Fool Proof Oven Baked Rice

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve passed this recipe on to friends and it never occurred to me until now to share it on my blog.  D’oh!  Do you have trouble with your rice?  Do you buy  instant rice so you know it won’t give you problems?  Do you instantly regret cooking that rice because it has no flavor?  Step right up, folks, I have the answer to your problem right here!  (I could have been a snake oil salesman, ha!)

The best thing about this recipe is that it’s super simple and you just toss it in the oven and forget it.  Maybe stir it once just because rice likes a little attention, right?

The other great thing about this method is that you can change it up to what your taste buds are telling you that day.  I used vegetable broth for the liquid but in the past, I’ve used apple juice, orange juice and even tomato juice.  Throw in a can of tomatoes too!  You can also add any veggies you’d like during the cooking process.   If you’re adding frozen peas, for example, toss them in about 5 minutes before done and it will be perfect.  For carrots, add them about half way through.

Of course, I needed to top this with some shrimp because I add my favorite ingredient whenever I can.  I roasted these alongside the rice in the oven in the final 8 minutes of cooking time but you could toss them in the pot, too.  Are you getting the gist of this?  You can basically toss whatever the heck you want in there!

So here’s the simple method – use the ratio of 2:1 liquid to rice, add parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme, (think of the song – Simon and Garfunkel, I think), a pat (or two) of butter, bay leaf and salt and pepper.  Stir it up, put the lid on and put it in the oven for 45 minutes to an hour. (depending on how hot your oven cooks) Stir halfway through.  Perfect rice every time.  You can use white or brown long grain rice.  The first time you do this, check it at 45 minutes so you can determine how long your oven takes.

Once you get the hang of it, feel free to change up the herb combination.  And this is one time that it’s ok to use dried herbs – yes, I said it.  But you won’t hear THAT very often.   So have fun with this and stop the guesswork with your rice.   When you cook this dish, share it with me on Instagram or Twitter and I’ll send it out to my followers.  I love seeing what you’re all up to.  Cheers!