This Colombian Rice, made with finely minced onion, garlic, and pasta toasted until golden, is a simple side that goes with anything.
Just like his beloved Sudado de Pollo, my husband John could happily eat rice every single day. His favorite? Colombian-style rice, or arroz con fideos. This dish takes rice to the next level with the addition of finely chopped onion and garlic, plus toasted thin pasta like angel hair or fideo, for incredible flavor and texture. Everyone who tries John’s Colombian Rice raves that it’s “the best rice” they’ve ever eaten, and I couldn’t agree more!
After years of watching him make it, I finally wrote down the recipe so you can bring it into your kitchen, too. According to John, the secret lies in the finely chopped onions and garlic—they melt into the rice, enhancing its flavor in a big way. A mini food chopper works great for this, but if your knife skills are sharp, feel free to chop by hand!
Ingredients Needed and Substitutions
Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe, and any known substitutions. The recipe card lists the full recipe with quantities below this text.
- onion + garlic (use only the small onion and one garlic clove as called for—while I know people love to add these aromatics with abandon, less is more with this dish.)
- olive oil (or avocado oil)
- fideo / fidelini pasta (this is thin, short pasta, usually about 1 to 2 inches long, though it's not necessary to buy it, you can easily make your own by breaking angel hair pasta into small pieces.)
- long-grain rice (to rinse or not rinse...while I don’t always rinse, John insists on it, and since this is his recipe, that is what is called for... ultimately you can decide based on your preference.)
- water (or stock)
- unsalted butter (or more oil)
- coarse kosher salt (This recipe was tested using Diamond Crystal coarse kosher salt. If you use Morton's kosher salt or fine salt, decrease the volume by half.)
Step-By-Step Visual Overview
This is a quick visual overview of the steps needed to make this recipe. If you are looking for the full recipe, keep scrolling!
Step 1: Chop the onion and garlic until finely minced. Using a mini chopper makes it easy!
Step 2: Rinse the rise. But if you don't feel the need to, that's ok too. Do whatever you normally do.
Step 3: Heat the oil, add the dried pasta and toast until the pasta is light golden brown.
Step 4: Add in the onions and garlic and saute until they're beginning to soften.
Step 5: Add in the rice, toasted pasta, water, butter, and salt and bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.
Step 6: Lower the heat, cover, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until the rice is cooked through and the water is absorbed. Let it sit off heat for an additional 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork and serve.
How to Make the Pega
A pega is the crispy, caramelized layer of rice that forms at the bottom of the pot during cooking—a prized delicacy for its irresistible texture and flavor. In my husband’s family, this golden crust is so beloved they often playfully argue over who gets the biggest share.
If you want to make a pega, cook your rice as directed until it’s nearly done. Then, reduce the heat to low, uncover the pot, and let the rice cook undisturbed for an additional 10-15 minutes. This creates the signature golden, crispy layer at the bottom. For an extra crispy pega, add an additional tablespoon of butter or oil to the pot before bringing the rice to a boil.
More Colombian Recipes
Full Recipe
John's Colombian Rice
Everyone says my husband John makes the best rice, and this is his recipe. Short pasta gets toasted in oil until golden before the rice goes in, which gives the pot a nutty, faintly sweet base you don't get from rice alone. The onion and garlic go through a small food chopper first, fine enough that they season every grain instead of sitting in the rice as pieces. A knife works too, as long as you mince them very fine.
- Total Time30 minutes
- YieldServes 4-6 1x
Ingredients
½ small yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled
1 tablespoon olive oil or avocado oil
1 cup fideo or fidelini pasta (see note)
2 cups long-grain rice, rinsed and drained
3-½ cups water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
Instructions
Using a small food chopper or food processor, chop the onion and garlic until finely minced.
Heat the oil in a medium to large pot over medium heat. Once hot, add the pasta and toast, stirring often, until light golden brown, about 5 minutes. Don’t let it burn. Remove the pasta from the pot and set aside.
To the pot, add the onion mixture and sauté until just beginning to soften, about 3 minutes.
Add the rice, toasted pasta, water, butter, and salt to the pot and bring to a boil over high heat.
Cover and reduce the heat to as low as it will go. Cook for 15 minutes, or until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender.
For a pega, uncover the pot and cook over low heat for an additional 10 to 15 minutes.
Turn off the heat and let the rice sit for a few minutes. Fluff with a fork, taste, and adjust the salt before serving.
To serve the pega, scrape the rice from the bottom of the pot.
Notes
Fideo and fidelini are thin, short pasta, typically 1 to 2 inches long. If you don't have either, break angel hair pasta into short pieces.
Look for them in the pasta aisle or the international foods section, often near other specialty pastas.
A "pega" is the crispy, caramelized layer of rice that forms on the bottom of the pot. It's my husband's favorite part, and in his family they argue over who gets it.
For an extra crispy pega, add an additional tablespoon of oil or butter with the water before bringing to a boil.
Use chicken or vegetable stock in place of some or all of the water for more flavor.
This recipe was tested using Diamond Crystal coarse kosher salt. If you use Morton's kosher salt or fine salt, decrease the volume by half.
- Prep Time: 00:05
- Cook Time: 00:25
- Category: Side Dish
gonzalezmx9
Hi! Am I missing something—or there’s no mention of what to do with the toasted fideo that was originally set aside to toast the onions and garlic…. I read the instructions 3 times to to make sure I wasn’t missing the step, but there’s no direction of when to add it to the rice, lol
Kelli Avila
Sorry! The recipe was missing that step but it's been updated. I apologize for my mistake!
Annie
Hi there, I noticed that the recipe doesn’t mention when to add the pasta back to the rice for cooking. At which step would you recommend this?
Also Annie
To clarify: the instructions say to remove the pasta from the pot after browning them, but there is nothing to mention when to introduce them back to the pot. However in the visual instructions it appears that the pasta never is removed. Got a bit confusing.
Kelli Avila
Hi Annie, I appreciate you flagging that! Always my weak spot when writing recipes is remembering to say when to add back in whatever is removed! I've fixed the recipe to include when to put the pasta in. Thanks, I hope you enjoy!