Mexican-style brown rice recipe

In case it’s unclear from many of the other recipes on my blog, we love Mexican-style or Mexican-inspired food! We love Mexican rice but the packaged mixes have so much sodium in them that we rarely, if ever, use them.

We set out to make a simple version on our own that had far less sodium and loved what we ended up with. We made it pretty close to the original recipe but changed up a few spices, changed the instructions, and made it with brown rice instead of white rice. The result is a bit more hearty, but also a bit more healthy.

This post is in no way sponsored, but I do have to say that we are pretty exclusive users of Riceland Foods rice. Feel free to use another brand, but it might be at your culinary peril!

Ingredients for Mexican-style brown rice

• 1 cup Riceland brown rice
• 2 cups water (or reduced sodium chicken broth but it might change the consistency)
• 2 Tablespoons butter
• 1 small (8-ounce) can of no salt added tomato sauce
• 1/2 Tablespoon dried minced onion
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin

Instructions for Mexican-style brown rice

 

1. Place the water, rice and butter in a sauce pan without bringing to a boil first. Cover the pan.
2. Set burner to high and bring the mixture to a boil.
3. When it comes to a rolling boil, turn the heat down to a high simmer, keeping the pan covered.
4. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Add the tomato sauce, garlic powder, minced onion, and cumin. Mix well.
6. Replace lid and continue to simmer for 20-25 minutes (until the rice is the desired texture. I prefer it soft and my husband prefers it a bit more crisp).
7. Stir in remaining moisture and serve.