ARROZ CON GANDULES (RICE WITH PIGEON PEAS)

Steps:

• For the gandules, soak the raw gandules in 1 quart of water with 2 teaspoons of salt for about 15 minutes. Rinse them and cooking 4 cups of water until they have softened. If you can squeeze them between two fingers, they are ready. If you prefer a quicker method, use the canned gandules. For the sofrito, put cilantro in work bowl of food processor and pulse twice. Add onion and garlic and pulse until the onion is in small pieces. Add ajies and chop fine. The mixture will be coarse. Heat olive oil in a 3 to 4-quart "caldero" (pot) over medium heat. Add sofrito to the hot oil and saute for a few seconds. Sprinkle black pepper and oregano, and saute until onion is translucent and not brown. Mix in tomato sauce. Stir in rice until well blended. Add alcaparrado with liquid. Stir in gandules with their liquid. Stir in hot water and sea salt. Raise heat high enough to make mixture boil, then lower to medium heat. Cook uncovered until most of the water has evaporated. Stir the mixture, cover the pot and cook for 15 minutes. (Put a spoon in the center of the rice; if the spoon stays upright, your rice is on its way!) Stir the rice once more and continue to cook until tender.