Spanish Rice ****

By Nilson

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil (can use up to 1/4 cup)
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 2 cups of medium or long-grain white rice
• 3 cups* chicken stock (or vegetable stock if vegetarian)
• 1 heaping tablespoon tomato paste or 1 cup of diced fresh or cooked tomatoes, strained
• Pinch of oregano
• 1 teaspoon salt

Preparation

Step 1

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. Spanish rice is prepared by browning the rice first with onions and garlic, before cooking it in chicken stock with added tomato. The browning is essential to the nutty, almost toasty flavor of the rice. And although bouillon can be substituted for the chicken stock, nothing beats homemade chicken stock, the rich flavor of which is absorbed by the rice.

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In a large skillet brown rice in olive oil, medium/high heat. Add onion and garlic. Cook onion rice mixture, stirring frequently, about 4 minutes, or until onions are softened.

In a separate sauce pan bring stock to a simmer. Add tomato sauce, oregano, and salt. Add rice to broth. Bring to a simmer. Cover. Lower heat and cook 15-25 minutes, depending on the type of rice and the instructions on the rice package. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes.

Hi Sean, you can use brown rice (adjust the cooking time accordingly) in place of long grain white rice. It will have a different flavor as brown rice has its own distinctive flavor.

Our family's Mexican rice is something I have been trying to get exactly right for quite a while. The recipe is a little different than yours -- I finally got it right when my grandmother gave up two secrets that she had left me without for months ... 1) brown the rice uncomfortably long - until it's about to burn and 2) add a squeeze of lemon at the end.

Interesting how families do things just a little differently when it comes to recipes. I am sure there could be an entire book with various family Spanish rice recipes. How about those people that add peas to their rice???

Now, I realize this is a stupid question, but I've seen Spanish rice recipes that use cooked rice and I've seen Spanish rice recipes that use uncooked rice. In reading this recipe (and your response about the brown rice) I'm thinking that you're using uncooked rice? Sorry to be so dense, but this could make a huge difference! If I were just messing around and making a Spanish rice recipe, I'd probably start with cooked rice, but . . . ??? Please ease my pitiful little mind! I'm anxious to try this recipe!

This is what we call, "Hoosier" Spanish Rice. Been making this for my family for over 50 years. In a Large Cast Iron skillet. I brown, Kalbaska Sausage, cut in small pieces, with chopped onion, chopped bell pepper, red and green, a bit of Garlic, salt and pepper to taste. Cook until onions and peppers are tender and saugsage partially done. Then I add fresh, small cubed, tomatoes, lightly saute'ed. Then I add my uncooked rice, about two cups, browning ever so slightly. After all cooked together, I then add water, about three cups and simmer until rice gets fluffy. Stirring occassionally. When water boils down and rice is tender, I continue cooking a little, in order to dry up most of liquid ( needs to be fairly dry ).Make sure all ingredients are throughly mixed. It is oh! so good. Served with toasted bread or even heated Taco shells. Maybe a salad and glass of cold sweet tea. It is very filling. Make sure and make a lot, as it is better the next day. To warm up, just pop in Microwave for a minute or two. They will all come back for more. Enjoy this very inexpensive dish. Just judge for yourself as to the amount of each ingredient, in order to feed your family.

but the directions say add tomato

Hi T - the ingredient list lists paste OR diced tomatoes OR cooked tomatoes. We use what we have on hand. Consider any of those as fulfilling the requirements for the directions calling for tomato sauce.

wonder if we can use rice cooker to make spanish rice?

In my family we refer to the original recipe as Mexican rice and Barbara's version as Midwestern Spanish rice - though we use bacon instead of Kolbase. The latter is a very flexible dish - you can add browned hamburger to make it a more filling dish, for example, or coarse grate veggies like carrots or zuccini (i.e. not strong tasting) and you barely know they are there while adding nutrition. Any form of tomatoes can be used - even tomato juice or half tomato soup+ half another form. Got a couple of stalks of celery you need to use up? Saute them good and throw them in. I've made both recipes with brown rice - they're good but distictly different in taste than with white rice. Of course, nutritionally brown rice is vastly better. I rarely make it exactly the same way twice - I'm trying Kolbase next! And I'm planning to try it with V8 juice or jalapenos soon.

