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Super Easy Yellow Rice complements just about any meal. You can make this on the stove top or in the rice cooker. So tasty!
This yellow rice recipe is one of our favorite side dishes. It truly is “super easy” and it seriously goes with almost anything! You can keep it plain or spice it up to go with different meals. If you are in a rush and don’t have time to make it over the stove, you can also throw all the ingredients in a rice cooker and do it that way. My family loves this light and fluffy side dish and you will too!
What is Yellow Rice?
Yellow rice is basically white rice that is colored by the spices turmeric or saffron when prepared. This yellow rice recipe calls for turmeric, but you could easily substitute saffron and achieve the same bright yellow color and a slightly tangy flavor. Yellow rice is traditional in Spanish, Cuban, Indian and Indonesian dishes, plus many more. The flavor is mild enough that you can serve it with countless recipes.
Toasting the Rice
A part of what makes this recipe so delicious is toasting the rice. Toasting the rice in some butter before you boil it gives it an amazing, nutty flavor. You definitely don’t want to skip this step!
Yellow Rice Recipe Variations
The possibilities for this rice recipe are endless! Mix and match any of these to create the perfect, easy yellow rice side-dish for your next family meal.
- Adding frozen peas or carrots to the rice while cooking is an easy way to add color, texture, and added nutrients.
- Make this dish Cajun style by adding diced onion, red and/or green bell pepper, and diced jalapeño while sautéing the rice. Sprinkle with Cajun seasoning before adding the chicken broth. After the rice is finished cooking, you can stir in grilled smoked sausage, shrimp or chicken. Red or black beans make the meal even more hearty and delicious.
- For a more Indian flair, add ½ teaspoon of sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, four cardamom pods, and a handful of golden raisins before bringing to boil. So yummy!
- Add this dish to your Mexican feast by adding jalapeño and diced onion to the rice while sautéing, and sprinkle with a little cumin before adding the broth.
More Yummy Rice Recipes
Rice is one of those easy to make, filling, and oh-so-delicious side dishes. After you try this Yellow Rice, try a few of our other favorites:
- Easy Restaurant Style Mexican Rice
- Slow Cooker Red Beans and Rice
- Ham Fried Rice
- Easy Garden Vegetable Rice
- How to Make Sushi Rice
- Lemon Pesto Rice
How to Make Yellow Rice
Video
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup long-grain white rice
- 1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon onion powder or dried minced onion
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt or to taste
- ground black pepper to taste
- 2-3 tablespoons fresh cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the rice and gently stir until rice begins to lightly brown.
- Add garlic, onion powder, and turmeric and stir until well mixed in.
- Slowly stir in chicken broth and raise heat to medium-high. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring the mix to a boil then turn the heat to low and cover the pan with a lid. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes.
- Remove from heat, add cilantro, and fluff with a fork. Serves 4.
Really good recipe! I only substituted garlic powder for the real stuff and it was delicious! Even my picky kids loved it!
This was so good! All that I did was add the onions and red and green bell peppers after I had toasted the rice and not sauteing them as I forgot. I’m going to try it the right way but this is at least a once a week side dish from now on.
Super easy and super good! Used my instant pot on saute, following the directions thru the addition of the chicken broth, salt, and pepper, and then just used the rice button. No more pre-packaged yellow rice for us, this recipe is so much better and just as easy! Thanks for sharing it!
Very good 👍
Delicious recipe! Easy & the flavor is great!😌
Made it pot in pot in my Instapot. I didn’t coat the rice in butter. Just added the butter with everything else. In 12 minutes I had a delicious side dish. It’s a keeper.
Really brilliant recipe, thank you for sharing, my boys absolutely love it and so do we 🙂
Thank you! I’m so glad you all enjoyed the recipe!
I made this rice a couple weeks ago, Followed the recipe as written. It was perfect!!!
It was absolutely delicious 😋
I did use my rice cooker to finish th rice
Easy rice everytime! My sons favourite food. Glad I found this easy recipe 😋
Delicious! Used (1C dry) under-cooked rice (instant pots come with a learning curve) and cooked as instructed. Because the rice was already into its cooking process, I had to toast/fry it in the butter longer to draw out some of the moisture but it worked just fine. I did use less chicken broth – maybe about a cup.
it did’nt taste like authentic yellow rice to me.
