Spanish Rice using Leftover Rice

You can have Spanish rice (Mexican rice) on the table in just a few minutes by using leftover rice. It works!

If you’re looking for exciting or fine dining level ideas, for the next few recipes in the lineup at least, you might be disappointed. Frankly, I’d rather be sharing more interesting dishes with you–a dish that I might have served at a recent gathering or one I’ve been inspired to recreate from a recent trip–but those occasions have been few and far between. Until this week, my husband and I had not seen company since Christmas Day and with just the two of us our meals have lately catered to my desire for instant gratification rather than grand.

Case in point: here is a recipe for repurposing leftover rice. More humble than haute like my old standby, fried rice, Spanish rice (or Mexican rice) is another way to bring new life to days-old rice, something I seem to always have in the refrigerator. It was a light-bulb moment when this idea occurred to me a few years ago but of course, when I searched Google for similar recipes in planning for this post recently, I found that others have done it before me. At least I’m in good company.

How to Cook Spanish Rice with Leftover Rice

There are numerous ways to make traditional Spanish rice (and just for clarity, I’m talking about the Mexican side dish that is normally served with beans). Most commonly rice is toasted in a skillet in a little oil before chicken stock (usually water with chicken powder) is added with tomato sauce or tomato paste. Other versions purée the fresh tomatoes and onions with the stock.

At home, I tend to use canned tomato sauce for the tomato component or simply sauté my aromatics including the tomatoes before adding the stock.

This recipe uses the latter approach as it is the most familiar to me. Most Filipino dishes start with garlic, onions and tomatoes–it’s the Filipino mirepoix, sofrito, soffritto. The garlic is absent more out of this cook’s laziness but the ground cumin and dried oregano make up for it. Sometimes I use fish sauce instead of salt for deeper flavor but this is optional. I skip the puréeing step altogether so it might be worth noting that since the tomato skins don’t cook down the finished product will be dotted with them. This doesn’t bother me but I feel the need to point this out in case you have discriminating (ahem…picky) eaters in your household. You can see what I mean in these images.

A Note About Amount of Liquid to Use and Type of Rice

This recipe uses already-cooked rice and we’re just reheating it on the stove and infusing it with flavor so it’s worth noting that a little stock/liquid goes a long way to avoid having mushy rice. I recommend starting with the lower amount on the range in this recipe.

The type of rice matters, too. Long grain rice is what’s commonly used for Spanish rice. I use Thai Jasmine rice which is a type of long grain rice. Paella rice works also because although it’s a short grain it’s not as starchy as Japanese rice or others in this category. I would also avoid this recipe using quick cooking rice.

I hope these warnings haven’t put you off trying this recipe. It really works and your plain, bland rice is made new again for very little effort and in just a few minutes.