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Paste Forward — Tomato-paste and bouillon Mexican rice

Tomato-paste and bouillon Mexican rice. Read the full method and preparation notes before starting.
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Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 rice-cooker cup long-grain white rice, about 180 mL or 3/4 US cup
  • 2 teaspoons neutral oil or butter
  • 270 mL warm water, or 1 US cup plus 2 tablespoons
  • 3/8 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon, preferably chicken or roasted chicken; use a heaping 1/4 teaspoon if you do not have a 1/8 teaspoon measure
  • 2 to 2 1/4 teaspoons tomato paste
  • 3/8 teaspoon garlic powder, or 1/4 teaspoon plus a generous pinch
  • 3/8 teaspoon onion powder, or 1/4 teaspoon plus a generous pinch
  • Scant 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 tiny pinch dried oregano, optional
  • 1 small handful frozen peas and carrots, optional
  • 1 squeeze fresh lime juice, optional, for finishing

Method
 

  1. Measure the rice with the little cup that came with the rice cooker. That cup is usually 180 mL, not a full US cup.
  2. Rinse the rice in a fine-mesh strainer until the water runs mostly clear. Shake it well and let it drain for a minute or two; wet rice will sputter a little when it hits the oil, but that is fine.
  3. Heat the oil or butter in a skillet over medium to medium-high heat.
  4. Add the rinsed and drained rice. Toast for 4 to 6 minutes, stirring often, until the rice smells a little nutty and some grains turn pale golden. Do not take it to dark brown; burnt rice tastes bitter.
  5. While the rice toasts, whisk together the warm water, Better Than Bouillon, tomato paste, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, and oregano if using. Stir until the bouillon and tomato paste are mostly dissolved.
  6. Transfer the toasted rice to the rice cooker bowl.
  7. Pour the seasoned liquid over the rice and stir once to level it out. Add frozen peas and carrots now if using.
  8. Cook on the normal white rice setting.
  9. When the cooker finishes, leave the lid closed and let the rice rest for 10 minutes. This matters; it helps the texture finish and keeps it from turning wet or gummy.
  10. Fluff gently with a rice paddle or fork. Taste before adding salt because Better Than Bouillon is salty.
  11. Finish with a squeeze of lime if you want it brighter, then serve with taco-seasoned chicken, beans, or other main dishes.

Notes

This is scaled from the earlier 1 US cup version down to 1 standard rice-cooker cup. The standard rice-cooker cup is commonly 180 mL, which is about 3/4 US cup. Makes about 2 to 2 1/4 US cups cooked rice, enough for 2 side portions without spawning a boxed-rice mountain. For a stronger tomato flavor, use up to 2 1/4 teaspoons tomato paste, but do not go much heavier or it starts tasting like tomato rice instead of Mexican restaurant rice. If skipping the skillet toast, add the rinsed rice, oil or butter, and seasoned liquid directly to the rice cooker. It still works, just loses some of the restaurant-rice texture and nutty flavor. No extra salt up front. Better Than Bouillon brings plenty. Image: "Mexican rice in traditional pottery" by Ralf Peter Reimann, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mexican_rice_144235.jpg
A reliable serving count is not specified in the saved source.
No reliable overall time is supplied here. Include any marinating, resting or overnight preparation described in the method.
Where shown, times and yields are saved source estimates, not measured kitchen-test results.
Saved recipe attribution: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mexican_rice_144235.jpg