Alrighty, friends! My pursuit of posting new recipes this year is taking a bit of a pause. I’m not quitting posting on the blog, but new recipes will be a little more scarce these next few weeks.
It just doesn’t feel right to experiment with food/to buy more than we need/to go to the grocery store right now. Maybe that will change. But man. I’m just loving the idea of limiting my time spent anywhere but at home at the moment.
I also just…don’t have the mental capacity for it tbh. I go between kinda positive to totally freaked about 50 times a day. When 9pm rolls around, I’m ready to turn my mind off and snooze.
But as I was thinking about what I can post here, I got an idea. I am someone who grocery shops when bored. Not only in general, but bored with food. I see an ingredient in the pantry or fridge that we eat a lot, but I want something different. Something exciting.
Since we’re all trying to limit the time spent at the grocery store, I figured it might be helpful to think through what it would look like to make those pantry/fridge ingredients exciting again. Breathe new life into the not-so-fun ingredients we already have on hand.
I’m excited about this new mini series. And I hope you are too!
Today’s focus: rice. Aka. an oblong grain that I have in various types and quantities in my pantry at all times.
I love the stuff, and if I’m being completely honest with you, we have it probably…five times a week? In some shape or form.
It’s easy to batch-cook, you can use it in so many different kinds of recipes, and it’s a tasty carby side. But after eating it plain night after night…well, let’s just say a girl needs a little excitement in her life. Even whilst self-quarantined.
I asked you guys how you love using rice on Instagram, and man. You had SO MANY THOUGHTS. So here are our favorite ways to eat rice:
1. Boil it in vegetable stock/season the heck out of it
One of the easiest ways to level-up a lowly rice grain is to season. Season season season!
Add salt to it when you’re cooking it. Cook it in veggie stock. Add herbs, other grains, and simple mix-ins to turn a boring side into a bangin’ addition to your meal.
Pro tip: Grab one of those “Better than Bullion” jars at the store, and have fresh veg stock-cooked rice all the live-long day!
Recipes to try:
- Garlic & Herb Rice Pilaf
- Instant Pot Rice from Green Healthy Cooking
- Seasoned Rice from Budget Bytes
- Cilantro Lime Rice from Skinnytaste
2. Make it creamy
I love creamy rice. I think it stems back from me totally inhaling those cheesy 90 second rice packs as a kid.
There’s just something so satisfying, so luxurious about a creamy grain.
My personal favorite? I add a big ol’ spoonful of hummus and a few (okay, probably more than a few) glugs of some hot sauce. Mix it up, and it’s creamy, spicy, and just way too easy to get seconds of.
Recipes to try:
- Vegan Marinara Farro with Roasted Broccoli & Chickpeas (just swap out the farro with your favorite rice!)
- Creamy Vegan Mushroom Garlic Brown Rice from Amy Le Creations
- Creamy Vegan Chicken and Rice from The Spruce Eats
3. Make fried rice
Of course! One of the classic rice dishes.
I love making fried rice because it’s so easy to customize based on what you have on-hand.
For example, we always have frozen veggies in the freezer. Broccoli, stir fry mixes, cauliflower…all so simple to throw into a fried rice.
And if your fresh veggies aren’t so fresh anymore and have seen better days? Throw them into a fried rice. A simple, veggie-filled meal!
Recipes to try:
- Extra Vegetable Fried Rice from Cookie + Kate
- Vegan Fried Rice from Loving it Vegan
- Vegan Pineapple Fried Rice from Vegan Huggs
4. Make burritos (or burrito bowls)
Oh man. Here’s my sweet spot. Mark and I can eat burritos/burrito bowls every night. And sometimes for lunch. We love them, and they’re endlessly customizable.
I have a few different examples here on Fooduzzi, but if you have a sauce, some veggies, some protein, and some rice, you’re well on your way to burrito bowl bliss.
Recipes to try:
- Thai Peanut Burrito Bowls
- Sushi Burrito Bowls
- Vegan Seitan Burritos
- Vegan Burrito Bowls from Loving it Vegan
- Vegan Burritos from Nora Cooks
5. Make paella
A classic rice dish from Spain, paella’s characteristic crispy bottom and flavor-filled add-ins make for a stellar one-pan meal.
Paella typically gets its color and flavor from saffron, but you can customize it based on what you have in your fridge or pantry. And while paella is typically made with seafood and/or meat, it can easily be made vegan with extra veggies!
