Holy bejeezus, I’ve figured out the holy grail of RICE, dudes. I don’t know where you come from, but where I come from, Mexican (and Tex-Mex) restaurants have the BEST rice in the world. It’s almost like Minute Rice with as fluffy and crumbly and soft as it is, but the grains still remain separate and it’s thick with garlic and onion and chickeny goodness. And lots of chicken fat or lard, probably – I can taste it in there.
So, yes, this rice is way more calorically dense than plain rice, but it’s also way way way more delicious.
- 1 cup dry long grain white rice
- 1 tablespoon butter or oil
- ½ cup diced onion
- ½ cup diced celery
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1½ cups rich chicken broth
- ½ teaspoon salt and pepper
- Put the rice in a sieve, and put the sieve in a bowl of enough water to completely cover the rice. Let soak for 15 minutes then drain.
- Saute over medium heat the onion, celery, garlic and bay.
- Add the rice and stir.
- Add the tomato paste and stir until the rice is coated with tomato paste and begins to look toasted – about a minute.
- Add the chicken broth and salt and pepper.
- Cover.
- Bring to boil, then reduce heat to simmer.
- Simmer 10 minutes and remove from heat but leave the lid on for another 5-15 minutes before serving.
- Fluff with a fork and serve.
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{ 32 comments… read them below or add one }
Ah, it’s a real staple in our house! We love Caribbean rice. Rice with black beans, with pigeon peas, with corn, with all manner of yummage. Try cooking with Goya’s sofrito or with achiote! I use just a spoonful of coconut oil, toss in some mango salsa, maybe cook it in unsweetened coconut milk, and boy howdy! You got every delicious violation of the health codes on your plate, ma’am!
Ooh, yum! That sounds great! It’s been a long time since I’ve had pigeon peas. Do you find them dried or canned? I think I’ve only ever seen them canned here. I love the coconut milk idea.
The best way to get them, because they take a long time to cook, is to buy them frozen if you can. But you can buy them canned or dried as well. We have a large Puerto Rican community, and pigeon peas and rice with roasted adobo pork is a Christmas tradition in many families. If you can buy recaito (a cilantro/lime/green pepper/garlic paste) you can make Arroz verde.
As for the coconut rice, I just sort of stumbled upon the idea, based on Thai cooking and Caribbean cooking. If you coat the rice (jasmine) in the coconut oil and sort of fry it before adding the coconut milk, it adds even more flavor.
I use a fresh made mango salsa that can be bought in the produce section of most grocery stores.
Now, a question: Have you ever had or made Tres Leches cake? If you make it for Freakzone, you can call it Très Lecherous cake…pardon my French.
Ha! That’s a great idea! I have made Tres Leches cake a couple of times. It’s been on the list for a while, but with that clever name it might actually get made now!
Have you tried it with Goya azafran ?
I haven’t. I’m sure it would work, though!
Looks amazingly delicious!! Can I give you one tip though? You can tell me to eff off.
Instead of soaking the rice, fry it by itself in oil until golden brown. That’s how we Mexicanos do it anyway. That is what insures that the rice kernels remain seperate and fluffy.
I believe that there is no right or wrong way to cook food if the results are good and yours looks very good indeed. And just as a side note, I love food and I want to die with a spoon in my mouth.
Hi Victor!
I will NEVER tell you to eff off!
I used to do it that way – that’s how my Mexicana friend taught me – but I don’t think that’s how the Tex-Mex places do it. At least, I haven’t ever gotten it super-fluffy with that method. Actually, I kind of suspect some places even use minute rice to get it that texture, but I have a moral issue with minute rice, so this is my fake minute rice.
Anyway, thanks for sharing your method. I totally agree with your philosophy of no right or wrong, just yummy or not.
It’s great to hear from you.
-h
That fork pic is the money shot.
Ha! Thank you!
thank you
I did this with a can of mixed vegetables. Sooo good. Quick and easy.
Thanks.
Glad you liked it!
Not a big fan of Mexican food, but I will agree the rice is amazing. I always wondered how they got it to taste the way it is. Just not sure what to serve with it… Anyway, can’t wait to try it out.
I did it with some steaks (thin ones you find, not with bones). I think it’ll go good with most meats.
It would be great with any meat, or anything with some saucy goodness for it to soak up.
I need the home made chicken stock recipe. Thanks!
OMG…. you are so beautiful in this vid!!!!! We love you Hilah. Keep up the fantastic work.
Thanks, Jack! You’re great!
When cooking rice do you brown it at all?
Hi Johnny!
I assume you’re talking about just cooking plain rice here and if so, then, no, I don’t brown or toast it first. For just regular plain old rice, combine a cup of rice with two cups of water and a pinch of salt in a saucepot and cover with a tight lid. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to simmer and cook 15 minutes.
Does that answer your question?
Yei! I’m mexican but I never learnt how to cook rice! :/ I’ll use your tricks today and see if finally I can serve a decent rice haha. Thank you Hilah! Without your recipes I don’t know what I would be eating but I’m sure it wouldn’t be good
I hope it’s exactly what you want it to be, Chris! Thanks for writing.
I’ve been putting together “Spanish Rice” for 40 years… We eat it most weeks..I’ve adopted various ingredients to enhance tastes, etc., but… the texture basically remained the same.. Good but not…well..just the way I wanted it..
This “soaking the rice” tip has lifted my Spanish Rice approval rating (from family and friends) by leaps and bounds..
Thank you, Hilah
Hi Ross! I’m so so happy to hear this helped you in your quest. I was ecstatic when I finally figured out the soaking trick. Really glad to hear other people are as excited as I am about it.
I did it! Yeah! Good stuff! I’m from NM and moved to Missouri (Misery) and really miss New Mexican food. Mil Gracias – 1,000 Thanks!
That’s great, Chris! I’m glad you share my joy over fluffy rice!
This is our new favorite recipe. I added green peppers from the garden and some leftover chicken, yum! Keep up the great tips.
Thank you, Marj! Great idea you had to make it into a full meal with chicken. Glad you enjoyed it!
Omg, I hadn’t made Mexican rice in so long – I tried this version and it was sooo good! I never would have thought to add a bay leaf to the rice. I might have over-salted it just a little, but the flavor was really good – reminded me of Rice-a-Roni, but better.
I saw Victor’s comment about frying the rice right off the bat, so I did it that way (my Mexican family does that, too). I didn’t add celery just because I was too lazy to chop it. Also, I was nervous about turning off the heat after 10 minutes, because there was still a lot of liquid and I was afraid the rice wouldn’t cook fully. So I let it simmer for 15 minutes, turned off the heat, and by the time I finished preparing my fajitas, the lid on the rice stayed on for a good 20 minutes. When I lifted the lid, I was nervous about how it looked (the tomato paste gave it a good dark color) – but I fluffed it with a fork and it was delicious
Thanks, Linda!
Glad you enjoyed the recipe (with your own twist, of course!).
I think the bay leaf really adds a lot, right? I love it.
Hi Hilah! I love watching your videos; you’re so entertaining and your food always looks good. I tried making this rice today and even though I used ketchup instead of tomato paste, it still tasted awesome! Thanks for the recipe:)