Brazilian Rice is fluffy white rice flavored with sauteed garlic and onion. It takes only a couple additional steps and goes with anything!
Brazilian Rice is a more flavorful version of white rice that has just a couple additional steps. You simply sauté garlic and onion with a little olive oil in the pot first. Then add the rice and mix it with the onion and garlic to allow the rice to absorb all of that goodness. Then add water and cook completely. You will never want to eat plain white rice again!
Pair it with anything you would normally use rice with. I love it with Feijão: Brazilian Beans Recipe, which is a traditional Bean black bean stew.
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Ingredients and Swaps
Fridge or Fresh Ingredients
- White Long Grain Rice, uncooked – You can substitute with Basmati rice, short grain rice, or brown rice.
- Fresh Garlic cloves, minced – Fresh is best when it comes to garlic, but you can buy pre-minced garlic to save time or mince it in bulk and freeze it for use when you need it!
- Yellow Onion - You need about ½ of a medium-size onion or 1 small onion. You can substitute with white onion, red onion, shallot, or even scallions.
What to serve brazilian rice with
Everything! Well, almost everything. As mentioned earlier, it goes wonderfully with a heaping scoop of my Feijão: Brazilian Beans Recipe!
It also is a perfect base for this Brazilian Chicken Stroganoff Recipe. The rice soaks up the sauce for a superb combo.
For Beef, I love a side of this rice with Brazilian Picanha Recipe, the Best Brazilian Steak.
And how about serving with Moqueca?! Shrimp Stew Moqueca is a Coconut milk-based stew that is delicious and saucy.
How to Make Recipe
Dice the onion and mince the garlic.
Mincing garlic is made super easy with a Garlic Press.
Preheat a medium-size pot (with a fitting lid) on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, onions, and garlic. Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for 3-4 minutes until glistening and starting to soften.
Stir in the rice and let it absorb the flavors from the onion and the garlic for 2 minutes. Then add the water and the salt.
Stir, turn the heat back up to medium-high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir again, reduce the heat to the lowest setting, cover and let cook for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, turn off the heat, but let the rice sit COVERED for another 5-10 minutes. Fluff up the rice and serve.
Brazilian Rice Recipe FAQs
You can store this rice in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can freeze this rice after cooking. First, cool it in the fridge. Then transfer it to an airtight container. I find freezer bags work the best, as you can spread the rice out in a thin layer in a gallon bag. It helps to store it and to thaw it faster later. It will last in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Yes, you can cook this Brazilian Rice in a slow cooker. Follow the same exact directions for cooking the onions and garlic ahead. Then add everything to the slow cooker insert. Set the slow cooker on high for 4-6 hours or low for 8-10 hours.
Yes, though admittedly, I have not yet tried it. Follow the directions for cooking the onion and the garlic in pot and then transfer to the instant pot insert with the rice. Follow the Instant Pot directions for cooking 1 cup of rice.
Brazilian Rice ~ with Onions and Garlic
Ingredients
- ½ Onion, medium
- 1 clove Garlic
- 2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 cup Long grain white rice, uncooked
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 2 cups Water
Instructions
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic.
- Preheat a medium-size pot (with a fitting lid) on medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, onions, and garlic. Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook for 3-4 minutes until glistening and starting to soften.
- Stir in the rice and let it absorb the flavors from the onion and the garlic for 2 minutes. Then add the water and the salt. Stir, turn the heat back up to medium-high and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir again, reduce the heat to the lowest setting, cover and let cook for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, turn off the heat, but let the rice sit COVERED for another 5-10 minutes. Fluff up the rice and serve.
Rob M
Perfect Rice -- So easy ... So good!
Fanica
Thank you for the recipe. The only change I made is to use my Japanese Tiger rice cooker following manufacturers directions. I soaked the rice in water in the cooker for 30 minutes and followed your instructions sautéing the onion and two cloves of garlic. Added the salt and onion mixture and set to cook. It came out perfect. I did not increase the salt because I served it with Brazilian coconut chicken. Just wanted you to know that a rice cooker can be used. I love your recipes and will be making more. This is my first time making Brazilian food.
JM
Perfect templet. Thank you for showing me the way!