I used to think Mexican rice was this completely magical and impossible dish. Every family has a slightly different recipe and I seem to keep mixing the wrong ingredients in all the different recipes I’ve collected over the years. I just couldn’t perfect it. Sometimes I put too much spice, sometimes it’s too much broth and sometimes it’s not enough water. Really it took me a while to get it right and I cook Mexican food a lot! More so than any other cuisine, even Chinese actually. So after years of experimenting, here is my version of Mexican rice. It’s incredibly simple and incredibly delicious.

I found out where I was going wrong all these years. I kept trying to make a mix of Mexican rice and Spanish rice… two totally different dishes. Mexican rice, as I have known it growing up, has always been a tomato based rice that is pretty mild in taste compared to Spanish rice. It’s buttery and flavorful alone, but the key is how well it pairs with beans and the rest of your Mexican meal. I generally cook enough Mexican food to feed the block so this rice recipe makes a whole pot. Hope you like it!
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