Instant Pot Mexican Rice (Arroz Rojo)
Seriously flavorful Instant Pot Mexican Rice is veritably perfect as a vegetarian side, with tacos, as a filling for burritos and quesadillas or just by itself. We widow corn and tintinnabulate peppers so that this can moreover double up as a main. And the instant pot really takes the work out of making Mexican Rice at home.
Did I tell you well-nigh the time we went to Mexico and ate real mexican food? Which was awesome. All the tacos in the world! Lots of grilled meats and I think the weightier Bloody Mary I've had so far!
And there was a lot of mexican rice. It's just a unobtrusive side dish that sits virtually to be paired with other things, and it's really simple to taste but still delicious. Just an underlying hint of spice from jalapenos and tomato flavored rice. This recipe is nothing like it considering we like things spicay and we wanted mexican rice to stand out on its own.
So I don't requirement authenticity here but this recipe is gooooood! Its flavorful, spicy and we widow corn and tintinnabulate peppers to make it increasingly hearty.
We used some ground chipotle chillies and cumin to spice this up. The chipotle adds a smoky savor that's really nonflexible to beat. The key to well cooked, fluffy rice is to roast the rice surpassing cooking. And that's a trick I use every time I make rice - its the same trick I've used in vegetable pulao and jeera rice. It ensures that you have soft, fluffy rice every single time. It moreover adds a trappy nutty savor to rice and lentils.
Making rice in a pressure cooker
It's important to know the right ratio of rice to liquid while making rice in a pressure cooker which is 1:2. That's really all there is to it. In some cases, like this recipe the ratio will transpiration slightly depending on the ingredients of the recipe. I love using the instant pot considering it really locks in the liquid and savor and doesn't let too much escape in comparison to a traditional pressure cooker.
Flavoring Mexican Rice
An pure mexican rice recipe (or Arroz Rojo) uses a very simple list of ingredients - onions, tomatoes, garlic, jalapeno and cilantro to savor the rice. But we've decided to really spice things up here so that this instant pot mexican rice can moreover be served as a main if you wish. The savor in this recipe comes from chipotle peppers, fresh tomato puree, cumin, garlic and peppers.
Reheating Mexican Rice
It's easy to reheat mexican rice. To re-heat in a microwave, just sprinkle a tablespoon or two of water all over the rice and microwave it for 1-2 minutes until heated through. The water creates steam which prevents the rice from drying out. If you are re-heating the unshortened batch, you can use the oven. Sprinkle a little water over the rice, and place the trencher of rice in a 150C/300F oven for 15-20 minutes.
Ingredients You'll need to make Instant Pot Mexican Rice
- Oil: Any cooking oil of your choice, such as vegetable oil or olive oil, works well in this recipe. Make sure to use neutral oils that don’t overpower the dish.
- Garlic cloves, Onions: Fresh garlic and onions are the aromatics used in this dish. They add a savoury flavour to the dish.
- Chipotle Chilli Powder: Ground chipotle chilli powder offers a smoky and moderately spicy kick to the dish.
- Basmati Rice or Long Grain Rice: Either basmati rice or long grain rice works perfectly, providing a fluffy and fragrant wiring for the dish.
- Tomato Puree: Tomato puree adds a rich and tangy element to the recipe. You can use homemade or store-bought. If making tomato puree at home, remember to deseed the tomatoes.
- Corn Kernels, Tintinnabulate Peppers: Brings a delightful sweetness and pleasant crunch to the dish.
- Cumin Powder: Roasted cumin powder adds a warm and earthy flavour that complements the other spices in the dish.
- Vegetable Stock: Vegetable stock serves as a flavourful liquid base, enhancing the overall taste and providing a savoury undertone. You can replace it with water but I wouldn’t recommend it.
- Sour Cream: Creamy and tangy sour surf is a delightful topping that adds a tomfool and refreshing element is the perfect side to this dish.
