Mexican rice is so delicious and so easy to make at home. You may never need to visit your favorite Mexican food restaurant again. I serve this rice with ever Mexican dish I fix.
Mexican food is a staple at our house. It makes a weekly appearance at our dinner table, sometimes twice. We also eat a lot of rice at our house, especially with Mexican food. One of my favorite rice recipes is for Lime Cilantro Rice.
I also love the red rice you get in most Mexican restaurants. The only problem is I haven’t been able to find a recipe for that type of rice that I really like. I usually end up going to our local neighborhood restaurant and getting some to go!
Recently, my friend Sherra’s twin girls graduated from high school. They had a taco bar for their graduation party and Sherra told me about her friend Ann’s Mexican rice recipe she was making. One taste and I knew I had to ask for the recipe!
I commented at the dinner table that I thought it tasted just as good as the rice we get from our favorite Mexican restaurant. And one of the kids said “It’s better!!”
How to Make Mexican Rice
This recipe was so easy to make. The trick is brown the rice in some oil before adding in the liquid. Just heat the oil in the pan and then add the rice. Cook it over medium high heat, stirring occasionally, until the rice is a nice tan color.
Once the rice is brown, add the chicken stock, tomato juice, salt and pepper. Then reduce the heat, add a tight lid, and let it simmer until all of the liquid is absorbed. Finally, turn off the heat and let the rice sit with the lid on for about 10 minutes. And just like that you will have fluffy and delicious Mexican rice that is just as good, if not better, than your favorite restaurant!
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Mexican Rice Recipe
Mexican Rice
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 C long grain white rice
- 2 C chicken broth
- 1 small can tomato juice - 5.5 oz.
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a skillet
- Add the rice
- Stir frequently and slightly brown the rice (more like, make it tan) over a medium high heat
- Add the chicken broth, tomato juice, and some salt and pepper.
- Stir thoroughly
- Reduce heat to simmer and cover tightly with a lid
- (I 'stir' the mixture several times while it's cooking by just shaking/moving the skillet back and forth so that I don't take the lid off.)
- Simmer/cook for about 20 minutes, until the liquid has been absorbed
- Once the liquid has been absorbed, turn off the heat and leave mixture alone with the lid on it for another 10-15 minutes or so
Video
Nutrition
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Leigh Anne,
Greetings from Orange County, Ca. I made your Razzleberry Pie this weekend. Success! Your recipe for homemade pie crust was easy to follow. Hello good tasting homemade pies for Thanksgiving and every other celebration. I also made your pumpkin chili. Delicious! You had me at, “even if you don’t like pumpkin, you will love this”. You were right. The pumpkin adds a bit of sweetness. Perfect! 2 for 2, can’t wait to try more. This is a great way to welcome fall. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed the recipes! Thanks for letting me know!
I’m so glad I happened upon this recipe a couple years ago. This is exactly like the rice served at the local Mexican restaurant. I prepare it as written and it’s become a wonderful accompaniment to all my Hispanic dishes. Thank you, Leigh Anne. I’m grateful for food bloggers who share such great recipes that I don’t even care about going out to eat anymore. I’m eating better and cheaper at home more than I ever have.
Kat, So glad you enjoy the recipes! Thanks so much for your kind comment.
Great recipe! Only thing I add is about 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon onion powder! Your instructions are easy to follow and understand. I make rice every few days!
I’m Mexican and this is exactly how I do my rice except I use tomato sauce and chicken bouillon instead of salt
Once in a while I’ll your knorr tomato boullion as well
Loved this recipe wouldn’t change a thing. I’ll never buy boxed rice again. Thank you! 🙂
Followed recipe but mine did not look like this, however I added a can of crushed tomatoes instead of tomato juice and chopped onion and garlic, still quite tasty but maybe too much liquid.
This recipe is the bomb! The most authentic Mexican restaurant-style rice with a nice fluffy texture and taste, it is super delicious! I used a spicy tomato sauce which gave the rice a nice kick (as I like a little heat). Thank you for sharing your culinary talents with us.
Mary, So glad you loved the rice too!
I do intend to try this I have never been able to make Mexican rice and this sounds so easy
Hope you enjoy it – it’s super easy.
