How to: Spanish Rice - my favorite way to make spicy Spanish (or Mexican) rice from scratch! It's so easy and the rice is full of flavor.
You can make perfect Fluffy Rice without a rice cooker. Serve this Spanish rice with enchiladas or tacos.
This recipe is what makes our taco nights rock! Last year, we decided that we should make our own Spanish rice for our Mexican dinners so we set out to experiment and make one that we will love. It had to be easy, perfectly cooked and spiced and of course, yummy. And here it is: our homemade, made from scratch with just a few ingredients Spanish rice.toast it up in melted butter. I used the same technique here, with the addition of olive oil, onions and garlic. This adds more flavor and lets the veggies cook before adding liquids.
Ingredients:
- butter
- olive oil
- long-grain rice
- garlic
- red onion
- water
- tomato sauce
- ground cumin
- paprika
- chili powder
- salt
Instructions:
- Saute garlic and onion in melted butter.
- Add rice and toast it for a few minutes.
- Add spices, water and tomato sauce. Stir well.
- Bring to boil, stirring often.
- Lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes. No peeking! Every time you lift the lid, you let out the moisture the rice needs to cook. Keep the lid on and the heat low.
- Remove from heat and fluff with fork.
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Best tips:
- I learned that adding warm (or almost hot) tap water to toasted rice helps achieve the perfect fluffy rice in the end. Just be careful, the mixture will be bubbling!
- Increase the amount of spices for added heat to your rice.
- Don't skip toasting the rice. It will make the best fluffy rice in the end.
Serving:
Cook chicken breast (cut bite-size) in taco seasoning, 1 cup whole kernel corn, 1 can black beans (rinsed) and cook it all together. Add rice last. Top with cheddar cheese, chopped fresh Roma tomatoes, avocados and dollops of sour cream. Dinner is served! 😀
Related recipes:
- Perfect Fluffy Rice (without the rice cooker)
- Cauliflower Rice (2 ways)
- Fiesta Rice
- Instant Pot Refried Beans
- Black Beans and Rice
If you like this recipe and make it, snap a photo and share it on INSTAGRAM! Tag me @crunchycreamysweet so I can check it out! 😀
Spanish Rice
Ingredients
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup rice I used long grain
- 2 garlic cloves minced or grated
- ½ medium red onion chopped
- 1 cup warm tap water
- 1 cup tomato sauce one 8oz. can plus a little more
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Melt butter with olive oil in a medium pot.
- Add onions and garlic and stir together. Saute for 2 minutes.
- Add rice and toast for about 3 to 4 minutes on medium heat. Stir constantly.
- Add water, tomato sauce and all spices. Stir well.
- Bring mixture to boil, stirring often. Make sure the rice doesn't stick to the bottom.
- Lower the heat to simmer, stir one more time, cover the pot and let cook for 15 minutes.
- Check rice, stir with a fork and remove from heat.
- Let sit uncovered for 10 minutes before serving.
Michelle says
This is hands down the best Spanish rice recipe I've ever made. The flavors are rich, bold, and perfectly balanced with just the right amount of spice. I love how Anna combines simple pantry ingredients to create something that tastes like it came from a restaurant. The instructions were clear and easy to follow, and the rice turned out fluffy and full of flavor. So much better than the boxed kind I'll never go bac. Thank you, Anna, for another amazing recipe I’ll be making again and again.
Judy Shea says
This is a great recipe 😋
I love it! The only thing I did differently was I added a little onion and garlic and I'll definitely make this again many times over
Marianne says
This recipe is delicious! Do yourself a favor and make this!! Only issue I had was the rice sticking and burning a little bit during simmering. Would recommend stirring it and scraping the bottom during the simmering process.
AnnMarie says
Love this recipe and so does everyone I share it with. I usually have to add a little more water for whatever reason and I usually double it. Can’t have to much.
Anna@CrunchyCreamySweet says
Hi AnnMarie! Thank you so much! I am so happy to know you love it! It's one of my favorites!
April W says
I always do taco night yet I have never ever made home made Spanish rice before! Just to be quick I would buy the 90 second Uncle Ben's (YUCK!) Stumbled upon this recipe and WOW! My mom never eats Spanish rice, not even from restaurants usually and she had seconds! Not even going to bother trying any other recipe! Thank you!
Nikki says
Well it's good to try other recipes. So you and your mom can see what ingredients you like. Then from there you can add and take away ingredients to make your own Spanish rice.
Lynn says
This is one of my favorite dishes from childhood - but from a package! I can't wait to give this a try.
Michelle says
I can't wait to try this, Anna! We eat Mexican food all the time...I don't know why I've never made spanish rice! Thanks for the inspiration! Pinning for later!
Erin says
Good Spanish rice makes taco night so much better! This looks amazing, I need to add taco night to the menu soon!
Katerina says
I can only imagine how fragrant this is! I need to jump on this asap!
Des says
You had me at butter and fluffy rice! Goes well with a lot of my favorites dishes.
Stephanie says
This is the only kind of rice I really like! Looks perfect!
Meg says
I love having Spanish rice with any Mexican Dish! It completes the meal for sure!
Lori says
I' m so happy to see this recipe. My mom made Spanish rice from scratch ALL THE TIME when I was little! I've never actually made it myself. Totally saving this one!