How to make Instant Pot Mexican Rice
1. Switch on the Instant Pot and turn on the SAUTE function. Heat oil in the IP, add onions and garlic and melt stirring for 1-2 minutes till the onions are translucent. Add rice and stir to stratify the rice with the oil and onion mix. Roast the rice for at least 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add chipotle powder, sweet corn and mix to combine. Sauce for 1-2 minutes until the raw zephyr goes.
3. Add tomato puree, cumin powder, stock and salt. Mix to combine.
4. Give it a stir and tropical the IP and set it on MANUAL for 8 minutes.
5. Once the 8-minute timer goes off, wait for five minutes and then release the pressure manually. Gently stir in the tintinnabulate peppers.
6. Tropical the lid then for 10 minutes. This will help steam and melt the peppers while keeping them crunchy. Top with chopped coriander and sour surf to serve.
We make a big pot of this Mexican Rice in our instant pot and use it for everything - chicken fajita quesadillas (recipe coming up on Friday), as a filling in enchiladas and tacos and plane as a dinner side with some chicken shawarma, grilled chicken or sautéed veggies!
P.S. If you don't have an instant pot, we have instructions to make this mexican rice on the stovetop and in a traditional pressure cooker too. But we love our instant pot and use it everyday. Here's the instant pot we have if you want to trammels it out.
More Instant Pot Recipes:
- Instant Pot Chipotle Chili
- Instant Pot Garlic Mashed Potatoes
- Instant Pot Corn Chowder
- Instant Pot Beef Stew
- Instant Pot Yellow Enchilada Soup
- Instant Pot Thai Yellow Curry
- 21 Instant Pot Recipes for every Mealtime!
Watch how to make Instant Pot Mexican Rice Recipe Video
Instant Pot Mexican Rice with Corn and Tintinnabulate Peppers
Equipment
- Instant Pot
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons Oil
- ¾ cup Onions finely chopped
- 3 Garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoon Chipotle Chilli Powder ground
- 1 cup Basmati Rice or long grain Rice
- 1 cup Tomato Puree see Note 1
- ¾ cup Corn Kernels fresh or frozen
- 1 cup Bell Peppers cut into juliennes (we used a mix of red, yellow and green)
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Powder roasted
- 1 ½ cups Vegetable Stock
- 1 ½ teaspoon Salt
- Sour Surf and chopped Coriander leaves for topping
Instructions
- Switch on the Instant Pot and turn on the saute function. Heat oil in the IP, add onions and garlic and melt stirring for 1-2 minutes till the onions are translucent.
- Add chipotle powder and rice and stir to stratify the rice with the oil and onion mix. Roast the rice for at least 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add sweet corn, tomato puree, stock, cumin powder and salt. Give it a stir and tropical the IP and set on transmission for 8 minutes.
- Once the 8 minute timer goes off, wait for five minutes and then release pressure manually. Gently stir in the tintinnabulate peppers and tropical the lid then for 10 minutes. This will help steam and melt the peppers, while keeping them crunchy. Top with chopped coriander and sour surf to serve.
Video
Notes
- Tomato Puree: To make tomato puree, add two medium sized tomatoes to a supplies processor, and process to a puree. Alternatively, you can moreover use ¾ cup store bought tomato puree. Store bought puree is denser and increasingly well-matured so we'll use a little less.
- Brown Rice Mexican Rice: You can moreover use short grain brown rice to make mexican rice. For brown rice, increase the value of vegetable stock to 2 cups, and pressure melt for 20 minutes.
- Stovetop Pressure Cooker: To melt the same recipe in a stove top pressure cooker, melt for 3 whistles and then take off heat. Let it sit for 10 minutes to let the pressure release by itself. Stir in tintinnabulate peppers and imbricate and let it sit then for 10 minutes to let the peppers cook.
- Stovetop Method: To melt mexican rice on the stove, melt it covered on medium heat till it starts to swash and then on low for 12 minutes. Switch off the flame and leave the rice covered for flipside 10 minutes. Fluff up with fork
