Mexican style rice can be a great side dish for many recipes, you can choose to use all fresh ingredients and you can also take a shortcut or two if you are in a pinch. One of the main differences with mexican rice vs traditional recipes is that it is usually fried before cooking, giving it a diferent flavor.

1 cup of rice
2 cups of water
1 tomato
1 garlic clove
1 cube of tomato boullion for seasoning
1/2 cup of frozen or fresh vegetables (peas and carrots)
Cilantro leaves (optional)


- Take your tomato and use a cheese grater or similar to grate your tomato, the reason why it is best to use a grater is so that you can get a slightly chunky consistency for the tomato, if you're in a hurry you could also use this mashed tomato from la costeña.

- Pour a few teaspoons of oil on a skillet and heat, add the garlic clove and rice and stir until the rice starts to turn golden brown.

- Pour your 2 cups of water, shredded tomato, vegetables, cube of tomato boullion and cilantro sprigs (optional).

- Stir your rice to make sure the tomato boullion cube is dissolved and bring to a boil, once boiling, lower the heat and cover.

- Simmer your rice for about 15 minutes or until cooked, (have some extra hot water available in case it starts getting too dry and it's still not cooked).