Loved it, loved it, loved it. I added cilantro as well the 2nd time and it was great.

My grandma swears that the key to her Spanish Rice is to make sure the liquid you add to the sauteed rice is "hot, hot."

I recently obtained a recipe for a very traditional version of this dish from a friend who got it from her mother, grandmother, and so on. It calls for sofrito, which is a heady mixture of red and green peppers, onions, garlic, cilantro, etc.; adobo, which is a seasoning containing pepper, garlic and onion powders, and other spices; pigeon peas; and olives. I made it for a recent get-together at which the main dish was fajitas, and it was a big hit with all age groups. My kids took the cold rice to school for their lunches the next day.

My auntie has been trying to make spanish rice, and it just never comes out the same way twice. Normally she will make a small batch first and test it on her family (lucky them! hehehe) but when she doubles the recipe the rice comes out mushy. Hopefully that will not be the case with your recipe, but do you have any insight on what she might have been doing wrong in the past?

To Corey - don't mean to stray off topic, but to get the facts straight: what the Spanish call "Russian salad" is, in fact, a Russian salad. It's called "Salat Olivie" in Russian. However, sometimes Spanish will replace the bits of salmon with tuna.

Simply simple! It couldn't sound easier to make thanks for not complicating such a simple dish this was a big help for someone like me so white washed! thanks!

This is great! I made it to go along with burritos and quesadillas and some fresh guacamole. The only thing I did different was to add a couple chopped anaheim peppers from our garden. It was a hit. Thanks for the recipe!

When my mom makes Spanish Rice, I think browns the rice in oil and then blends the tomato (which she peels after letting it cook on foil on the stove), onion, garlic, chicken broth and other ingredients in a blender. Then she just mixes the new liquid into the rice and lets it cook.

The key to cooking ANY rice and keeping it from becoming MUSH is, once you add the liquid DO NOT stir it for any reason. Cover it and let it cook until it is done.

P.S. I loved the recipe! For those of you whom like a little "KICK" instead of the tomato sauce, paste, or cooked tomato try adding a can of Rotel {Brand Name} tomato with green chilis. you can get Rotel with cilantro too if you like. When purchasing the Rotel make sure you look at the label, it comes medium regular hot and extra hot.

I just tried your recipe and OH my god. It's so delicious. And I even used it with Ready Rice, which is all I had on hand. I used two bags, but took them out of the bags to saute them as instructed, and just added the amount of broth per bag as recommended on the Ready Rice package. THANK YOU! I have been looking for a good Spanish rice recipe for ages. This'll go great with the beans I've been cooking all day. Mmmmm!

I learned how to make this down in Acuna Mexico from a friend and the recipe was very similair to this, only difference (and I consider it very important) is to add Tomato Bullion (Knorr makes it, and it usually comes in the jar only, not cubed), it's not available in American stores up North (where I am now) but you can get it at Mexican markets as well as H-E-B, if you're in Tx.

The tomato bullion adds alot of flavor, color and some saltiness (so I don't use salt).

Really need some advice about cooking rice. I can't seem to get the rice to cook through and through. I never take the top off........4 cups of broth or water (steaming) to 2 cups of rice, stir, restart boiling process, lower and cover. What am I doing wrong. My family loves rice so I use the pre-cooked bags of rice, but would prefer using the regular kind. I follow the recipes in my cookbooks to the letter with no success.

Celeste, I used to not be able to make rice either. Until I stumbled on my own little secret. As long as you use regular rice (not instant or similar), use 1 cup of water per 1/2 cup of rice. Do NOT follow the instructions on the bag. Once the water and rice are in a pot, turn your stove top on very low. My stove top's highest setting is 7, so I set it at 1.5 - 2. Cover and let cook. It will reach a boil and stay at that point after a while. Do not stir the rice at all. Once you cannot see any water in the pot the rice is done. It is fluffy and does not stick. Perfect rice every time without using a non-stick agent such as oil.

To this recipe I added about 1/4 c. of diced green peppers. It added a little flavor and color...

