cilantro lime rice

I made this Cilantro Lime Rice as a side dish for the Shrimp Tacos that I made last weekend (my apologies for taking so long to post it). This rice is very simple and makes a great, filling side dish to any Mexican or Tex-mex meal. It's so delicious that I'm tempted to just put some in a bowl, melt some cheddar cheese over top and have at it... oooh, and maybe add a few black beans in there. Okay, now it's turning into a whole other recipe! As you can see, it can also be a versatile base to many other dishes. Try it in casseroles or as a super flavorful filling for burritos! Plus, it's just pretty and green.




Total Recipe cost: $2.08
Servings Per Recipe: 6 (a little over 3/4 cup each)
Cost per serving: $0.35
Prep time: 5 min. Cook time: 40 min. Total: 45 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
2 cups	uncooked long grain rice	$0.60
3 tsp	chicken soup base or bouillon	$0.29
3 cups	water	$0.00
1 bunch	fresh cilantro	$0.66
1 medium	lime	$0.48
1 Tbsp	olive oil	$0.05
TOTAL		$2.08

STEP 1: Place 2 cups of uncooked rice, 3 cups of water and 3 tsp of chicken base into a medium pot. Stir to dissolve the chicken base. With a lid in place, bring the mixture up to a boil over high heat. As soon as it reaches a boil, reduce the heat to low and let simmer for 30 minutes or until all of the water has absorbed.

STEP 2: While the rice is cooking, prepare the cilantro lime mix. In a food processor or blender combine the juice and zest of one lime with one Tbsp of olive oil and the leaves from one bunch of cilantro (rinse the cilantro first). Blend/process until it is pureed or in very small pieces (see photo below).

STEP 3: When the rice is finished cooking, remove the lid and pour on the cilantro lime mixture. Fluff and stir the rice gently to combine. If you stir too much or too vigorously the rice will become sticky and gooey so take your time.



Step By Step Photos


I bought this chicken base when I ran out of bouillon cubes. It seems more versatile and has better flavor than the cubes. Only one teaspoon is needed per cup of water. I used half brown rice and half white rice to try to work some extra fiber into my diet. You may need to cook a little longer if you use brown rice.


While the rice is cooking, puree the juice and zest of one lime with one Tbsp of olive oil and one bunch of cilantro (remove the leaves from the stems).


When the rice is completely finished cooking, use a fork to gently combine the pureed cilantro lime mixture with the cooked rice.



You can jazz this rice up even more by adding some fresh jalapeno or garlic into the food processor! Cooking the rice in the chicken base provides a lot of flavor (and salt so no need to add more) and I wanted to make sure my shrimp tacos remained the star of this meal so I kept it simple this time!