Arroz de Tomate — Soupy Tomato Rice with Fried Eggs

Ingredients

• 1 cup short or medium-grain rice
• 1 lb ripe tomatoes, grated (skins discarded), or 1 can (14 oz) crushed
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3½ cups vegetable or chicken stock, hot
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 eggs
• Chopped parsley or cilantro, salt, and pepper

Method

1. Soften the onion and garlic in 2 tbsp olive oil with the bay leaf over medium until translucent, 5 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes and cook down until jammy and brick-colored, 8–10 minutes — this concentration is where the flavor lives.
3. Stir in the rice for 1 minute, then add the hot stock. Simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, 15–17 minutes; the finished texture should be loose and brothy, malandrinho as the Portuguese say.
4. Fry the eggs in the remaining oil until the edges are lacy and the yolks glossy.
5. Ladle the rice into bowls, crown with the eggs, season, and scatter with herbs. Eat immediately — it thickens as it sits and it knows it.