I just got my mom's rice recipe today (we had it practically once every week when I was growing up- I don't know how it is possible that I can't do it by memory!). It took her ten years to learn how to make it so that it tasted like her Mexican mother-in-law's! We put LOTS of garlic salt and cumino in it. Before my mom and I went vegetarian, we also put this Mexican spice in it. I forget the name, but it was something "con pollo."

I've been making this recipe for about a month now and it's fantastic. I grew up in El Paso, Texas eating Mexican food, New Mexican food, and Tex-Mex, and spanish rice is a comfort food for me. I like my rice with deep tomato flavor and with the smoky hint of cumin, so in addition to chopped tomatoes I add a little bit of tomato paste and about 2 tsp. of cumin. I'm going to serve this to friends from home next time I visit and I know they will love it.

I love this recipe! My partner loves Mexican food and I am Chinese and know nothing about Mexican food. I wanted to make rice to go with a pack of Carnitas I purcharsed at Costco. I made this rice for her and later made it for my Mexican friend who only eats her sister's Spanish rice and she had SECONDS, THIRDS, FOURTHS of my rice. She couldn't get enough of it! I've been using this recipe whenever I make Mexican food like tonight I made it to go with Pork and Green Chilies stew. I used long grain Jasimine rice from the Asian supermarket, brown it as long as I can before burning it and I used double the garlic.

I love this recipe. I use rice oil to brown my rice--that makes sense right. You can get the oil very Hot. My kids like this alot.

I'm from Bolivia, and for me this isn't spanish rice, is "everyday rice". That's the only way I make rice and I love it. I like to add chopped green peppers or thinly sliced scallions, it's always a hit with my family.

I love this reciepe. I used fresh tomatoes, and fat free chicken broth. It was delicious, healthy, and easy to make. Went great with my chicken enchildas. Since then I have made it with fish and chile rellenos. Thanks again for such a YUMMY rice.

I made this last night, it was sooo good. The only change I mad was replaced the chopped tomatoe with a 15 oz. can of chopped tomatoes. I counted the juice as 3/4 c. of the water the recipe called for. Excellent! I served it with chicken soft tacos, some of us used the rice in the taco.

I made this last night for dinner and it was awesome! Every bit as good, if not even better, than our local Mexican family-owned restaurant. I've tried making this kind of rice many times and failed; I was making it much too complicated. Your mom's is simple and delicious. The only thing I changed is I added some slices of carrot with the sauteed rice and onions. Perfect! It's now in my permanent repertoire! Thanks!

Some pot lids, like mine (I use aluminum pots for all my rices) warp with time and so the lid no longer becomes tight fitting (or for whatever reason, never made a tight seal from the beginning). A non-tight fitting lid will cause steam to escape rapidly without steaming the rice but not if you use a shopping bag. That's right, a shopping bag right from the grocery store! What I do is once the water begins to boil, I reduce the heat and drape the bag over the opening, place the lid on top, and so the handles of the bag aren't dangling, I hook each of them over the nob of the lid - nice 'n secure.

My family has been using a shopping bag to cover rice for years and I have personally done it a thousand times, and no, the bag does not melt! Instead, what you get is perfect cooked, fluffy rice each time.

Oh, here's another secret - shhhh, don't tell my mom I told ya: to keep rice from being sticky and making it nice 'n fluffy (according to the correct rice/liquid ratio for the type of grain you're cooking), add a tablespoon of white distilled vinegar to the liquid at the beginning. The flavor cooks out, so you don't taste it. Same trick applies to poaching an egg (with the vinegar, that is.) Enjoy!

You don't wash the rice and let dry first, before you brown rice? And if you do rinse rice and let it dry before browning rice does this make a difference in texture etc...? Just want to know. Thanks kathy

We do not rinse and dry the rice first, if we are planning to brown the rice for this dish or for a pilaf dish. Sometimes when I'm making white rice on its own, I'll rinse it first. But rinsing and drying would likely make it much more difficult to brown. ~Elise

Hello! Just had to come back and leave a comment. I've made many versions of Spanish Rice, being in a Mexican family, and something is always 'note quite right' but this came out *perfect* The only variation I made was to add a half teaspoon of crushed red peppers, since both my husband and I like our food spicy. I'm sure it was the chicken broth that made the difference. I usually use water, or the juice from the tomatoes. This was delicious. Thank you!

