Are you sick of the same old, same old white rice? We totally were too, which led me to do some experimenting and research into new ways to spruce up white rice. Our favorite? This lemon rice recipe! A riff on greek rice, this recipe is so easy, only taking 25 minutes to make, which is about the same amount of time it takes to make regular rice anyway! A pinch of this, a dash of that, and you’ll have a new favorite, easy lemon rice recipe to add to your meals.
Ingredients
Long Grain Rice Butter Fresh-squeezed Lemon Juice Chicken Broth Turmeric (spice) Salt Fresh Herbs – optional (like dill, mint, or basil
Here’s How You Make It
You’re just a few steps away from the best lemon rice recipe ever!
Why This Recipe Works
Easy — It doesn’t get any easier than melt, stir, add, boil, and simmer. The directions for this rice really are very simple and the process is so fast! Lemon — You can’t have lemon rice without lemon of course. But seriously adding fresh-squeezed lemon juice to this Greek rice dish is key to giving it the most perfect, citrusy flavor. Butter — The trick to this lemon rice is first stirring/cooking the rice in the butter so that the rice really absorbs some of that buttery flavor grain by grain. Plus, it helps release a bit of a nuttier flavor in the rice. Turmeric — A lesser-used spice for sure, but turmeric adds a lovely flavor and color to this lemon rice that you won’t want to skip!
How to Cook Rice
Cooking rice isn’t that complicated, but it does require a few steps to get it just right. Here are the steps I follow when making any rice at all, but in addition this lemon rice.
Ideas for Serving Lemon Rice
This is the recipe I use for the rice in my Greek Lemon Chicken and Rice Gyros and it is AMAZING! I love to serve this lemon rice with a side of healthy baked chicken. This dish also goes great with pork tenderloin. For veggies that go with Greek rice, try my roasted broccoli, oven roasted Brussels sprouts, or an easy green salad. If you’re feeling seafood, then a baked salmon or grilled shrimp would make the perfect accompaniment to this easy rice recipe.
Expert Tips
This lemon rice will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can freeze this easy rice recipe for up to 2 months but I don’t think it tastes as good once it thaws as the rice can get a little mealy. For the butter, I use unsalted butter, then add salt later to taste. If you use salted butter, you might not want to use as much actual salt. But it’s totally a personal preference! If you want to add a little something “extra” to this lemon rice, try fresh herbs like parsley or oregano, a cup of frozen peas, a can of diced tomatoes (drained), or some toasted pine nuts. Do add butter (or you can use oil) to the grains before adding the water. The rice will soak up the oils/fat and help to coat the grains and allow them to slide past each other and not be so sticky.
More Amazing Rice Recipes
For more delicious, easy side dishes featuring rice, hop on over to my recipes for Super Easy Mexican Rice, Cauliflower Fried Rice, and Easy Chicken Fried Rice.
Instant Pot Chicken and Rice Cajun Shrimp and Rice Skillet One Pan Spanish Chicken and Rice One Pan Lemon Herb Chicken and Rice Sheet Pan Chicken Fried Rice Pork Fried Rice Shrimp Fried Rice
