This easy Spanish Rice is the perfect accompaniment to all Mexican recipes, chicken, steak, in burritos, or all by itself!
Other rice dishes we love to the moon and back include mushroom rice, cilantro lime rice, and this rice pilaf (<< my family affectionally refers to that as “THE rice” because it’s so good and I make it all the time!
I absolutely love rice. Most grains, really. I grew up on them. My mom was always making stir fry, pilaf, or Spanish rice. In fact, if a bowl of rice and a bowl of pasta were sitting in front of me and I could only choose one…I’d go for the rice. I can do make a meal out it, no problem.
So, it should come as no surprise that my Zojirushi rice cooker is one of my most beloved and used appliances. It was also my very first appliance ever owned! And I believe this was the first rice dish I ever made. Still love it today more than ever.
Spanish Rice Recipe
Here’s what you’ll need:
*Don’t miss the full printable recipe below with measurements and details.
- For sautéeing: extra-virgin olive oil and unsalted butter.
- Vegetables: sweet onion, red bell pepper, and fresh garlic.
- Seasonings: cumin and kosher salt.
- Rice: we use long. grain white rice.
- Liquid: low-sodium chicken broth for added flavor.
- Canned ROTEL: this is diced tomatoes with green chilies.
- Cilantro: freshly chopped. You can use parsley, if you prefer.
How to Make Spanish Rice
- In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high, heat the olive oil and butter until melted and bubbly. Add in the onions and bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the garlic, cumin, salt, and rice and cook for another minute, stirring constantly so the rice doesn’t burn.
- Add the Rotel and chicken stock to the pan with the onion mixture. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Rice should not be sticky. Serve and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.
How to Make Spanish Rice in a Rice Cooker
Some people scoff at the idea of a rice cooker, but as mentioned about, I absolutely love mine. It cooks the grains perfectly and knows when to stop on its own. It knows the difference between white rice, brown rice, sushi rice, porridge, and whether I want the grains to have a softer or harder texture! Plus it has a “warm” setting. My rice maker is super smart, y’all. I use it even when I’m only cooking up two cups.
If you have a rice cooker and want to cook this Spanish Rice in it, here’s how: after step 2, above, add the mixture to a rice cooker along with the Rotel and chicken stock; stir to combine. Set the cooker to “quick cooking.” When the timer goes off in about 20 minutes, fluff with a fork, serve, and sprinkle with the chopped cilantro. Easy!
Storing Leftovers
Allow any leftovers to cool completely, then store in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep 4-5 days.
Can you freeze Spanish rice? Yep! Simply cool to room temp, then store in an airtight freezer-safe container or freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
What to Eat with Spanish Rice
This recipe is great with grilled chicken, steak, alongside refried beans, or all on its own! To make it more of a meal, add in some cooked ground beef or sausage. So good. There are about a bazillion things you can serve with Spanish rice. These are just a few of our favorites:
I hope you love this delicious and easy recipe – be sure to give it a review below! Also don’t forget to follow Belly Full on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube!
Easy Spanish Rice
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 medium sweet onion , diced small
- 1 small red bell pepper , seeds and ribs removed, diced small
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups long grain white rice
- 10 ounce can ROTEL (diced tomatoes with green chilies) , undrained
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
- fresh chopped cilantro
Instructions
- In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high, heat the olive oil and butter until melted and bubbly. Add in the onions and bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the garlic, cumin, salt, and rice and cook for another minute, stirring constantly so the rice doesn’t burn.
- Add the Rotel and chicken stock to the pan with the onion mixture. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.
- Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Rice should not be sticky. Serve and sprinkle with chopped cilantro.
- NOTE: if you want to make this in a rice cooker, you can. After step 2, add the mixture to your rice cooker along with the Rotel and chicken stock; stir to combine and set the cooker to “quick cooking.” When the timer goes off in about 20 minutes, fluff with a fork, serve, and sprinkle with the chopped cilantro.
Im adding protein next time to make it a complete dish…perfect
Great! I like it less spicy, so I made it with a can of diced tomatoes and a small can of mild green chiles. Also made it with brown rice, simply adding half a cup of broth. And it was really good…thank you!
This Spanish Rice looks delicious. I will have to try it. I hope it will work with brown rice. I did not know Zojrushi made a rice cooker. I have a Zojrushi bread maker and I love it. I am sure the rice cooker is just as good . I would love to have one
I use my Redmond 4500 (it’s multicooker) and I really happy with the result. Some more recepies like that are in cook book of Redmond. It’s very fast and tasty, thank u! Give more resepes
Rice is necessity and I love how this came out! Looks delicious and perfect for any Cinco de Mayo menu!
The recipe is quite different from mine that you grew up with (originating from Nan) but looks very good. I just use a combination of tomato sauce, water, salt and a generous amount of black pepper. I also saute the rice in rendered pork fat which gives a different flavor. I’ll try yours and see how it fares!
Ah, that’s right. Now I remember. This one is very different, so it might be like comparing apples to oranges. Either way, Dad won’t like it!
Great recipe , I’m putting it on my Cinco de Mayo menu! I’ve never actually owned a rice cooker. I know others who swear by them!
Hope this is how to enter. Thanks.
Hi Lawrence… it’s not. You need to enter through the widget provided, as explained in the blog post. Good luck!
BEST rice cooker in the world! I wouldn’t trade mine for anything. Actually used it tonight to make rice for stir fry!
I hope I win. I’ve never had a rice cooker and this one sounds amazing!
Looks awesome!
I need a rice cooker so bad! Thanks for the great giveaway!
Hi Pam and Lenore! If you want to enter the giveaway, you need to submit your info through the widget within the post. Thanks and good luck!
I still have the rice cooker (same company) That I bought when we were stationed in Japan in 1989-1992. Sure could use a new one. That recipe looks yummy.
Having a rice cooker would be a useful and needed addition to my kitchen. The forever battle between the rice and i have is similar to a carnival game, once in a while you win (the rice actually comes out the right way), but most times you lose (sometimes the rice is partially uncooked or ends up that mass of stuck together starch glop. A person can make the tastiest of concoctions but if the rice isn’t the right consistency the meal is not a winner. I speak from too much experience.