Can this recipe be made, refrigerated, and then heated back up quickly in the microwave? If so, how long does it take to reheat it and will it still taste the same?

Yes it can be made, refrigerated, and then reheated in the microwave. How long depends on your specific microwave and how much you are reheating. And yes, it will taste pretty much the same. ~Elise

I'll be making this recipe as my base for some Enchiladas Suizas...but I have to comment on Ricco's message. Heating plastic with steam, then letting the steam seep back into the food is releasing Phtalates, which act pretty much like hormones. This is not a good idea. The idea in cooking rice is indeed to have a lid that is not tight-fitting because you do want to have a release mechanism for the steam...or else it would be a pressure cooker. Not happy saying something that can be unpopular, but it's important, especially if you are feeding children, their bodies are smaller and more susceptible to contaminants. These compounds are being phased out of plastics because they are known to cause health problems. No one would expect people to use plastic bags in their rice making, so I will think that these are not manufactured to be safely used while cooking. Happy cooking and keep up the great work Elise!

Thank you for such a wonderful recipe. It was easy and quick. I didn't have any garlic, so that was omitted, and my canned tomatoes had green chili's in it, so that added a little kick to the spanish rice. Of course, my husband likes thing with a kick, but it was'nt too hot (I don't do hot)

I am planning on making this Spanish rice recipe tonight and taking to a potluck. I will make it and it will sit for an hour before we eat. What is the best way to keep the rice warm and consistency good? Crockpot?

Very tasty, but needed some more liquid. I followed the directions precisely.

This so reminds me of my mom's Spanish rice. We absolutely loved it growing up. This makes quite a lot and is delish!!

Barbara's "Hoosier Spanish Rice" recipe is close to how I make Jambalaya, just add some cayenne and spices, whatever meat is on hand, and homemade chicken or beef broth instead of water (this is essential to getting the best flavor).

I just made this recipe, adding cubes of chicken and serving it as an entree. I have to say my wife and I enjoyed it immensely and will definitely make it a regular in our household.

I'm born and raised in New Mexico, but for some reason my parents never made this and I haven't before either... I'm used to having it at restaurants as a side all the time :-) I'm going to use vegetable broth (some vegans will be eating it), and add cubed cooked carrots and peas (don't know why but growing up I always remember those being in there!) Thanks for the recipe, I'm glad it looks pretty straightforward, and I'm glad I looked it up because I probably never would've thought to brown the rice first! I'm probably also going to sub some hot salsa for some of the tomato...

This was very good! I made it last night to go with a tortilla pie and it just completed the dish. I used to use pre-packaged Spanish rice as I never knew how to make it, but now with this recipe in hand, I'll never go back!

Kudos to James up there for the 1 cup to half cup rice! My predicament was having to cook spanish rice for 50 people. In this case, the 2 to 1 ratio did not apply. The more rice you have in the pot the less water you need. I used a tip from Ming on KPBS. He used his hand to measure. The distance from the knuckle to the first bend was how he did it. At first I thought he was bat sh** crazy but after frying up a 2 pound bag of rice and staring at it for half an hour I thought "GO FOR IT!" It turned out PERFECT. I fry the rice first in peanut oil until (as the other poster up there said) every grain was dark almost too brown color. Then I added chopped onion, green peppers, garlic and salt/pepper and stirred for a few minutes. Then I added the hot water mixed with the podwered Knox bullion Tomate flavored until it was about an inch above the rice. It was mmmmmmm yummy. It lasted about 20 minutes at the party. So for those of you trying it out I have 3 rules and my rice comes out great every time (I get volunteered for my fams and neighbors parties ALL THE TIME)

2. Use Tomate Flavored Bullion (it's made by Knor and in the soup isle) instead of tomato sauce. Dissolve it in hot water before adding to rice.

3. Once you get this basic down, don't be afraid to add different things to it. I add a can of Veg-all or peas to it, I even put chicken in it for Arroz con Pollo.

"Heating plastic with steam, then letting the steam seep back into the food is releasing Phtalates, which act pretty much like hormones. This is not a good idea."

I also try to avoid heating plastic with my food... A possible solution is to create a ring out of aluminum foil to sit between the pot and the lid. I do this when I need a really tight seal to keep the steam in.

