Whenever I get bored of white rice, I like switching it up and making Spanish yellow rice instead. It’s so simple and quick to make, it’s even easier than following the instructions for boxed yellow rice!

You only need 6 ingredients to make arroz amarillo: oil, salt, adobo, sazón, water, and rice.

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You’ll need extra long grain rice

To make arroz amarillo, you’re going to want to look for extra long grain rice at the grocery store. Brands like Carolina and Canilla are my favorite, but use whatever brand you prefer.

Step by step instructions

In a pot over medium heat, combine oil, salt, adobo, and sazón. Let it got hot, which should only take about 2-3 minutes, give it a few stirs, then carefully add the water to the pot.

Let the water come to a boil before adding the rice. Stir the rice and cook until almost all of the water is absorbed, stirring frequently to prevent from sticking.
After most of the water is absorbed, use a spoon to make sure no rice is touching the sides of the pot, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.

Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Let it sit covered for 5 minutes and serve warm. Buen provecho!

Give you rice a rinse before cooking

Be sure to rinse the rice under cold water to remove all the starch, a few rinses is all it needs! This is a step that my mami never misses because it helps keep the rice grains from sticking to each other while cooking and gets rid of any impurities that may be in the rice.

Why do you need to heat the oil and spices

Heating the oil and spices for a few minutes is essential. This step cooks the spices, which allows them to release maximum flavor and color for the yellow rice.

Plus, heating the oil not only gives your pot a nonstick later, so that none of your rice grains get stuck to the bottom of the pot while cooking, but it also allows the oil to cook and deepen it’s flavor.