20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (2024)

Who doesn't love rice? It's so flexible and easy going, it's pretty much willing to hang out with any kind of food you throw at it!

I remember when I finally cracked the rice code. For some reason I thought I needed a rice cooker to make perfect rice, but that is not true at all. Sure, a rice cooker can be handy, but unless you're cooking rice every day, you totally do not need it. If you have a pot and a stove, you're good to go!

Here's what you do:

- Place water (1 and 1/2 cups for white rice, 2 cups for brown) in a medium pot with about ½ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil.

- Add 1 cup of rice, return to a boil, and stir so the rice doesn't stick to the bottom.

- Once the rice is boiling, give it one last good stir then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Let cook covered (no stirring!), ~20-25 minutes for white rice and ~45 minutes for brown rice.

- To see if the rice is done, just take a quick peak (glass lids are helpful!) and you should see little holes throughout the surface. It's best to keep the lid on, but don't be afraid to open it quickly for a taste to make sure the rice is cooked through.

- Remove from heat, leave covered and let sit for 10 minutes – this is an important step and helps the moisture spread evenly throughout the rice.

- Uncover, fluff with a fork and eat!

- Cooking times and water amounts may need to be adjusted depending on your stove and the type of rice you use. Feel free to experiment!

For basic rice, calrose rice is good if you want nice sticky rice and jasmine rice is good if you want, you guessed it, un-sticky rice.

Rice is great as a simple side dish, as a base to top with aweseome sauces and meats, or mixed right into the main dish. Here are 20 recipes to help you do all those things!

Beyond Basic Rice

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (1)

Easy enough for a weeknight with the roomie but impressive and tasty for a special night, too!

Make Citrus Rice from Home Cooking Memories

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (2)

As delicious as something you'd eat in a restaurant, but this version is even healthier, and you can flavor it to your taste.

Make Mexican Rice from Dinner, Dishes & Desserts

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (3)

The best food served at Chipotle? The rice. Now you can make it yourself, no waiting in line required!

Make Cilantro Lime Rice from This Week for Dinner

Recipes to Top Your Rice

This simple Korean dish is beyond delicious, and rice never looked so damn beautiful.

Make Dolsot Bibimbap from Savory Simple

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (5)

If you need some good comfort food (and who doesn't?), these meatballs are for you.

Make Turkey Meatballs with Red Pepper Sauce from This Mama Loves

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (6)

Crockpots aren't just for your mom's potluck anymore; in fact, it's getting kind of cool to own one. Easy recipes and lots of leftovers is always in style, especially when there's Hawaiian BBQ sauce involved.

Make Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Over Rice from Like Mother Like Daughter

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (7)

Impress your friends with this takeout fake out!

Make Spicy Orange Chicken from Flavor Mosaic

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (8)

This stir-fry doubles as a love potion — whoever eats it will love it so much they'll want to marry you, so tread lightly.

Make Chicken Stir Fry with Thai Peanut Sauce from The Law Student's Wife

Recipes with the Rice Mixed In!

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (9)

Whenever I have leftover rice just hanging around with nothing to do, I make this simple but completely awesome soup.

Make Chicken Soup with Rice from This Week for Dinner

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (10)

This is another recipe that you can't stop stuffing your face with. No joke. Stuffing. Your. Face.

Make Stuffed Peppers from This Week for Dinner

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (11)

Winter weather got you down? This easy and tasty dish will warm you up better than a hot date.

Make Cranberry Ropa Vieja from Always Order Dessert

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (12)

Rice is even good for breakfast. Trust me and try this.

Make Maple Brown Rice Breakfast Bowl from Wonky Wonderful

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (13)

It may be time to get down and dirty with your rice. Just sayin'.

Make Acorn Squash Stuffed with Dirty Rice from This American Bite

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (14)

So, if you hadn't heard, ground beef and rice have fallen in love. And they met in this soup, which will soon be your favorite winter meal.

Make Stuffed Pepper Soup from Diethood

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (15)

This scrumptious fried rice dish is a full dinner on its own, and is surprisingly easy to prep, giving you more time to do more important things than cooking, like seeing how many episodes of Scandal you can watch in one night.

Make Thai Basil Fried Rice from Wine and Glue

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (16)

With these tasty, customizable Cuban pork bowls, you can have it your way every time.

Make Cuban Pork Bowls from I Heart Eating

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (17)

This Mexican fried rice is a great way to use up random leftovers without your dinner tasting like random leftovers.

