Lone Star Spanish Rice Recipes

BEST SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir in onion, and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.
• Mix rice into skillet, stirring often. When rice begins to brown, stir in chicken broth and salsa. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed.

MOM'S SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Brown ground beef, break it up as it browns.
• When the ground beef is taking on colour add in the diced onion and salt and pepper.
• Add in any optional vegetables at this point.
• When onion has softened add the vinegar and brown sugar.
• Add the tomato soup and water, stir well. I start with 1 and 1/2 cups of water, you likely will need to add more as it cooks.
• Adjust the seasoning if you need to.
• Add in the uncooked rice and stir.
• Pour into a casserole dish.
• Bake in oven for 45 -60 minutes, cover for the first 1/2 hour. Check after 1/2 hour and add more water if it seems too dry.
• You want it to be a bit dry in the end, soft but not mushy.

SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• To start you will need three main ingredients. You can add others to add more flavor or texture, but the main three you need to make rice are: Oil, rice, and seasoning. Today I used a vegetarian seasoning that is very flavorful and also commonly used in Spanish rice. It contains no animals products so for all my vegetarians out there please know that you can still eat flavorful food if you are vegetarian or vegan. The seasoning I used is called Sazon Goya con Azafran (sassafras). Sassafras is what what gives the rice that traditional "yellow rice" color seen in Spanish dishes. My only warning is that because sassafras is yellow, this seasoning will give your fingers a yellow color. And please do not wear any clothes that you don't want splashed with yellow drops. I always try to wear and old shirt when I use this seasoning, and definitely not anything white!
• Now let's get to talking about some of the secrets you need to know if you want authentic tasting Spanish rice. The first secret is that you need to use a specific type of rice. You want to use parboiled rice. If you use a different type of rice, the rice will either turn out super mushy, or it will take forever and ever to cook, and probably turn out undercooked or overcooked and mushy. Parboiled rice is a very important for ingredient for restaurant quality rice.
• The second secret is that you want to cook, or "toast", the rice in hot oil BEFORE you add water to it. This helps to harden up the rice and prevent it from being super mushy or watery when it's finished cooking.
• The third secret is not mandatory but helps to add flavor. It is sauteing vegetables, such as onions and tomatoes, in the hot oil before you toast the rice. This flavors the oil and when you toast the rice in it, the rice absorbs even more flavor. You can saute pretty much any vegetables you like. In the pictures below you see me sauteing onions and a tomato together in oil, then toasting the rice in this oil before I add the water.
• Once you have toasted your rice for a minute or two, you are now free to add your water. It is better to add less water than more, and you can always add more water if you need it, but if you start by putting way too much water in, it will ruin the rice and reduce the flavor of it. I like to add a little water as I go, so when the rice looks like it has soaked up all the water and still isn't tender enough, I add a little more, and keep going until the rice tastes tender enough. Then I just cover the pot and turn the stove off, and let the rice continue to cook slowly for a little longer until somebody wants some. My family like butter in their rice, so sometimes I will add a few pats of butter into the cooking rice, but this is not necessary and abuelita would not approve of this, so this is really up to you to do this.
• If your rice doesn't come out perfect, don't panic! After a few times of making it you should be a pro!
• Buen Provecho!

LONE STAR SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• Cook rice and garlic in oil in a 2 quart saucepan until rice is lightly browned, about 2-3 minutes.
• Add broth, cumin, and oregano; bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and cover tightly. Simmer for 20 minutes.
• Remove from heat and stir in beans.
• Let stand until all liquid is reabsorbed, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in salsa and green onions.

TEX-MEX SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• Place tomato, onion, and garlic in food processor. Puree.
• Saute rice in oil until opaque.
• Add pureed mixture and remaining ingredients.
• Cover and simmer for 25 minutes WITHOUT removing lid.

TEXAS RICE

Steps:

• Combine rice and water in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
• Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving 2 tablespoons of drippings, crumble and set aside. Add ground beef, green pepper, and onion to the skillet; cook over medium-high heat until the beef is evenly browned. Drain excess grease, and season with salt and pepper.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Place beef and cooked rice into a 9x13 inch baking dish. Stir in the tomatoes, bacon and reserved drippings, mixing until everything is well blended. Spread the shredded cheese over the top.
• Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until cheese is bubbly, and the center is heated through.

"WET" SPANISH RICE

Steps:

• Melt butter in sauce pan over med-high heat. Add rice and "saute" until brown.
• Add tomato sauce, green chilies, water and spices. You may need to add more water.
• Bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer.
• Simmer until rice is done. You may need to add water as you go.
• NOTE: When adding sauce and water it may splatter so be careful.

SPANISH RICE CHICKEN I

Steps:

• In a large skillet over medium heat prepare rice according to package directions, using the butter/margarine to brown the vermicelli and rice to a golden brown. Add the water, chicken, salsa and tomatoes and bring all to a boil. Cover skillet, reduce heat and let simmer for approximately 25 to 30 minutes, or until all liquid is absorbed.