I made a large batch of this to use with a variety of dishes throughout the week. My husband and I both loved it! It has a lot of flavor. I think browning the rice is genius. I added frozen carrots/peas, fresh onion and some sweet corn I froze from last season. I will definitely make this again.
Very good came out perfect and family loved it
I have made this rice about 4 times now. It is such a great yellow rice recipe. My family absolutely loves it! I double it to make enough for leftovers. Yum!
Can jasmine rice be used?
Yes, you can use jasmine rice in this recipe!
Great recipe! I have issues making rice (too mushy)so this recipe came in handy. Very easy to make and my family enjoyed it.
I’m so happy you and your family enjoyed this recipe. Thank you!
Hi, the instructions say to brown the rice in butter. Do you need to use dry rice? I generally rinse my rice before cooking it. Do you reccomend usimg low or no sodium chicken broth or just the standard? Thanks
Yes, you use dry rice to brown. If you like to rinse it first, you can rinse it and allow it to dry before browning. For the broth, just the standard unless you prefer low-sodium. Hope this helps!
Love it, My granddaughter enjoyed it so much she ask me cook it again. Easy steps to follow
I didn’t have any chicken broth, I used water it came out good anyway.
Instead of powder onion powder and garlic powder I used chap onion/garlic, thanks
Very simple. Believe I’ll make it
you right, goes great with collard greens!
The best yellow rice recipe. So easy too. I don’t need to look any further. Thanks for sharing it.
Looks awesome. Just what I needed. Thank you!!!
OMG I made it without all the ingredients, but to toast the rice before A+
I toasted the rice with butter and added chopped onion. Then the turmeric, and into the rice cooker it went, along with the chicken stock. I’m thrilled with the results! Served it with Cuban black beans and had it again for lunch the next day. Wonderful treat without all the preservatives and salt in the store bought version. Thank you!
Did you wash rise before cocking?
Rinsing the rice is not necessary. You are welcome to rinse the rice ahead of time and the recipe will still remain the same.
My Asian friends always rinse their rice 4-5 times under cool water, so I always do. It removes a bit of starch.
This is a very simple recipe. Other recipes are so advanced.Erica W, picked simple and easy ingredients, a quick prep time, and easy instructions. Thank you Erica for making this recipe sooooooooooo simple!
Made this tonight for taco night and we loved the rice. I hate cilantro so didn’t add it. Yummy
This is such a delicious recipe! I’ve made it so many times and my fiance and I love it! The texture and taste are perfect. Thank you!
I have made this recipe so many times, seasoning to taste. I like to add diced carrots and peas. The veggies take on the flavor of the rice. It’s perfect. Thank you for sharing!
Not a winner for me. Most recipes for long grain rice will have you use 1:1.5 ratio for liquid, not 1:2 as this does. I should have followed my instincts, followed the recipe instead, my rice was mushy. 3 tablespoons butter is a lot for 1 cup of rice and tasted unpleasantly greasy to me. And maybe my turmeric is unusually strong, but the rice REALLY tasted like turmeric which is not something I associate with classic yellow rice. I think half a teaspoon would still give a nice color without the strong flavor.
Super delicious! A real hit with the whole family!
Thank you so much! We are so happy it’s a hit with your family!
Can this be made using already cooked left over rice?
I think that would work! Just add a few tablespoons of chicken broth instead of the full 2 cups. Let us know how it turns out!
My first time making this homemade for my family they absolutely love it i added more seasonings but i love your recipe give us more please
It won’t matter much if you don’t add cilantro, will it ?
Nope! You can leave it out if you want.
Delicious! All ingredients were on hand – nothing unusual needed.
i love it!! my Aunt was impressed and this is my first time making it.
This recipe is amazing!!
I just made this for my family tonight, I followed the recipe exactly and then just added a little bit more salt at the end as I was tasting it.
My entire family (2 adults and 4 kids) loved it, including my very picky 11 year old. I will be saving this recipe to make over and over and over again.
Simple to make and very flavorful. Husband and baby were happy and ate it up!
THATS NICE KEEP IT UP
I misread the recipie and cooked the rice first…haha lesson learned. Once I restarted with the dry rice it was much better. Everything tastes amazing and my apartment smells like chicken broth, onion and tumeric, love it! Thanks for posting this recipie.