Make Mexican Fried Rice from Recipe Renovator

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (18)

This recipe is about to blow your mind: the rice isn't stuffed in the food, the food is stuffed in the rice. Crazytown. Also, Delicioustown.

Make Beef Biryani Stuffed in Basmati Rice from An Edible Mosaic

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (19)

Forget Chinese takeout. This is about 100 times less greasy and more flavorful.

Make Chinese Shrimp Fried Rice from Jeanette's Healthy Living

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (20)

Want a burrito but would rather leave some of the carbs at the door? Ditch the tortilla and fill up on this tasty, healthy burrito bowl. Plus, beer-drenched meat.

Make Beer Braised Carnitas Bowl from Taste, Love & Nourish

Jane Maynard is a food blogger at This Week for Dinner and Babble, a writer and designer, and a lover of all things chocolate.

Follow Jane on Twitter, Pinterest and Facebook.

20 Delicious Ways to Make Rice Be Anything But Boring (2024)

FAQs

What can I add to rice to make it tasty? ›

6 Add-ins to Upgrade White Rice
  1. Alternative Cooking Liquid. For an effortless yet dramatic difference, infuse your rice with flavored cooking water or use more aromatic liquid like broth or juice. ...
  2. Cheese. ...
  3. Vegetables. ...
  4. Avocado. ...
  5. Herbs and Seasonings. ...
  6. Nopalitos or Cactus Pads.

What is the secret to good rice? ›

The secret to this foolproof method is adding long-grain rice (and salt) to a measured amount of boiling water, as opposed to starting the rice in a cold pot. This technique keeps the grains intact, so you can say goodbye to mushy, stuck-together clumps.

What seasoning to put in rice? ›

Spices
  1. Cumin.
  2. Curry powder.
  3. Paprika.
  4. Red pepper flakes.
  5. Garlic powder.
  6. Onion powder.
  7. Chili powder.
  8. Cajun seasoning.

Should you add anything to rice? ›

In order to cook rice you need to combine rice, water, salt and butter. The salt and butter are optional, so only rice and water are essential.

What is the rice water spoon trick? ›

Rice Cooking Tip: If you think you put too much water in your rice, stick a spoon in the middle of the pot. If your spoon stands still, you have enough water.

What is the rice water hack? ›

Koreans have been using rice water for quite some time now and they usually take it as a part of their skincare regime. They use rice water as a toner after cleansing the face around 3/4 times a week and then use it in their cleanser to remove the impurities.

How to make rice exciting? ›

Season the rice with what you're cooking. Any aromatic herb or vegetable goes a long way toward adding a bit of intrigue to a simple pot of rice. Very often, some of the same seasonings going into the main dish are great for the rice as well.

What makes rice more tasty? ›

Use Fresh Herbs and Chicken Stock

Next, add chicken stock instead of salted water and let the rice boil on high heat for two minutes. Then, lower the heat and allow the rice to steam. “The rice will smell so fragrant from the thyme and garlic, with the thyme enhancing the flavor to another level,” he says.

Do you boil water before adding rice? ›

Fill the pot with water (no need to measure) and salt it — just like you do with pasta water. Bring it to a boil and then carefully add your desired amount of rice. Maintain a boil. Boil uncovered without stirring until the rice is softened through but still a tad al dente (read: not mushy).

How to make bland rice good? ›

Season the rice with what you're cooking. Any aromatic herb or vegetable goes a long way toward adding a bit of intrigue to a simple pot of rice. Very often, some of the same seasonings going into the main dish are great for the rice as well.

How do you get moisture out of rice quickly? ›

Rather than draining the excess water from your rice, if it's a manageable amount, put a piece of stale bread on top of the rice, cover the pot, and allow it to continue cooking on low heat. After a few minutes, the bread should absorb the moisture in the pot.

What can I use to make rice less dry? ›

After cooking for the recommended period of time, if the rice is still hard or chewy, add a little bit of water to create more steam (for every cup of uncooked rice used, add about 2 tablespoons of water). Cover the pot tightly and place over very low heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Let rest before serving.

How do you not mess up rice? ›

  1. Don't wash the rice if you don't need to do so. Don't soak the rice. Rinse the rice and drain it, if you must.
  2. Don't cook the rice for too long, in too much water. Steam it instead of just boiling it.
  3. Buy a variety of rice that has less starch. Buy rice that is a longer grain.
Dec 17, 2022

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