Easy Homemade Spanish Rice

Looking for an easy way to make Spanish Rice? With this recipe, you can make it simple or dress it up with beef or chicken for a delicious hearty meal. Make a pot of homemade Spanish Rice for dinner tonight.

I love Spanish Rice but I always had problems cooking it. If I followed most recipes, the rice would still be hard and I’d have to keep adding more and more liquids and cook it for an hour, two or even more. White rice should cook much faster than that.

But I was determined not to give up. I kept experimenting with it until I finally came up with a recipe that not only tastes great, is simple to put together and makes tender fluffy rice in under 30 minutes. Now I can satisfy my Spanish Rice cravings without being tied to the stove for hours.

One of the things I love about this recipe is that I can make a simple pot of spicy rice or easily dress it up with vegetables and leftover meat or chicken. It tastes great either way and I can adjust it to fit my schedule.

Homemade Spanish Rice

You can make this recipe with either white rice or brown rice. If using brown rice, use 1 cup brown rice to 2 ¼ cups of chicken broth and increase the cooking time to 40-45 minutes.

Bring the chicken broth to a boil. Add the rice.

Add the cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper and stir well.

Bring the mixture back to a rolling boil, then turn down to simmer. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.

Once the rice is done, remove from heat but leave the lid on for a few minutes to allow it to continue to steam. Then fluff it with a fork.

While the rice is cooking, chop the onion, garlic, and bell pepper.

Melt the butter in a skillet and saute the onion, garlic, and bell pepper until soft.

Add the cooked vegetables to the rice and stir well.

Add in the tomato sauce and stir until well blended.

This homemade Spanish rice tastes great even without the vegetables and tomato sauce. If you need a quick side dish and don’t have time to chop vegetables, give it a try.

Homemade Spanish Rice

You can make this recipe with either white rice or brown rice. If using brown rice, use 1 cup brown rice to 2 ¼ cups of water and increase the cooking time to 40-45 minutes.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Total Time 30 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Rice Dishes

Cuisine Mexican

Ingredients

  

• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup white rice
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 clove garlic chopped
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 bell pepper chopped
• 1 cup tomato sauce

Instructions

 

• Bring the chicken broth to a boil.
• Add the rice.
• Add the cumin, chili powder, salt, and pepper and stir well.
• Bring the mixture back to a rolling boil, then turn down to simmer. Cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.
• Once the rice is done, remove from heat but leave the lid on for a few minutes to allow it to continue to steam. Then fluff it with a fork.
• While the rice is cooking, chop the onion, garlic, and bell pepper.
• Melt the butter in a skillet and sauté the onion, garlic, and bell pepper until soft.
• Add the cooked vegetables to the rice and stir well.
• Add in the tomato sauce and stir until well blended.

Keyword Spanish Rice

You can also mix in cooked ground beef or chicken for the ultimate in spicy comfort food.

For more homemade comfort food, check out our recipe for homemade spaghetti sauce.