I love this recipe! I tried it according to instructions and tried it again using brown rice and El Pato (instead of tomato paste/sauce) and it turned out great both times. The El Pato salsa de chile fresco (I get it at Food 4 Less but you can probably find it at a Mexican market) adds a spiciness that goes great with the rice.

5 eggs beaten

In a small frying pan melt about 2 T butter add bacon pieces and fry until crispy or to desired texture. Add beaten eggs. Stir constantly over medium high-high heat until almost cooked through, add salsa and rice and finish cooking.

Pour onto a plate

Wipe the inside of the pan with a clean wet sponge and return to medium-medium high heat. Butter both sides of a tortilla very lightly and place in frying pan. (should sizzle or heat isnt high enough) fry on one side until just starting to get golden brown areas then flip and repeat. Flip out onto a small plate add some egg mixture top with sour cream and roll/fold and enjoy. Repeat for each. Very Delicious!

THANK YOU FOR THIS RECIPE! I have Celiac disease and I'm constantly seeking rice recipes that don't make me want to cry because they're so dull. This was easy (I'm a terrible cook), affordable and really wonderful. AND, I have loads of leftovers which delights me to no end.

I made this last week to go with chicken enchiladas. I used chopped tomatoes because I hate opening a can of tomato paste for 1 or 2 tablespoons and then tossing the rest (I hear you can buy tomato paste in a tube but I've been unable to locate any). We really liked this recipe. I would like to make it again with the chopped tomatos AND tomato paste to give it more of the red tinted color most people associate with Spanish/Mexican rice.

I opened a package rice mix tonight to find it yucky inside. So, I came to the computer and simply typed in "spanish rice". I sauted onion, green pepper and garlic in olive oil, added 1 cup of reg. rice and some canned tomatoes and about 3/4 cup water (no chicken stock on hand.) I added a bit of salt, cumin and chili powder and reg. pepper. It was great. I'm hooked. Loved everyone's suggestions. Can't go wrong!!

Spanish rice is one of the hardest Spanish dishes to make. Mainly because of the browning, and the water-to-rice ratio is never as simple as the packaged directions, especially if you add veggies to the rice. There are so many different ways to make it and it NEVER comes out exactly the same each time.

And I agree with the previous posters that said the best Spanish rice is browned to the point of ALMOST burning, and the water/stock needs to be extremely hot. If I'm making a massive pot for a party, I like to add a package of mixed frozen veggies for color and flavor (peas/corn/lima beans/green beens).

I made your Spanish Rice today for a potluck and everybody loved it. The flavor of diced fresh tomatoes is rather mild, so I added 1/2 tsp tomato paste as well - thus giving a more consistent tomatoish flavor for the rice. I added a pinch of cumin powder and a bay leaf too. I always find great tasting recipes on your site and I am a big fan!

I made this recipe today to go with tacos. Everyone loved it, even the grandchildren. I made with brown rice, and added a couple dashes of turmeric (for good health). I used strained tomatoes; I just had to make sure that the vegetable broth plus tomatoes equaled the total amount of liquid.

I'm a newbie to your site. Thank you for sharing this recipe! I have been looking high and low for one like this for a while. I ended up adding 1 minced chipotle in adobo and some smoky paprika during step 1. Then I put the entire rice mixture in a rice cooker, along with the broth and 1 can of (drained) diced fire roasted tomatoes with green chilies. It turned out wonderfully!

What I liked about this recipe was the fresh tomato instead of the tomato paste. You can always taste the difference between fresh and canned. Some people said that they added salsa to theirs for a kick, but I think I'd try some sliced jalapeno instead and pick it out after cooking. Again, fresh is always better than canned in my opinion. I threw some chopped cilantro in towards the end, which was excellent.

I used organic vegetable broth instead of chicken broth, and it was just as good! To me, it's really the tomato, onion, and garlic that make this rice, not the fact that it's cooked with chicken broth.

Lastly, if your rice seems too wet, you just need to let it cook more until all of the water cooks out. Also, sometimes it's better the next day, re-heated.

