Arroz a la cubana (Spanish pronunciation: [aˈroθ a la kuˈβana]) (Cuban-style rice) or arroz cubano is a rice dish popular in several Hispanic countries. Its defining ingredients are rice and a fried egg. A plantain or banana, and tomato sauce, are so frequently used as often to be considered defining ingredients.[1][2] In Catalonia, sausages frequently stand in for the plantains. Its origin is not definitively known; various informal sources state without references that it originated in Peru,[3] the Philippines,[4] etc. Some authors consider that it may have originated from rice dishes with fried eggs from Cuba when it was a Spanish colony.[5]

Arroz a la cubana

Arroz a la cubana - Rice smothered with tomato sauce, plantains and a fried egg
Course	Main course
Place of origin	Cuba
Serving temperature	Hot
Main ingredients	Rice, fried egg, tomato sauce
Cookbook: Arroz a la cubana   Media: Arroz a la cubana

There are many minor variations, even within the same regions.

In Spain, a typical dish of arroz a la cubana consists of a serving of white rice with tomato sauce and a fried egg. Sometimes a plantain[6] or banana[7] is fried with the other ingredients.[2]

Arroz a la cubana has been eaten in the Philippines since Spanish colonial times.[8] The modern version always includes ground beef cooked with tomatoes or tomato sauce, and this beef preparation by itself corresponds to picadillo in Latin America. In other words, arroz a la cubana in the Philippines is a combination of picadillo and arroz a la cubana as understood in other countries. It typically consists of ground beef sauteed with onions, garlic, tomato sauce, diced potatoes, raisins, and diced carrots, plus white rice, a fried egg and a ripe native banana, sliced length-wise and fried.[2]

In Peru, it is common for the dish to consist of white rice, fried plantain, a fried hot-dog wiener, and a fried egg over the white rice.[6]

References