Made this with Moroccan beef daube and a yogurt sauce. After browning the rice and adding spices in a frying pan, I dumped the rice into my rice cooker with a generous one cup of chicken broth and let my rice cooker finish the work. Served with dates and tomato-cucumber salad. All yummy!!
That sounds amazing!!
Exactly what I was looking for taste better than the taco place I go to. I used olive oil instead of butter garlic powder
It was okay but it was a lot of butter for rice, Also it didn’t look nothing like the picture.
Delish! I like it much better than the yellow rice packet you can buy at the store. I can control the amount of salt plus make it vegan with vegan butter and veg broth (the store one has chicken powder in it). I serve with black beans, diced red onion, cilantro, vegan sour cream, and diced avocado.
I don’t know what I did wrong. I cooked it exactly how instructed but it soaked up all the broth burnt to the bottom of the pot and still isn’t cooking all the way through.
I am so sorry! It sounds like maybe the heat was too high. What temperature were you cooking it at?
PUT TIN FOIL OVER RICE BEFORE LID! WILL HELP THE RICE COOK THROUGH!!
I’m a bit lazy and mix all the ingredients (minus cilantro) together in my glass casserole, cover, and microwave on high for 15 mins. Turns out great! I’ve tried doing the microwave method with brown rice and all attempts are fails so I don’t recommend it (needs much more time and liquid). This is a go-to easy side for our family. Everyone enjoys it!
I also use garlic powder instead of fresh minced garlic and I personally find the flavor is better with powder.
Super yum!! I would normally buy the yellow rice from the store, but everything made from scratch tastes so much better.; plus I had everything on hand. I sautéed an onion and some garlic in EVOO before toasting the rice. Absolutely delicious!
Wonderful recipe, cooked it twice already. The family, specially my toddler loves it. I added spinach to the rice because I am always trying to find ways to give veggies to my family. So I sneaked them in anywhere I can.
First time making, didn’t have a garlic clove to mince so I substituted 1tsp garlic powder and fresh turkey stock from thanksgiving for the chicken stock. Turned out great! Not spicy at all.
YES!
Very good!!
Yum – I love you yellow rice! Great recipe
My husband and daughter are going to love this recipe! I can’t wait to make this!
I absolutely love yellow rice. The turmeric flavoring is excellent. Especially good with a little squeeze of lime! Yum! I think I’ll have to make this again tonight!
This recipe is very tasty, but be sure to check the cooking instructions of the particular brand of long grain rice you use. My brand specified 15 minutes of simmering, whereas this recipe calls for 20 minutes. I didn’t realize this the first time, so the rice ended up cooking 5 minutes longer than needed and it turned out kind of dry.
Love love love this rice recipe
Mine turned out way too salty. Wondering what I did wrong? Maybe it was the chicken broth I used 🤷♀️
That’s so weird! Maybe try using low sodium chicken broth and omitting the Kosher salt. Did you use salted butter?
I made this rice for the first time and it tasted Amazing. I doubled the recipe since I had a feeling my family would love it!
Nice and simple. Thank you
I enjoyed the rice as is, but it was buttery to me, and I wasn’t really in the mood for a buttery rice. I think I might just use oil next time, or go half and half.
I made this for the first time tonight, my kids loved it. My son typically doesn’t like rice either:) thank you for sharing!
Loved this recipe..Added carrots,peas and jalapeños…My Indian guests were so impressed……How do l post photo..You have to see..
Do you rinse the rice first?
I don’t for this recipe but it probably isn’t a bad idea.
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I’m almost 50 and this is the first time I’ve ever made rice! Your recipe looked unpretentious, so I went for it. I was inspired to improve on the plain white rice being served alongside the beans here in our quarantine. I had to work with what was available, so instead of broth, I added 2 cups of water with 2 teaspoons of ‘better than bullion’ broth paste-like stuff. I had no cilantro so I added a tablespoon or so of dried parsley flakes instead. For garlic, I used jarred minced. The rest was by the book.
Needless to say, everyone was impressed that I had done this because it was out of character, and also tasted awesome. So thank you for this. Your presentation of the recipe made it approachable for a non-cook kind of guy. Much appreciated!!