Recipes to try:
- Vegan Mushroom Paella from Connoisseurus Veg
- Loaded Vegan Paella from Sweet Simple Vegan
- Vegetable Paella from Cookie + Kate
- Vegan Paella from Lazy Cat Kitchen
6. Make risotto
Oh how I love risotto. It’s a creamy, starchy, unforgivingly savory rice dish that can be served as a side or stand all on its own.
I love risotto because it tastes super fancy while only requiring a handful of ingredients – rice, stock, wine, onion, garlic, vegetables, and cheese. We love it with mushrooms or red pepper!
To make a true (and flawlessly creamy) risotto, you need a short-grain white rice like arborio, but I’ve seen creative recipes using other rice variants like brown or jasmine.
Risotto is a special dish, and if you have a little extra time on your hands, it doesn’t get better than this.
Recipe to try:
- Corn Water Risotto
- Vegan Risotto with Asparagus and Peas from My Darling Vegan
- Vegan Lemon Asparagus Risotto from Food52
- Creamy Vegetable Risotto from Minimalist Baker
- Vegan Mushroom Brown Rice Risotto from Hazel and Cacao
7. Make a skillet meal or a bake
A meal that comes together in one skillet or pot? Sign me up. Heck, sign me up twice.
Life gets busy, so I love having some of these dinner ideas in my back pocket. They’re full of vegetables, plant-based proteins, and (of course) rice, and I find that they’re filling enough to leave leftovers for the next day.
S. C. O. R. E.
Recipes to try:
- Rice & Bean Vegan Enchiladas
- Mexican Rice & Bean Skillet
- Vegetarian Mexican Stuffed Peppers
- Vegan Cheesy Broccoli and Rice from I Heart Vegetables
8. Make rice pudding
If you know me, you know that I’m thinking about dessert 99.9% of the time. So we can’t leave it off of this list!
My great-grandma made the best rice pudding, and it’s a recipe that’s been passed down from generation to generation. It’s cinnamony, buttery, creamy, and just one of those foods that tastes like my childhood.
So. Good.
Recipes to try:
- Peanut Butter Rice Pudding from Chocolate Covered Katie
- Healthy Rice Pudding from Lexi’s Clean Kitchen
- Vegan Coconut Rice Pudding from Choosing Chia
- Easy Vegan Rice Pudding from Fit Foodie Finds
9. Serve it with curry or chili
One of my new loves is curry. I don’t eat it nearly enough, but it comes together so quickly, and you can really pack in a ton of flavor and nutrients into a single batch.
Chili is the same way – super customizable and totally cozy.
I love serving rice on the side of my curry, and if you’ve never thrown rice into your chili before, you’re in for a treat – it’s extra filling!
Recipes to try:
- 20 Minute Vegan Buffalo Chickpea Chili
- One-Pot Potato Cauliflower Curry
- Burrito Bowl Chili
- Instant Pot Cauliflower Curry from Pinch of Yum
- Spinach, Mushroom, and Chickpea Curry from Pick Up Limes
10. Make a rice-filled soup
Chicken and Rice Soup was one of my favorite soups growing up. And while I don’t eat half of that recipe name anymore, I still love rice in my soup!
We eat pasta in soup all the time – from alphabet soup to wedding soup –, so why not switch up the grain and throw some rice into the mix?! You can add any kind of rice to your soup, so pick you fave and go crazy.
Pro Tip: Add the rice right before serving to avoid it sucking up all of your liquid unless otherwise instructed!
Recipes to try:
- Burrito Bowl Soup
- Creamy Vegan Wild Rice Soup from Yup it’s Vegan
- Cozy Autumn Wild Rice Soup from Gimme Some Oven
- Vegan Chickpea and Rice Soup from Vegan Richa
- Lemon Garlic Wild Rice Soup from Simply Quinoa
11. Make a Buddha Bowl
Last but not least: Buddah Bowls! Basically a catch-all for “a bunch of ingredients in a bowl with some rice.”
Technically, I think a Buddah Bowl needs to have a grain base, a plant protein, veggies, and some sort of sauce, but other than that, the world is your bowl.
Add fresh veggies! Roasted veggies! Canned veggies! Frozen veggies! Add a creamy sauce! A vinaigrette! A spicy sauce! A sweet one!
You do you and make your bowl your own.
Recipes to try:
- Vegan Spring Roll Bowls
- Vegan Buddah Bowls with Forbidden Rice from Umami Girl
- Teriyaki Tofu Bowls from The Mindful Avocado
Yay rice! Hope this post gave you some cozy, fun ways to use up that bag of rice in your pantry!
What are some of your favorite ways to use rice? I gotta know!
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