A simple and very delicious homemade Rice Pilaf recipe made from ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen!
Easy Homemade Rice Pilaf
Before I met my husband Jack, I often cooked the rice pilaf that came out of a box with a pre-packaged seasoning mix. But once he showed me how easy it is to make homemade rice pilaf, I never bought the boxed rice pilaf mix ever again!
Recipes like this homemade Rice Pilaf are so easy and delicious. This is also a very versatile recipe that goes so well with many meals such as roast chicken, pan-seared steak, pork chops, or seafood.
Even better – you probably already have all of the ingredients in your kitchen cabinet!
What is Rice Pilaf?
Rice pilaf is, by definition, rice that has been cooked in chicken stock or another flavored broth such as vegetable broth. To mirror the popular boxed variety, we’ve added pan-toasted orzo pasta to our Rice Pilaf as well.
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Orzo Pasta
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Unsalted Butter
- Onion – We used yellow onion but a sweet onion can also work.
- Long Grain White Rice
- Garlic
- Spices & Seasonings – Including bay leaves, dried thyme, black pepper, and salt (as needed).
- Chicken Stock – Homemade or canned/boxed.
Reader Review
“I found your recipe on Pinterest and just made it – oh my word – a new favorite! My kids scarfed it down! It’s perfectly moist and full of flavor. Definitely going on the weekly menu!! Thank you!” -Claire
Rice Pilaf
A simple and very delicious homemade Rice Pilaf recipe made from ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen!
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: serves 10 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: roasted
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup uncooked orzo pasta
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 cup chopped yellow onions
- 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
- 2 large cloves garlic finely minced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 1/2 cups chicken stock
- (Optional) Chopped fresh parsley, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a Dutch oven over medium heat, dry toast the raw orzo stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until a light walnut color (3 to 4 minutes). Remove orzo to a bowl and set aside.
- Add the olive oil and butter. Once the butter is melted, add the onions and rice. Sauté for five minutes stirring occasionally or until onions are translucent. If the rice starts to get brown, remove from heat before you proceed to next step.
- Add garlic and stir for one minute. Then add bay, thyme, pepper and browned orzo. Stir and add chicken stock. Be careful – when the stock hits the pan, it will bubble up.
- Stir once, cover and place in the oven for 30 minutes untouched.
- Remove from the oven and discard bay leaves. Fluff rice with a wooden spoon and taste. Add salt to taste, as needed. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley, if desired.
Notes
Depending on the saltiness of the chicken stock you use for cooking, the addition of some additional salt may or may not be needed.
This Rice Pilaf post originally appeared on A Family Feast in June 2013. We’ve updated the photos but the delicious recipe remains the same.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I made Rice Pilaf ahead of time? Yes, this dish reheats nicely.
- How do I store leftover Rice Pilaf? Stored covered in the refrigerator for up to three days.
- How do I reheat leftovers? Microwave leftovers, stirring as needed for even reheating.
- Can I freeze cooked Rice Pilaf? Yes, you can. Just note that the texture of the pasta and rice may be a little softer after freezing, thawing and reheating.
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I found your recipe on Pinterest and just made it – oh my word – a new favorite! My kids scarfed it down! It’s perfectly moist and full of flavor. Definitely going on the weekly menu!! Thank you!
Thank you for taking the time to write to us Claire! So glad you all enjoyed the recipe!
Please forgive me if I missed this but how many people would this feed as a side dish? I’d like to serve at a family reunion but don’t know if I need to double or triple (or quadruple?) the recipe. Thank you.
Hi Courtney – The yield (at the top of the recipe) is 5 cups – so I’d estimate 6-8 servings (10 if you limit everyone to a 1/2 cup serving). Hope that helps!
Has anyone tired this in a rice cooker instead of the dutch oven?
Hi Deb – We haven’t tried it ourselves in the rice cooker but we do think it would work. You’ll still want to do steps 2, 3 and 4 as written and then start using the rice cooker after that. We’re just not sure of the timing for cooking it in the rice cooker however (since we haven’t done it ourselves). So you’ll have to base the timing on how long your own rice cooker takes to cook the rice and adjust up or down from there. Let us know how it works out!
Hello! I recently became vegetarian and the thing I miss most is rice-a-roni, do you think I can do this with a homemade vegetable broth instead of chicken?
Absolutely Kelsey – This recipe will taste great with vegetable stock swapped in! Enjoy the recipe!
Thank you for the recipe. Have you done this in a rice cooker before? I am pairing this with steamed broccoli and Cornish Game hens.
Hi Sharon – Sounds like a great menu! We think you should be able to do this recipe in the rice cooker – you’ll still want to do steps 2, 3 and 4 as written and then start using the rice cooker after that. We’re just not sure of the timing for cooking it in the rice cooker however (since we haven’t done it ourselves). So you’ll have to base the timing on how long your own rice cooker takes to cook the rice and adjust up or down from there. Please let us know how it comes out – I’d love to hear! Happy New Year!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I bought everything to make Greek style chicken pitas for dinner, but when I looked at the pitas this morning they were moldy! I hit Pinterest to find a Greek style rice pilaf to make as a side to the chicken. This is the perfect side dish, it paired perfectly with the chicken, veggies and tzatziki sauce that I already had. Best of all, no trip to the store required!
Glad it worked out Elise! 🙂
I loved it
Thanks Darlene!
Love this rice! I plan to make this for a crowd and double the recipe, will I need to adjust the length of time it cooks?
Hi Candia – It will probably depend on the size of your pan. It might take a little longer… Thanks!
Hi Martha, this looks like a great side dish, thanks for posting this recipe. I’m going to make this for my family soon! Would I need to alter the recipe in any other way if I chose to use brown rice instead of white rice? I know it would need a longer cook time, but would it also need more liquid?
Hi Brittany – We haven’t made this with brown rice so please let us know how it comes out! Yes – definitely longer cooking time and I think the general rule of thumb is that brown rice requires 1/4 to 1/2 cup more liquid that white rice. I hope that helps!
I absolutely love this recipe–I have made it several times.
My family loves that boxed pilaf too, but this looks like a great homemade alternative!
Thanks Amy! Hope you all enjoy the recipe!