I wanted to make a simple Mexican rice dish. I wanted something more simple than my usual. I ran across this. It is delicious ! SO EASY. Except for a tsp or so of garlic powder, and about 3/4 cup finely chopped onion, I followed the recipe. Oops and a pinch of cayenne. A new favorite. ????
Is rice cooked or uncooked before browning?
uncooked
it would be nice to have a print button
Donna, There is a print button, it is right under the photo in the recipe, at the bottom of the post.
This was delicious! I found your website a couple of days ago, and I’m looking forward to trying more of your recipes! Thank you for sharing Leigh Anne.
I am a American Mexican and I do my rice similar to this but I put in cumin and garlic salt instead of salt or garlic powder with the salt. I don’t put the whole can of tomato sauce because it’s too much tasting tomato sauce. Try it with cumin in it, it adds a better flavor to it !
This recipe is almost exactly the way I was taught to make it by an acquaintance from Mexico over 30 years go. I never make it any other way. Yummy! Exceptions for me are tomato sauce not juice, add cumin, onions, and chopped green chilies. Also one CHICKEN bouillon cube. Let simmer until LIQUID is absorbed.
have you tried adapting this to a rice cooker? do you think it would be the same?
I haven’t tried it in a rice cooker, let me know if you try it.
I make a similar version of this rice. Instead of tomato juice I use picante sauce. Gives the rice an extra kick.
When you add the rice is it cooked or raw?
Carly, it is still raw, it has just been lightly cooked until it turns lightly brown.
How many ounces in the “small can of tomato juice” ?
5.5 oz – the small individual serving size can
How big is a small can? I know what a small can of tomato SAUCE is—-but I’m not sure what a small can of juice is.
when you say small can of tomato juice are you talking about the size of a soda can?
Thanks, sounds great!
Skip the tomato juice just use knorr. Thats what mexican use we blend tknorr buillons with water tomato onion and.somw.garlic.
Thanks for the great tip – will give it a try!
I made this for me and my teenage daughter(who is so picky, actually went for seconds) and we loved it!!! I have tried other recipes, but this is the best. The only thing I changed is adding cumin, garlic salt and using Maggi chicken and tomato bouillon in the place of chicken broth and tomato sauce. But still, your recipe was the best that I have tried. Thank you for sharing!!!
When a recipe calls for both chicken broth and some kind of tomato ingredient (sauce, juice, etc.), I substitute Knorr Tomato Bouillon with Chicken Flavor. I use 1 tsp. bouillon in 1 cup water for each cup of broth. It works really well in my Mexican Rice.
I’m going to try this! It sounds similiar to what my Mom used to make!
I just recently found your site — immediately added it to my Reader. Love it!
I made this rice, along with the Costa Vida Chicken. So good! I’m linking to both recipes from my blog. Thanks!
We do a lot of rice in my family. My kids love what we have dubbed Stewed tomato rice,
One cup stewed tomatoes, (squished)
One cup water or chicken broth,
One cup brown rice,
Cover slightly in microwave safe bowl, cook 30 mintutes in microwave, fluff with fork & add 2 tblsp butter.
I have a recipe for Mexican rice which is a lot like yours except for the tomato juice you add salsa (I use Pace picante).
1 C. rice
2 T. butter
Saute together until golden. Add 1 3/4 c. hot water and 3/4 c. Salsa. Stir, bring to boil, turn to simmer, add lid and cook for 20 minutes until done.
Lol. No self respecting Hispanic makes Spanish rice with salsa. C’mon!
Don’t knock it until you tried it 🙂
Thanks for the recipe. I will definitely try this. We do a lot of Mexican as well and I can never seem to make a good rice dish to go along with it!
My “To try” file is getting larger and larger by the day. In only 10 days I’ll be married and in 3 weeks I can start making some of your yummy creations. Hugs and thanks for all the work to share with us.
Thanks for your site! I am constantly marking recipes to try.
This sounds yummy and we’ll try it soon. But thought I’d also share our mexican rice recipe since it’s so easy…
Replace some of the water for rice with red enchilada sauce (your own proportions). Then make your rice as normal.
Simple. Yummy. Works especially great when I’m making enchiladas with the sauce too.