Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice

This copycat Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice is fluffy, flavorful, and zesty! It's the perfect side dish for tacos, burritos, and fajitas. This recipe is written for the stovetop with rice cooker instructions in the notes.

Course Side

Cuisine American Fusion, Mexican inspired

Keyword Chipotle cilantro lime rice, burrito bowl rice, fajita rice

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 25

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 203kcal

Author Jamie

Ingredients

4 cups water*
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups long grain white rice
⅓ cup vegetable oil or avocado oil
3 medium bay leaves
3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves (about ½ cup unchopped leaves, lightly packed)
1 medium lime , juiced (1-2 tablespoons)
½ medium lemon (optional) , juiced (1 tablespoon)

Instructions

Boil: In a medium or large pot with lid, bring the water to a boil. Once boiling, add the salt, rice, oil, and bay leaves. Give it a stir to mix the ingredients together, then cover and reduce heat to a gentle simmer.
4 cups water*, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, 2 teaspoons salt, 2 cups long grain white rice, 3 medium bay leaves
Simmer: Continue to simmer gently for 18 minutes without stirring (stirring can give the rice a gluey texture). Then remove from heat and let sit, covered, for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the cilantro and juice the lime and lemon.
1 medium lime, ½ medium lemon (optional), 3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro leaves
Mix: When the 5 minutes are up, remove the lid and take out the bay leaves. Pour the lime juice and lemon juice over the rice. Then add the chopped cilantro. Toss the mixture with two rice paddles or spatulas to mix (similarly to how you would toss a salad) to keep the rice fluffy.

Notes

Storage: Store leftover Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

*Stovetop Instructions: The stovetop instructions are adapted from the ones on the package of the rice I used to make this recipe. I recommend using the package instructions and water to rice ratio for your rice, as this usually gives the best results. I used Mahatma Extra Long Enriched Rice.

Rice Cooker Instructions: Add the water, salt, rice, oil, and bay leaves to the rice cooker pot. Give it a stir and cover with the lid, then press the cook button. When the cooking cycle is complete, follow step 3 in the instructions above.

Rice variations: The Chipotle restaurant uses long grain white rice for their cilantro lime rice. You can also use a shorter grain white rice, basmati rice, or brown rice to make this recipe. With other white rice varieties, there is a subtle difference in taste and texture, and an even greater difference when using brown rice. See the stovetop instructions note above to work with other rice varieties.

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