Do you like the taste of boxed Rice-a-Roni but have been looking for a healthier alternative? Do you dislike store-bought Rice-a-Roni but would still love a great side dish? Whichever camp you’re in, you’re going to love this Homemade Rice-a-Roni!
I’ve been making several variations of this Rice-a-Roni for years. It’s a perfect accompaniment to meat, poultry or fish along with your choice of vegetable. I just made some of this Homemade Rice-a-Roni to go with some juicy pork chops and thought it would be great to share with you. This is a fantastic base recipe that you can tweak any which way you like. You can substitute the toasted walnuts with pecans or pine nuts, for example. You can use chicken or beef broth if you prefer. You can substitute the rosemary for any herb of your choice. Add broccoli or other veggies. Whichever options you choose, this will become a favorite go-to recipe when you’re in the need of a great-tasting side dish.
So let’s get started!
We’re going to use long-grain rice which is very important for the consistency (I prefer brown rice, in this instance brown basmati rice) and orzo. Some Rice-a-Roni uses broken up vermicelli pasta, but I like the shape of orzo.
Melt the butter and olive oil in a skillet and add the rice, orzo and chopped walnuts.
Saute until half of the rice and orzo is browned.
Add the onion and saute for another 2 minutes.
Add the broth, herbs, salt and pepper. This time I used chicken broth for a Chicken Rice-a-Roni.
Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer as you would normally cook rice, 15-20 minutes (depending on whether you’re using brown or white rice), or until done. Fluff with a fork and serve.
- 1 cup brown or white long-grain rice
- ½ cup orzo
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pecans
- 3 cups broth of your choice
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary or herb of your choice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Heat the oil and butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the rice, orzo and nuts and saute, stirring frequently, until half of the rice and orzo is browned.
- Add the onion and cook for another two minutes.
- Add the chicken stock, salt and herbs and stir to combine.
- Bring it to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook as you would normally cook rice, about 15-20 minutes (if using white rice, longer if using brown) or until the rice is done.
- Fluff with a fork and serve immediately.
Mr. Bond says
Conducted everything according to the recipe, but I did use a Texmati rice in lieu of other types and that rice came out undercooked. It was like eating little bullets. I’ll have to try a different rice next time, but this batch was tossed into the can.
Mr. Bond says
You’ll also see the five stars, because I was unable to properly adjust the rating.
BJ says
I had added a comment about browning the pasta separerà and then adding it to the rice because of the cooking discrepancy, which works great. I also remembered that I use pine nuts instead, because my husband does not like walnuts or pecans. But it is a great substitution. Also I make a large batch, cool it and then freeze it in freezer bags in a serving size. It works perfectly.
BJ says
I have browned my separately and added it…works fine that way. I have also used broken thin spaghetti or the pre-Broken thin spaghetti if I want a more even or messy look. But I always brown them separately. Sometimes with a little extra warmed broth if necessary.
Megan says
I really liked the flavor of this rice. I had trouble though because the orzo was overcooked by the time the brown rice was done. Any suggestions how to have them cook more evenly?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Megan, the only way to would be to add the orzo later but then you won’t be able to brown it, resulting in some flavor loss.
Clair says
Hi there! This looks amazing, I’d love to make this. How big are the servings? I see if makes 4 servings, but I would probably like to make extra for leftovers. Thank you so much!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Clair, it makes about 4 cups of rice-a-roni, so about a cup each. Or you can serve smaller portions and feed 6 people.
Kirsty rogers says
Do you have the recipe for herb and butter rice? I’m quite new to cooking but I love reading your different recipes, they have helped a lot.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m sorry, I don’t, Kirsty. But I’m glad you’ve found my other recipes helpful, thank you.
Kirsty rogers says
Hi, in the photo when you have added the herbs, salt and pepper, what is the yellowish powder? I had rice a roni whilst on holiday in Florida and now back home in the uk I find that I want to try to make it myself, but I like the butter and herb flavour rice.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Kirsty, I had to try hard and remember what that was :) That’s chicken bouillon powder for the chicken broth.
Kirsty rogers says
So if I was to make butter and herb rice, I wouldn’t need that? Would I need an alternative?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Yes, you’ll still need broth. You can use either chicken or vegetable broth and unless you’re vegetarian I recommend chicken because it has a stronger flavor.
Rusty Brown says
“…stirring frequently, until half of the rice and orzo is browned…” (?)
How can you brown ½ of the rice and orzo without browning the other ½ at the same time? I don’t get it, to be honest. But I like the recipe. Easy and tasty the way I made it.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Rusty, thank you! Rice and orzo, when sauteed, generally don’t brown evenly – some tend to brown more quickly than others. So the point here is not to over-brown but to stop once roughly half of them have turned color.
Lorraine says
This showed up on the gluten free list, but orzo is a pasta, and NOT GF! Keep on being daring, I’ve learned so much from you.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks so much, Lorraine! Yeah, there are some glitches in the search engine software – sometimes we get some especially really weird ones ;)
Jeanne says
Sorry the rating didn’t show up and I wanted to make sure you received it.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Thanks so much, Jeanne!
Jeanne says
Made this tonight and it was very good. I did it with beef and it seemed to be missing something. I have some about 1/2 of it left so I will try adding something else and let you know. Thought would try steak sauce as I had strip of steak mixed in with it.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Jeanne, thanks for the feedback! Yes, let us know what adjustments you make. What I will say is that chicken broth has a stronger flavor than beef broth so that may be part of it. I remember reading something by America’s Test Kitchen a while ago where they in so many words say that they rarely use beef broth for anything but use chicken instead because it’s much more flavorful. For example, I thought it was interesting that in their version of French onion soup they use chicken broth instead of beef broth for that very reason. I still use beef broth regularly but this reminded me of that.
Terri says
Hi, I had to add an extra cup of broth to this rice recipe as the broth evaporated before the brown rice was fully cooked. It was delicious, thanks for the recipe!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Terri, thanks for the feedback and so glad you enjoyed it!
tessadomesticdiva says
I have a fun time sorting through your recipes1 I found you on a google search for rice a roni, I really enjoyed this recipe! Rice a roni was a childhood favorite of mine. I am your newest follower…we seems to like a lot of the same foods!
The Daring Gourmet says
Hi, Tessa, and welcome! I’m so thrilled you found my site and already tried one of my recipes! So happy to have you on board!
GrammarDiva says
Could you add ground beef for a main dish? I personally would not, but my husband loves Rice-A-Roni with ground beef ’cause his mama made it for him. (YECH). This looks really good. Thanks!
The Daring Gourmet says
Hi GrammarDiva! You bet! And you’re such a good wife to accommodate your husbands requests :)