This mixed vegetable rice dish is comforting, flavorful, and a great way to use store-bought frozen veggie mixes. Seasoned with pantry staples, it's super economical and can be enjoyed as a meal or served as a side.
Don't get me wrong, vegetable fried rice has a nice plot of land in my heart, but you do need leftover rice for it, or rice that’s been cooled down.
I created this recipe for when I want to be weeknight-spontaneous and enjoy a one-pot pilaf-like dish that's so good I'd actually want to share with y'all.
I don't use any bouillon, not that I’m against it, in fact, I have a rice dish where it really shines. But in this recipe plain water works just fine. The sautéed veggies release good flavor and the seasonings do the heavy lifting.
The frozen vegetable mix I often use has carrots, peas, corn, and beans, but other chopped mixes will work too.
You don't need a rice cooker, the rice comes out really nice using my stove-top method. I don't like my rice al dente, so there's no bite, but it's not too soft either. If you like it cooked really tender, simply extend the steaming time, no need to change the rice-to-water ratio.
Pre-cooking notes
- All kinds of white rice, including Basmati, jasmine, and generic store-brand, work well. If you use parboiled rice, the timing changes. Soak for 1 hour in warm water, steam 15 minutes, then rest 15 minutes.
- You can use chicken or veggie broth instead of water (I don’t usually), but reduce the salt by a quarter of the total quantity.
- Yellow onion is ideal, but red works too.
- I’ve made this recipe with different frozen veggie mixes, and the ones with small pieces always work. Avoid any mixes with onion.
A visual guide for making my frozen mixed vegetable rice
Here are photos of the key steps to guide you through the recipe. For a printable version with quantities and notes, see the recipe card below.
Heat oil in a medium saucepan/pot over medium-high. Add chopped onion and sauté 3 to 4 minutes, until edges start turning light golden.
Mix in frozen vegetables and cook 3 minutes. Add black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, and garlic powder, stir 15 seconds.
Pour in water, add salt and bay leaf. Cover, bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Add drained rice, stir gently once, cover again. Cook 4 to 7 minutes, or until most liquid is absorbed.
When bubbles and steam pockets appear, stir gently, cover again, reduce heat to lowest, and steam 10 minutes. Turn off heat, remove from burner, keep lid on, and let rice rest 10 minutes to finish cooking. Fluff gently with a fork and enjoy.
Top tips
- If you're new to cooking, I know measuring a "pinch" of anything can be confusing. Ground cinnamon is a really strong spice and can easily take over other flavors if you're not careful. So, if unsure, err on the side of caution and use less. For perspective, a pinch is 1/16 of a teaspoon, so it's really a tiny amount.
- If you follow the steps I’ve shared, the rice texture will turn out really nice, but you’ve got to trust the process. Don’t remove the lid while it’s steaming or resting. If steam escapes mid-process, it’s nearly impossible to build it up again. Adding more water at this stage will either make the rice too soft, and/or you could end up with grains that are unevenly cooked and crunchy.
Serving ideas
I often serve fried egg on top of this rice, sooo good! Scrambled works too. You can mix in leftover rotisserie chicken, although I don’t use cooked chicken that’s more than a day old, just tastes funny (anyone else can relate?). My jalapeño chicken, honey sriracha shrimp, haddock, and chimichurri shrimp all go really well with this rice.
If you try my recipe, please drop a review and comment below. I'll be waiting to hear from you!
Happy cooking – Nelo
Mixed Vegetable Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup (200 g) long-grain white rice - rinse, soak 30 minutes, then drain (Note A)
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- ¼ cup (40 g) finely chopped onion
- 1 cup (150 g) frozen mixed vegetables - no need to thaw, weight might vary (Note B)
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tiny pinch ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1.5 cups (355 ml) water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 small bay leaf
Instructions
- Have all ingredients prepped and ready before you start cooking. You can use the checkboxes next to each ingredient to track your prep.
- Heat the oil in a medium saucepan/pot over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes until the color starts to turn light golden around the edges.
- Mix in the frozen vegetables and cook 3 minutes. Add ground black pepper, ground cinnamon, ground cumin, and garlic powder, stir for 15 seconds.
- Pour in 1.5 cups water. Also add salt and bay leaf. Cover with lid, bring to a rolling boil over high heat. Then add the drained rice, stir once gently, cover again.
- Cook for 4 to 7 minutes, or until most (but not all) of the liquid has been absorbed. I sometimes find it foams up, so I lift the lid briefly to let out steam, then cover again.
- When you see little bubbles and steam pockets forming on the surface, gently stir, then cover again, reduce the heat to the lowest setting, and let it steam for exactly 10 minutes. Don’t lift the lid during this time, or the built-up steam will escape.
- Turn off the heat, take the saucepan/pot off the burner, but don't remove the lid. Let the rice rest covered for 10 minutes so it can finish cooking with the residual heat.
- Fluff the rice gently with a fork and enjoy. I like to top with chopped fresh parsley sometimes, but that's optional. If you try this recipe, I'd love to hear how it turned out in your kitchen. Leave your rating and comment below.
Staggo Lee says
Totally delicious! 🥰 Beautiful, fluffy.
Nelo says
So happy you enjoyed it, Staggo! Thanks for coming back to leave your review.