Mexican Rice

This Mexican rice is a great side dish that goes well with many ethnic cuisines

Honestly, I’ve never heard of Mexican rice. Why is that, I wonder. Oh sure, there’s rice that’s served with Mexican food…the standard rice and beans. It’s not really Mexican rice. It’s just rice. The Spaniards have their version of rice. I love Spanish rice. Yet, somewhere along the line, Mexican cooks ignored rice and just served it up as bland as white on rice.

The thing is, a Mexican meal almost demands rice. Rice and beans is the norm. Without them, the meal somehow just doesn’t seem complete. Why not kick up the flavor and create a rice that truly compliments a Mexican entree? After all, Mexican cuisine offers some incredible flavors to work with. When you think of all the great ingredients available from the Mexican pantry, there’s really no excuse for boring rice.

It’s time to put an end to all that. My belief is that a side dish will remain a side dish until it is given some love and attention. Then it becomes an integral part of the meal. Join me as I boycott bland rice and balance my plate with flavor. Give this Mexican rice a try. I think you’ll like it.

Mexican Rice

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

30 mins

 

While this rice dish goes perfectly with Mexican food, it also compliments many other ethnic cuisines. Indonesian, Caribbean or Indian, just to name a few.

Author: Gary Glen

Recipe type: Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Serves: 4

Go Get This Stuff

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 small onion, diced
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, finely diced
• 1 medium tomato, pith removed and chopped
• 2 cups instant white rice
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• hot sauce to taste (optional)

Then Do This

1. In a frying pan, heat vegetable oil over a medium heat.
2. Add onions, garlic and jalapeño pepper. Saute until onions are soft and translucent.
3. Add rice and cook until it begins to brown, while stirring. About 5 to 6 minutes.
4. Gently stir in chicken broth, then the remaining ingredients except the cilantro.
5. Continue to cook while occasionally stirring. Cook until the desired constancy is achieved and chicken broth has been absorbed.
6. Remove from heat and cover. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.
7. Add cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, hot sauce, if desired and mix well.
8. Consistency may need to be adjusted prior to serving by mixing in additional chicken stock.
9. Garnish with more chopped cilantro, if desired and serve immediately.

Notes

The amount of flavor ingredients in this recipe are just a guideline. Increase according to your personal preference. For instance, I add way more cilantro and cumin than this recipe calls for.

3.2.2925

Recipe © 2015 Gary Glen | Photo © 2015 Gary Glen | All rights reserved

Keeping South of the Border in mind, you may like these.

Mexican Baked Beans Here’s an alternative to the regular beans normally served with Mexican food and should be mandatory with Mexican barbeque. Click the image for the recipe.

Chicken Taco Soup This taco soup is a favorite lunch recipe. It also goes great with any Mexican cuisine. Spice it up with some diced jalapenos if you wish. Click the image for the recipe.

Mexican Red Rice Arroz a la Mexicana or Mexican-style red rice is a tasty rice dish that gets its color and flavor from tomatoes. A great side dish. Click the image for the recipe.