3-Ingredient Easy Mexican Rice (Perfect Every Time!)
Need a quick side dish to round out your meal? This super easy Mexican rice recipe is perfect for taco night!
Big flavor, minimal effort—that’s the magic of this easy Mexican rice. It cooks up fluffy, flavorful, and savory—just like your favorite Mexican restaurant—without any complicated steps or extra prep.
Whether you’re serving tacos, enchiladas, or building a full Mexican food spread, this flavorful side dish makes it easy.
What’s in 3-ingredient Mexican rice?
- Rice: I used long grain white rice (uncooked rice) for this recipe. If you sub with brown rice or even instant rice, you will need to adjust the cooking times and liquid. Rinsing helps remove extra starch for fluffier results, but isn’t necessary.
- Enchilada Sauce: You can make this with either red or green enchilada sauce. For a more authentic Mexican rice (or classic arroz rojo), use red for that signature color and rich tomato-based flavor!
- Chicken Broth: You can use chicken stock or chicken bouillon as well, or you can sub with vegetable broth to keep things vegetarian!
Making easy Mexican rice
For the Instant Pot, place all ingredients in, lock the lid, then press the “rice” button to cook.
What to serve with Mexican rice
FAQs
Store leftover rice in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Add a splash of liquid before reheating to keep it from drying out. Microwave in short intervals, stirring in between, or warm it on the stovetop.
Absolutely. Try stirring in peas, corn, diced tomatoes, or cooked chicken into the red rice to turn it into a more filling side or even a main dish.
Yes! For a little extra flavor, you can add chili powder, garlic powder, or a pinch of ground cumin (about ½ tsp cumin is a great starting point).
Ingredients
- 1 cup rice
- 10 oz can enchilada sauce
- 1 cup chicken broth
Instructions
Rice Cooker
- Put all ingredients in rice cooker and stir.
- Cover and allow rice cooker to cook on white rice setting.
- Once cooker has finish, let rice sit for 2 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Instant Pot
- Put all ingredients in Instant Pot and stir.
- Lock lid, close vent, and press rice setting.
- Allow pot to build pressure and cook.
- Once cooking is finished, allow a natural release for 5 minutes, then quick release.
- Fluff rice with a fork and serve.
