- Ever wondered how you can add more flavor to rice?
Well, say goodbye to boring old side dishes,
because they I'm showing you
how to make five easy rice recipes
using just a couple of ingredients
from your fridge or pantry.
Hey guys, welcome back to my channel.
It's Taylor from The Girl on Bloor.
I'm your favorite city girl,
showing you how to make easy, healthy recipes
so that you can live your best life.
So, I have to admit something.
I'm actually not a huge fan of rice.
If I'm going to go with any type of carb,
I'm always choosing potatoes or pasta.
Sorry, not sorry.
But I know rice is really good for you.
It's a gluten-free grain that provides a ton of energy,
and more likely than not,
you always have some kicking around.
But here's the problem, plain rice sucks.
My personal opinion.
It's just boring,
it doesn't have a ton of flavor on its own,
and you usually have to pair it with something
like a stir fry or use it as the base of a flavorful bowl
to make it more enticing.
Gone are the days of me eating it
next to plain chicken and broccoli.
But here's the thing, rice is super versatile
and goes with pretty much any veggie or protein,
so today I'm showing you five easy ways to add more flavor
without having to add a million different ingredients.
In fact, these easy rice recipes
can even be made in a rice cooker
and then doctored up with just a few ingredients.
In today's video,
I'll be showing you how to take plain white rice
and turn it into fried rice, cilantro lime rice,
tomato basil rice, mushroom rice, or coconut rice.
Be prepared for some explosive flavor,
and I'll even be showing you
how you can pair each rice with a protein
to turn it into a full meal super easily.
Seriously, you throw the rice in a rice cooker,
cook your protein,
mix a couple of different ingredients into your rice,
and then dinner is ready in half an hour.
I know, I'm the-30 minute meal queen,
and of course, you can meal prep rice and freeze it,
so keep watching, as I'll be showing you how to do that
later in this video.
Super excited by all of these amazing possibilities?
Me, too.
Let's jazz this rice up.
So, first up, let's just go over some rice basics.
In almost all of today's recipes,
we're using short grain white rice,
and then we'll be using long grain white rice,
such as basmati or jasmine, for the coconut rice.
Typically, for short grain white rice,
you need one cup of dry rice and 1 1/2 cups of liquid,
whether you're using water or broth of some sort.
For long grain white rice,
you typically need one cup of dry rice
and 1 1/4 cups of water.
I also like to add in some oil or butter
to keep the rice from sticking,
and then just a pinch of salt as a baseline seasoning.
The fat and salt are both optional,
but I really do find that they're worth adding
for the extra bit of flavor and to prevent sticking.
From there, you just need a pot with a fitted lid
so you can cook the rice on the stove or in a rice cooker.
My preference is always a rice cooker,
because all you have to do is add in your ingredients
and press a button.
The cooker does the rest of the work for you.
I find, with using a pot on the stove,
you have to check it more and ensure the liquid
doesn't overfill the pot and make a mess,
and obviously, with having the stove on,
you will want to be watching it the entire time
to make sure that it doesn't burn
or start a fire or what have you.
So, the rice cooker is just a bit more hands-off,
and they're also super cheap and relatively small,
so they don't take up a bunch of kitchen space,
so I always recommend that you have one on hand.
Generally, they're also non-stick and dishwasher friendly,
so cleanup is a whole lot easier.
If I've sold you on rice cookers,
you can head to the description of this video
to check out the one that I use.
Another option for you
is using an Instant Pot or pressure cooker,
as that will also cook your rice in a similar manner.
You just dump and press start.
I've also got an Instant Pot rice guide linked, too,
in the description,
in case you're interested in cooking your rice that way.
Okay, now that you know your options,
let's get down to business.
We'll start with the coconut rice.
You're going to take one cup of either basmati
or jasmine rice and add it to your rice cooker.
Now, instead of water or broth as the liquid,
we're going to use coconut milk,
so add 1 1/4 cups of coconut milk,
one teaspoon of coconut oil,
one teaspoon of sugar for flavor,
and then one pinch of salt.
Press the start button on your rice cooker,
and that's it for this rice.
The rice cooker will stop as soon as the liquid is absorbed,
and then you are good to gently fluff the rice with a fork,
serve, and enjoy.
This is the easiest of all the options here today,
because it just cooks hands-off
and it is such an amazing option for pairing
with any type of veggie or protein.
My favorite way to serve coconut rice
is with a simple mango or pineapple salsa
and some sort of chicken.
I'll usually saute some diced up chicken breasts
in a skillet, and then toss in
some sweet chili sauce or peanut sauce.
You can make the salsa and cook the chicken
in the time it takes for the rice to cook hands-off,
so this is a super easy 30-minute dinner idea.
Now for our next rice recipe,
which is this delicious mushroom rice.
They're going to take one cup of white rice,
1 1/2 cups of vegetable broth,
one tablespoon of butter, and a pinch of salt,
and add that all to a rice cooker.
We're adding a little more butter here today
for some extra flavor.
While the rice is cooking,
you'll then add one finely chopped shallot
and eight ounces of cremini mushrooms
with a bit of extra butter
to a skillet over medium high heat.
Cook the mushrooms for just three or four minutes
until the liquid starts to release,
and then yank them off the heat
so you can add those juices to your rice.
