Go Back
–+ servings
authentic Mexican rice with fire roasted tomatoes in a blue skillet
Print Pin

Easy Mexican Rice Recipe

This Mexican Rice rivals any restaurant, is so easy to make at home and the perfect addicting side for all your Mexican dishes! It’s light, fluffy, infused with flavor. This rice is already easy but I’ve also included alternate “lazy day” instructions in the NOTES with zero chopping for the easiest and tastiest Mexican rice! Also check out the notes for options to make Mexican Rice with black beans, peas, carrots and corn.
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 8 -10

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 medium onion chopped
  • 2 cups basmati rice well rinsed and drained*
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 1-3 jalapeno peppers seeded, deveined, minced
  • 2 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup (8 oz.) tomato sauce
  • 1 14 oz. can fire-roasted tomatoes well drained
  • 2 teaspoons (or 2 chopped cubes) TOMATO bouillon with chicken flavor see notes**
  • 3 tablespoons mild chopped green chiles
  • 1/2 tsp EACH ground cumin, chili powder, dried oregano
  • 1/4 tsp EACH ground coriander, smoked paprika, salt

Garnish

Instructions

  • Heat oil in a Dutch oven or large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Once hot, add onions and rice and sauté for 3 minutes then add jalapenos and sauté until rice is toasted, approximately 2-3 more minutes. Add garlic and sauté 30 seconds.
  • Stir in all remaining Rice ingredients (except for cilantro and lime juice garnish). Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to LOW. Simmer 12-15 minutes, or until water is evaporated and rice is tender, stirring once at 8 minutes and replacing lid.
  • Once water is evaporated, remove from heat, stir, cover and let sit undisturbed for 10 minutes.
  • Add cilantro and lime juice if desired and fluff with a fork. Taste and season with additional salt or lime juice if desired.

Video

Notes

Don't miss the "how to make" recipe video at the top of the post!

TIPS AND TRICKS

  • *Use basmati rice for best results. Other types of rice will likely stick together and can easily get mushy (see above section). Basmati rice is located with all the other rice varieties at your grocery store.
  • Rinse and drain rice thoroughly. This is crucial to remove the extra starch from the rice so it doesn’t cook up sticky and mushy.  To rinse, place rice in a fine mesh sieve and thoroughly rinse rice under cool running water until the water runs clear.
  • Sauté Rice until toasted.  After toasting your rice, don’t worry that the rice doesn’t look like it’s toasted evenly, we are just looking for some of the rice to be toasted indicating that that the flavor is developed.
  • **Tomato bullion cubes!  Tomato bouillon are the secret ingredient to this Restaurant-Style Mexican Rice and are what turns the rice into that characteristic orange color.   Tomato bouillon cubes or powder can be found in almost every grocery store for about $2.  They are located either next to the chicken bouillon (where I found mine) or in the Mexican food aisle. If you can't find them, then substitute with chicken bouillon. 
  • If liquid evaporates before rice is done, then add just a little liquid, keeping in mind that the rice will continue to steam for 10 minutes once it’s removed from heat, so it doesn’t need to be 100% cooked once liquid is gone.
  • If rice is still wet, don’t worry, it will continue to absorb the 10 minutes while it is steaming.  When you remove the lid after 10 minutes, you can let the rice sit an additional 5-10 minutes to dry out.
  • Cilantro to taste.  You will notice we use both coriander and cilantro in this Mexican Rice recipe but they actually taste different even though they both come from the cilantro plant. Dried/ground coriander is the seed of the cilantro plant and tastes sweet, warm and toasty while whereas cilantro adds the fresh, fruity citrus punch.  If you don’t have coriander on hand you can omit it, I just think it adds a little “something-something” special.

rice cooker INSTRUCTIONS

Add the rice, tomato sauce and the amount of broth your rice cooker calls for then add the rest of the ingredients (omit olive oil) substituting with 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder and the jalapeno with pinch-¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper.

LAZY DAY EASY MEXICAN RICE

To eliminate all chopping and make this rice strictly “dump and run” you can use the following substitutions:
  • Substitute onion powder with 1 teaspoon onion powder.
  • Substitute garlic with 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
  • Substitute jalapeno with pinch-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper..

Mexican rice and vegetables

You can add any sorts of veggies to your Mexican Rice.  Often Mexican Rice is served with carrots, corn and peas.  You will want anywhere from 1-2 cups veggies depending on your personal preference.
  • Mexican Rice and Beans: Rinse and drain beans well then add to the pot when you add the chicken broth.
  • Mexican Rice with Carrots:  If using fresh carrots, dice them and add to the pot when you add the jalapenos.
  • Mexican Rice with Corn:  If using canned corn, rinse, drain and add to pot with chicken broth.
  • Mexican Rice with Peas:  Use thawed, frozen, petite peas (never canned!) and stir them into your rice after it has cooked but before you recover and let sit 10 minutes.
  • Mexican Rice with Frozen Mixed Vegetables: Like the peas, if you use frozen, corn or carrots, stir them into your rice after it has cooked but before you recover and let the pot sit 10 minutes.  You can even buy frozen mixed vegetables with corn, peas and carrots for the easiest option.

HOW TO STORE & REHEAT

Mexican Rice stores beautifully!  The extra time allows the flavors to build and meld even further.
  • Refrigerate:  Let Mexican Rice cool to room temperature then transfer to a tightly covered airtight container or to several small containers for meal prep. Store in the refrigerator for 4 to 5 days.
  • Microwave: For small portions, microwave rice in a microwave safe container with a couple teaspoons water for 60-90 seconds or until warmed through.
  • Stove:  For larger portions, transfer Mexican Rice to a nonstick skillet along with a dash of water or chicken broth.  Heat over medium heat, stirring often until warmed through.

HOW TO FREEZE 

This easy Mexican Rice  can also be frozen:
  • Let the rice cool completely before transferring to a freezer bag (recommended) or freezer-safe airtight container.  If using a bag, squeeze out as much excess air as possible to prevent freezer burn.
  • Label and freeze for up to 3 months.
  • Let rice defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
  • Reheat in the microwave or stove as directed above.