Wow! What a compliment! Thank you so much! Also, thank you for sharing your substitutions. We are all doing that lately – trying to make our pantry supplies stretch.
I LOVE Better then Buillion. I use it whenever anything calls for broth! I will certainly try it with this as well. Thanks for posting.
Doubled the recipe and added a package of Sazon Goya…. AMAZING!
This is my FAVORITE rice recipe! Very easy… have it memorized. And I’m a big cheater and mix all the ingredients in a microwave dish, cover, and cook on high for about 15 mins. So easy 🙂 A big thanks for posting this recipe!
Excellent recipe… particularly the broth was a nice touch. Used beef broth (instead of chicken broth)… and the result : totally awesome!
Thanks for sharing the recipe. Will be using this for all my future rice dishes… until something better comes along….
This rice is delicious. I failed the first time not reading it fully, but when I actually followed directions, it was simple and delicious. I have passed the recipe on to two others.
Hi Jackie- So glad you liked it! Thank you for passing it along and sharing with others!
Hi, just a clarification we should cook the white rice before we add it to the pan, correct.
The rice goes into the pan UNcooked. You brown the rice while it is still uncooked and hard. It will cook through after you add liquids and let it simmer. Hope this helps!
Just made this tonight with enchiladas. The only thing I changed is I used sauteed onion instead of powder. It was so good. I’m doused to be eating healthy so I’m going to tinker with different oils, but this will definitely be made again.
So glad you enjoyed this recipe! Who says healthy food has to be boring 😉 right? Thanks for the 5 stars!
Rice cooker virgin!! If I want to use it, I just put all the ingredients in at once and let it go? Looking to add this to Christmas dinner.
For this recipe – yes, except the cilantro. Stir it in after the rice is cooked! Hope this helps!
I made this tonight & tried the Indian style version you gave. Served it with chicken & it was wonderful! Thank you
I am so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks so much for the 5-star rating!!
This looks so easy and tasty! Question: would using dried cilantro instead of fresh work? I definitely appreciate the taste of fresh herbs, but I hate buying fresh when I only need a little for a recipe but have to buy a whole package.
Yes, absolutely! Dried should work just fine, just reduce the amount. Hope this helps!
How can I make this for a party of 100
We actually have a great “rice for a crowd” recipe! You can adjust the seasoning in this recipe and apply it to the crowd recipe found here: https://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/cook-rice-crowd-easy-oven-method/
Let us know how it turns out for you!
What, if anything, do I need to do different if I’m using minute rice?
You will definitely want to use less time. I don’t use minute rice but I would say go for the count of time indicated on the packaging. Hope this helps!
Such a favorite this rice! We call this “Khichuri” in Bangladesh, and we usually add different types of lentils, potatoes and carrots (basically any vegetable). Because we mix in so many things, the word “khichuri” has come to mean ‘mess’ in our daily lives. To say someone’s mixed up things and made a mess, we just say someone’s made a khichuri.
Such a great idea! We will have to try it using all types of vegetables. Thanks for your comment!
I made this tonight. Very nice. Not a very strong flavour but nice nonetheless. Used 1 teaspoon dried coriander instead of fresh and added it with the other spices. Also used dried onion flakes. Sauteed rice, herbs, spices and butter in rice cooker then added stock and cooked on Risotto setting. Next time might add a little extra coriander, garlic and maybe fresh onions instead of flaked. Family rated this 10/10. Thanks for a lovely recipe.
I love how mexican rice turns out so light and fluffy when you saute it first. I just knew there had to be some orher variations. Your rice confirmed that and was just what I was looking for! It will be on my table tonight!!
If I do not have chicken broth, can I just use regular water or will it come out bland?
It might come out a little bland. If you don’t have chicken broth you can add chicken bouillon or add a little salt to the water. It won’t be as “rich” tasting but it probably still taste fine
Made this tonight using bagged Minute Rice and it turned out great! I substituted vegetable broth for the chicken. YUM!
Made it the other day, super easy and good, nice change from the other rice, I too left out the cilantro, we don’t care for it…. but my daughter was hoping it was greek yellow rice ( lemon rice) that they serve in Ogden close to the college where she is going to school.
This rice was excellent! Was looking for a simple recipe to serve to guests that was a little more “gourmet” than white rice. This was awesome! So flavorful and easy! Everyone raved about it. Will definitely make again.
