Homemade Spanish Rice (Quick and Easy Recipe)

Learn to make easy, tender, fluffy, foolproof Spanish rice every time at home with a handful of common ingredients and in just 25 minutes.

5 from 4 votes

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Course: Dinner, Lunch, Side Dish

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: Mexican rice, Spanish rice

Prep Time: 5

Cook Time: 20

Total Time: 25

Servings:

Calories: 258kcal

Rinse the rice 3 to 4 times in water or until the water looks clear. Place the rice in a bowl and add enough water to cover. Soak the rice for 15-20 minutes.
Then strain the rice using a mesh strainer and set it aside.
Heat oil in a pan. Add onion and garlic. Saute for 2 minutes or until onions soften.
Add drained rice. Gently saute the rice for 2 minutes until slightly toasted. Do it with a light hand to avoid breaking the rice grains.
Add blended tomatoes, chili powder, ground cumin, oregano, and salt. Mix well until everything is well combined.
Add vegetable stock and chopped cilantro and stir to mix.
Bring the rice to a boil over high flame. Once the water on the surface of the rice dries up, reduce the heat to the lowest, cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and cook for 10 minutes.
Turn off the flame and allow the rice to sit covered for 5 minutes undisturbed. Serve immediately garnished with chopped cilantro. Enjoy!

The ratio of rice to liquid should be 1:2, which means for 1 cup of uncooked rice, you will need 2 cups of liquid.
Always rinse the rice; otherwise, the rice will be sticky. Rinsing the rice well helps remove all the powdery starch from its surface to prevent sticking. It also cleans up the dirt, if any.
Soaking the rice for 15-20 minutes helps quick-cooking, and also it will produce perfectly cooked fluffy rice.
Before adding tomatoes and stock, sauteing the rice makes the rice even more fragrant and delicious.
Cook the rice in stock, not water. Stock/broth adds so much flavor to the rice, don't skip it.
Make sure to cover the pan/pot with a tight-fitting lid.
1 servings = 1 cup cooked rice = ½ cup uncooked rice