I've made this rice several times and loved it more each time. Personally, I like the flavor of the rice with tomato paste. It seems richer. But I throw some fresh tomatoes in at the end. I also use brown rice and vegetable broth. This is the only Spanish rice recipe I will make.

This is wonderful! I could never figure out the Spanish rice the way we love it in our Tex-mex eating places either,but I just tried this using a can of Rotel tomatoes and a can of Swanson's chicken broth,carefully measured the liquids,and it came out perfect! Fluffy and seasoned just how we like it...hot! If you can't take the heat though, maybe use only half a can of Rotel and then just some chopped tomatoes or tomato sauce,but just be sure to measure ALL your liquids you put in before adding the rice. Then cook with a good saucepan with lid and after bringing to a boil,simmer on the lowest possible heat till moisture is absorbed. Thank you so much for this..we will be eating this tomorrow night with tacos & enchiladas for our regular weekly Mexican dinner night at our house!

I will definitely make it again. Maybe will try a little less tomato paste and add some saffron. I also like the idea of adding fresh cilantro as some reviewers suggested.

I had never made Spanish rice before, but needed a recipe to make to go along with enchiladas for a ski trip. There were 17 people on the trip so tripled the recipe. The rice turned out PERFECT and everyone loved it. It made a huge amount, and we had more than enough for the next night's dinner (it was delicious reheated) and still had leftovers. Thanks for a great recipe. I will definitely be making this again.

Thanks for this EASY recipe! I always have a difficult time making rice and it never absorbs all the water or gets fully cooked. I think the trick is bringing the liquid to a simmer and then adding the rice which is also hot from browning.

If you're making this recipe to feed 30 what are the measurements? Should I make separate batches? If I use can tomatoes how would I account for the juice that is in the can? This looks so yummy I can't wait to try it on my party guests. Oh also I am going to add bell peppers. Thanks for your help!

Hi Christy, you can measure out the juice from the can and just include that as part of the liquid you add to the rice. As for scaling the recipe up, you're on your own there. Your guess is as good as mine. ~Elise

Also, I just read through the recipe and realize that I haven't been following the instructions on heating the broth first (oops!). I guess I haven't made it with hot broth so I don't know the difference on this. My rice seriously comes out fantastic without this step... have I just been lucky? Would it actually improve by using hot broth? WOULD APPRECIATE ANY INFO ON THIS!

we eat a lot of mexican food at our house..love it! my recipe involves a cast iron pot w/ lid. i start by roasting a couple garlic cloves in the hot pot. Peel and toss them in a food processor along with a can of Rotel, 1/2 of a small white onion and a bunch of fresh cilantro and blend. Add a couple T. of olive oil to the hot pot and add med. grain rice to hot oil. Med grain rice makes it much more authentic. Stir fry the rice until kinda browned. Add the sauce u made to the cooking rice...be careful, it will steam up at you!! I then add chicken broth, mix it up, cover and pop it in a prepared oven to cook for 25 min. Bring it out when done and let it sit a 5-10 min then uncover, fluff and enjoy! yummmmy!! never fails.

I really enjoyed this recipe. I added adobo and little more of the tomatoes. The taste was truly authentic!! I made some red beans with it, my house smelled awesome!! My family loved it. This one is a keeper! Thank you for sharing.

Add about a t of cumin for more flavor

Posted by: Heather on November 4, 2011 4:26 PM

Rice was great! I added a finely diced chipotle in adobo for a smoky kick - delicious!

This is the best Spanish rice I have ever made! Mine would often come out kind of gummy. I think browing the rice first helped and also using chicken broth instead of water definitely helped with the flavor. I also added a bit of chopped red, orange and yellow pepper for color and tast, and used part of a can of rotel type tomates and a bit of the jalapenos for the tomato component. My son, who said he did not like Spanish rice, loved it! Am taking it to a get together tonight, to go with shredded pork and tortillas, mexican fried potatoes, pintos and mexican corn.. lol.. my family loves mexican/latin foods! Thanks for the great recipe!

I knew there was a right way to make this. "Seek and ye shall cook" :) This rice is just a beautiful thing. Thank you!!

I cut up leftover BBQ rotisserie chicken and added with rice into the liquid-1 pot meal! Came out great.

Best Spanish rice I have ever had . Beats my grandmas and that's saying a lot

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