When your rice is cooked through and the liquid is absorbed,
go ahead and gently fluff your rice with a fork,
then add your shallots and mushrooms to the rice.
You can garnish with a little bit of parsley here
if you'd like, and then you can serve and enjoy.
This mushroom rice goes great with turkey or pork sausages,
so that's an easy pairing, where you can saute
or grill the sausages while the mushrooms and rice
are also cooking, and then dinner is served.
Okay, moving on to rice number three,
which is our tomato basil rice.
Add your one cup of white rice
and 1 1/2 cups of vegetable broth to your rice cooker,
but then you're going to add in one tablespoon of the oil
from a jar of sun dried tomatoes for the best pop of flavor,
along with your usual pinch of salt.
Press the start button on your rice cooker,
and in the meantime,
you can mince 1/3 of a cup of sun dried tomatoes
and chop up 1/3 of a cup of fresh basil.
When your rice is done cooking,
you can gently fluff with a fork, as per usual,
and mix in your tomatoes and basil.
Serve with some pan fried scallops
and the most luxurious easy dinner is done
and ready to go within 30 minutes, yet again.
Scallops only take one minute per side
in some olive oil over high heat,
so those can easily be done right after you finish
mixing together your rice,
so you can serve hot and fresh.
Moving on to rice recipe number four,
which is our cilantro lime rice.
Take one cup of white rice,
add 1 1/2 cups of vegetable broth,
one teaspoon of butter, and then one pinch of salt.
The reason I'm having you add vegetable broth
to most of these recipes is to add a whole lot more flavor
and really allow the add-ins to come to life.
Believe it or not, salt will do that,
and most people don't add enough seasoning to their food.
That is what allows other ingredients to shine.
But if you're lazy, you can totally add water instead,
and then just add more salt in the end.
If you do this, I recommend seasoning to taste,
so wait until your rice is done,
and then, once you've added your fillings,
you can adjust with more salt if needed.
Now, you know the drill by now.
Press start on your rice cooker,
and then you can get to prepping your add-ins.
For this recipe,
you just need the juice from one lime,
plus more lime wedges for garnish,
and then 1/2 cup of chopped fresh cilantro.
Once your rice is done, gently fluff with a fork
and then mix in your lime juice and cilantro.
Garnish with lime wedges,
and then you are ready to serve and enjoy.
I love to pair this recipe with some black beans
and sauteed peppers.
You can, of course, add more ingredients,
like salsa and corn,
to turn it into a full blown burrito bowl,
and you can get all of that going
while your rice is cooking.
You'll love this easy vegetarian meal.
Now for our final recipe, our fried rice.
This one requires a little bit more effort
than other recipes I showed you how to make,
but everyone loves fried rice.
It's a classic, and it doesn't have to be super complicated,
so I thought we would cap off this video
with one of the greats.
Now, I will say leftover rice makes the best fried rice,
because it's hot a chance to dry out a bit,
so if at all possible,
I recommend cooking your rice a day in advance
and then making your fried rice from there.
You can totally take the fresh rice
and turn it into fried rice,
but the texture on the rice may be a little bit off.
So, as usual, add one cup of white rice,
1 1/2 cups of water, one teaspoon of butter,
and a pinch of salt to your rice cooker.
Press start and cook until the liquid has absorbed,
before gently fluffing with a fork.
Now you'll take your rice,
ideally it has had the chance to cool
and then be refrigerated overnight,
and get ready to make the easiest fried rice ever.
Add two tablespoons of butter
to a large skillet over medium high heat,
then add two cloves of minced garlic,
sauteing for 30 seconds until fragrant.
Add your rice and two tablespoons of soy sauce,
stirring to combine.
Now you'll make a hole in the center of your rice,
add a tiny bit more butter, crack an egg in the center,
and then scramble it until just set.
Add one bunch of sliced green onions
and stir everything together to combine, and that's it.
I like to add in some frozen shrimp and veggies
to turn this fried rice into a full meal,
but this rice is super filling on its own, and so tasty.
Okay, we've just got rice-a-palooza going on over here,
and let's just say,
I'm so excited for all of my dinners this week.
Now, you can freeze most of these rice varieties
after they had been made,
but some of the ingredients might change in texture,
so what I recommend that you do instead
is freeze any cooked, plain rice
that you're looking to meal prep,
and then you can reheat with a tiny bit of water over top
from right out of the freezer
and add your mix-ins from there.
This also works super well for fried rice.
So, when your race has done cooking,
let it cool for 30 to 40 minutes,
and then you can add to a freezer bag or glass container
and freeze for up to three months.
You can also keep leftover plain or doctored up rice
in the fridge for up to three days.
Again, I recommend sprinkling some water over top
before reheating in the microwave,
just to ensure the rice doesn't dry out.
Now that you know how to meal prep it
and make it more exciting,
I need to know which one of these rice recipes
you're going to try first.
Be sure to comment below with your favorite
and tag me on Instagram at @thegirlonbloor
if you end up trying any of them.
I always share the pictures you take me in,
and it makes my day
to see what you make from the site, seriously.
You can find the full written recipes
for all of these five rice combos
in the description of this video,
and the blog post itself also has some more rice recipes
for you to look at and step up your rice game.
Okay, I've got a lot of eating to do,
so without further ado, I'm going to sign off.
Thanks for hanging with me here today,
and I'll see you again real soon.