How to Prepare the True Arroz Chaufa?

Are you a foodie? Is eating one of the activities that you relish the most? If you like trying new dishes and flavors, this article is for you.

Everybody knows Latin America has a very exquisite cuisine. With their typical crops, different countries offer a huge variety of spices, vegetables, fruits and cereals.

It is a vast territory with rich pieces of land, and this can be seen in their cuisine.

However, there are some stars when it comes to choosing the countries with the most delicious food. And the one that always stands out is Peru.

Peruvian cuisine reflects local ingredients including influences from the indigenous population and from European immigrants. There are also some traces from Asian and African cuisine.

One of these ingredients is rice: one of the most versatile and practical types of food.

What does rice have that is so special?

Well, what doesn’t it have? Rice has everything: it is so easy to get cooked, it is healthy and you can never get bored of it because you can always combine it with something different!

In Peru, rice is part of thousands of recipes, such as Peruvian chicken with cilantro rice, arrocito, Peruvian garlic rice or Peruvian green rice.

You may know all these dishes. That’s why today I bring you another recipe: Peruvian fried rice, also known as arroz chaufa.

You are going to be so amazed by this chaufa recipe you won’t be able to stop preparing it!

But first… what is it?

Arroz chaufa consists of a mix of fried rice with vegetables, eggs and meat, seasoned with soy sauce and oil. The meats typically used are beef, chicken, shrimp and pork.

There are some variations along the country, but you are going to learn an easy and delicious one that will make you look like a professional cook.

Let’s see what it is actually about

Ingredients

• 1 cup of skinless and boneless chicken thighs or chicken breast.
• 3 scrambled and chopped eggs.
• 1 cup of cold-cooked white rice.
• ¼ cup of diced onions.
• 1 minced garlic clove.
• 1 small diced red bell pepper.
• ¼ cup of sliced green onions with the white parts.
• A pinch of salt and pepper.
• 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil.

Soy sauce seasoning

• ⅛ cup of soy sauce.
• ¼ teaspoon of sesame oil.
• A pinch of cumin.
• ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger.
• A pinch of sugar.

Recipe

i. To begin with, take a large pan and heat the oil in it over medium high heat.

ii. Then, add the diced red bell pepper and onion. Saute everything until it softens. It will take about 5 minutes. At the last minute, right before the pepper and the onion are ready, add the ginger and the green onion. Saute for about one minute.

iii. After that, add the chicken and mix everything well. Cook it for a few minutes.

iv. The next step is to add half of the rice and mix well. Then, add the rest of the rice and mix again.

v. For the soy sauce mixture, mix all the ingredients in a small bowl. Add it to the pan and combine everything. Add the chopped scrambled eggs and toss.

vi. Finally, season the mixture with salt and pepper to taste.

A few helpful tips:

• This is a dish that is cooked very quickly, so make sure you have all your vegetables diced and minced.

• The best option for your chicken is skinless thighs, because they are flavorful and they will give this dish a distinctive touch. But, of course, you can use chicken breast if you prefer. Or you can always avoid using chicken if you are a vegetarian.

• A convenient option is to use prepackaged diced pepper, onion and garlic. It saves a great amount of time!

• If you love spicy food, you can add a pinch of aji amarillo paste that will match the dish perfectly well.

I’ve already told you, this recipe will make you look like an experienced chef! Apart from being tasty and easy to make, it does have everything: proteins, carbohydrates and vegetables. And you only need some ingredients that I’m pretty sure you have at home.

Needless to say, any dish that is sauteed or fried is surely a flavor party.

So, if I were you, I would give it a try. Let your senses enjoy while you eat this delicious dish!