
- ¼ cup tocino (pork belly fat) cubed
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- 2 tablespoons pimiento olives
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- ½ tablespoon salt or to taste
- fresh cilantro chopped for topping
Seasoning for Ribs
- adobo sprinkled
- garlic powder sprinkled
- paprika sprinkled
Instructions
Prepare the Ribs
- Cut the ribs into individual pieces. (You can also cut the ribs into smaller pieces using a meat mallet.) Sprinkle the ribs with the adobo, garlic powder, and paprika, making sure they're evenly coated.
Cook the Tocino and Brown the Ribs
- Heat the oil in a large caldero or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the tocino and cook for a few minutes until lightly golden.
- Add the ribs and brown them on all sides. Work in batches if needed to avoid overcrowding the pot. Once all the ribs are browned, return them back to the pot.
- Add the sofrito, tomato paste, sazón, chicken bouillon, bay leaf, oregano, and olives.
Add the Water and Rice
- Pour in the water, stir everything together and bring the mixture to a gentle boil. While the water is heating, rinse the rice in a colander until the water runs clear.
- Add the rice to the pot and stir well to combine. Season with the salt and stir.Tip: You know you have added enough water to rice when a large spoon is almost fully covered by the liquid in the pot.
Cook the Rice
- Cook uncovered until most of the liquid has been absorbed. Stir the rice and reduce the heat to medium low, immediately cover the pot with a lid. Cook for 20 minutes without lifting the lid.Tip: When stirring the rice, do not disturb the "pegao" (crispy rice bottom) that has built on the bottom of the pot. You do not want to distribute the pegao into the rice.
- After 20 minutes, uncover the pot and gently stir the rice again. Cover and continue cooking for another 20 minutes without disturbing the rice.
- Remove the lid, stir the rice again and top with chopped cilantro. Rice is done. For a complete Puerto Rican meal, serve with a side of stewed beans, tostones and avocado wedges.
Notes
- Serving Suggestion: For a complete Puerto Rican dinner, serve with a side of habichuelas guisadas, a side of garlic tostones or platanos fritos and a few slices of avocado.
- Long Grain Rice: You can also substitute medium grain rice with long grain. Add 5 cups of water to 4 cups of rice.
- Rice pot. Use a nonstick pot for the best results. If you do not have a caldero, use a Dutch oven pot instead.
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