Mexican Rice (Vegetarian, No Onion, No Garlic)
Mexican Rice is a satisfying, comforting, flavorful, and easy one-pot dish.
Ingredients
- 1 cup basmati or any other long-grain rice
- 1 tablespoon oil
- A small piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped
- 1 small jalapeno pepper finely chopped ((deseeded for mild heat))
- 2 small celery sticks finely chopped
- ½ cup green pepper finely chopped
- 1 cup mixed color bell peppers finely chopped
- ½ cup sweet corn ((Fresh or Frozen))
- ⅓ cup cooked kidney beans ((Rajma beans))
- 2 tomatoes pureed
- ½ teaspoon Mexican hot sauce ((optional))
- 1 tablespoon tomato ketchup ((optional))
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder or to taste
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 cups water or vegetable stock
- Fresh coriander leaves finely chopped
- Lime juice to taste
Instructions
- Rinse the rice thoroughly and soak in cold water for at least 20 minutes.
- Then drain the water completely and set it aside.
- Heat oil in a pan, add chopped jalapeno and ginger. Saute for a few seconds.
- Add chopped celery and continue cooking for a minute. Then add chopped bell peppers, mix well and cook for another minute.
- Add corn kernels and kidney beans, mix well.
- Then add tomato puree, Mexican hot sauce, tomato ketchup, red chili powder, cumin powder, dried oregano, salt, and freshly ground black pepper.
- Stir everything well and cook the mixture on medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes.
- Then add soaked and drained rice. Gently stir and cook it for a minute.
- Now add water or vegetable stock and stir gently. Taste the water and adjust the salt or other seasonings if needed.
- Lower the heat, cover the pan with a lid, and cook until the rice is thoroughly cooked.
- Cooking the rice may take about 12-15 minutes, depending on the type of rice. After 5 minutes of cooking, open the lid and gently stir the rice to ensure they are not sticking to the pan.
- Once the rice is cooked, turn off the heat, keep the pan covered and let it sit for five minutes.
- After five minutes, open the lid and fluff up the rice using a fork.
- Add chopped coriander leaves, squeeze some lime juice, gently mix and transfer Mexican rice into a serving bowl or plate.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve Mexican Rice as a main dish or side dish.
- You can serve Mexican Rice with tomato salsa or tortilla chips.
- Top the rice with grated cheese if you prefer.
- Serve this rice as a side dish with a quesadilla.
- Pair Mexican Rice with your favorite salad.
- I like to have Mexican Rice with plain yogurt; this sounds typical Indian style, but it’s delicious.
Notes
- To cut down the heat, remove the seeds from the jalapeno pepper. Or skip adding hot sauce or red chili powder. In contrast, for the spicier version, add more jalapeno pepper or red chili powder.
- I have used Basmati rice to make Mexican rice, but you can also use long grain rice.
- The cooking time of rice may vary depending on the type of rice.
- Add more vegetables of your choice to Mexican rice, like chopped cabbage or carrots. Fresh or frozen peas can also go well with this recipe.
- If water is completely absorbed, but the rice is not cooked yet, add more water as required.
- Adding Mexican hot sauce is optional, but you can also add another hot sauce instead of Mexican.
- Instead of cooked kidney beans, you can also add cooked black beans.
- Adjust the spices and seasonings as per your preferences.
- Readers often show their concern about tomato ketchup having onion and garlic. But I always use the tomato ketchup marked with no onion no garlic. Also, the Mexican hot sauce I have used is without onion and garlic.
Nutrition (Approximate Values)
Calories : 224kcalCarbohydrates : 48gProtein : 5gFat : 1gSaturated Fat : 1gPolyunsaturated Fat : 1gMonounsaturated Fat : 1gSodium : 79mgPotassium : 283mgFiber : 3gSugar : 4gVitamin A : 1337IUVitamin C : 64mgCalcium : 44mgIron : 2mg
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