Thank you so much Nicole! Glad you liked it! 😀
This was absolutely delicious! Honestly the best yellow rice I ever made. I used a rice cooker and it came out perfect!
We absolutely loved this ‘yellow rice’.
Very flavourful and will definitely make again.
How do you do this in the rice cooker? All the same ingredients? And can it be done with water to make it vegan?
Made this rice as a side for dinner tonight with chicken. My husband, teenaged daughter, and I loved it. It was very tasty. It tastes like the rice pilaf they serve at many nice dine-in restaurants. My first time cooking with turmeric. (I had some in my pantry for a sore throat remedy.) The turmeric added a nice flavor and of course color. Only change I made was that I did not add the cilantro at the end because I needed to get dinner on the table. Will add it next time though because we love cilantro. Thank you.
We’re so glad you liked the recipe! Thank you!
This is a lovely recipe. I make one very similar to this with our meals when we have fish…. except that I use fresh parsley instead of cilantro, since none if us can tolerate that ‘sudsy’ flavor! I use brown rice, but I’m sure that it’s also good with long grain white rice. My family loves rice, since there are ‘so many’ different ways to prepare it. Does anyone out there remember the old 50s “Spanish Rice” side-dish? I dredged-up my mom’s old recipe last week, and made it for my family when I served Meatloaf w/Fresh Green Buttered Beans for supper. It was a “Blast from the Past”, and my hubby (especially) enjoyed it. Lets not forget those old recipes which our moms took great care to write down (back in the day.) Those ‘oldies but goodies’ are still delicious, so let’s not forget them.
Angela, believe it or not, come of us did not have mothers who shared recipes-would you mind sharing the “spanish rice” side dish? The only spanish rice my family had was in a box with the logo “San Francisco treat” Thanks, Paula
Lol, me too Paula. Rice-aroni and hamburger helper icky and my mom’s name was Dr Paula Green.
..
Yes, please share the Spanish rice recipe!
For those wanting the Spanish rice the lady above mentioned here it is. It came from a better home and garden recipe from the 50’s and was really popular. Enjoy 🙂
6 slices bacon, cut up
1⁄4 cup finely chopped onion
1⁄4 cup chopped green pepper
3 cups cooked rice (1 cup uncooked)
2 cups canned tomatoes
1 1⁄2 teaspoons salt
1⁄8 teaspoon pepper
DIRECTIONS
In a skillet, fry the bacon until it is crisp; remove from skillet and drain off most of the fat.
Add onion and green pepper to bacon fat and cook over medium heat until the onion is yellowed.
Add remaining ingredients and cook uncovered over low heat for abou 15 minutes, or until hot.
NOTE: you can heat the oven to 400 degrees and combine the cooked bacon, onion and pepper with the rice and tomatoes, salt and pepper, in a baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes.
My “Mexican” rice
1.5 cups long grain white rice
3-4 TBS tomato sauce (plain tomato sauce canned)
3 TBS oil
Garlic powder (to taste)
Onion powder (to taste)
Knorr Pollo bouillon 3-4 TBS it’s SALTY though so it’s to taste
3 cups of water
Lightly brown the rice with oil
MEANWHILE
Separate bowl add seasonings, tomato sauce and chicken bouillon, whisk together
Once rice is golden add mixture, cover and bring to a boil
Once boiling, lower temp and give it 20 minutes
Uncover and let stand 10 minutes
You can also add chopped tomato’s, jalapeño.
I make this about 3 times a week. My husbands family is Hispanic and he says this is the closest he can get to abuelas.
If you add some fresh chopped tomato and onion it gives the abuelita taste. I’m Mexican and was raised with Mexican rice and now I’m a grandmother.
Yes, that would add great flavor to the rice! Thank you!
You should stay away from Brown Rice! Most people don’t know much about what they eat, but Brown Rice contains Arsenik!!! For those who doesn’t know what that means, it simply means “Rat Poison”!
Arsenic is naturally occurring in many foods, brown and white rice.
..and that boys and girls is why you should rinse your rice , repeatedly draining and re-rinsing it until the water is clear with the rice in it.
Agreed Steve! And research your brands. Certain areas of the world have soil with lower concentrations levels.
Nice and simple. Thank you and Happy Mother’s Day!