Butter

Arroz Blanco con Mantequilla

by:
April 29, 2022
5
4 Ratings
Arroz Blanco con Mantequilla
Photo by Ren Fuller
  • Prep time 10 minutes
  • Cook time 30 minutes
  • Serves 4
Author Notes

Buttery rice with poblano, carrots, and corn

There are a few recipes in this book that have become my “go-to” and this is definitely one of them. It was very unexpected, too, because I love arroz rojo and eat it exclusively with all Mexican food. Or, rather, I used to. But this rice—slightly sweet from the carrots and onions and almost creamy thanks to the starchiness of the rice combined with the richness and incredible flavor of the butter—hit me hard and has stayed with me. I was in Durango and found an amazing restaurant that served regional dishes from around the state. One of the many things that I ate on my multiple visits were the enchiladas dulces, an iconic dish from Durango made with chile guajillo chocolate and piloncillo (dark brown sugar). Now, the enchiladas were good—a bit too sweet, even for me, but the star of that plate was the rice that accompanied them. I was blown away, and it was the butter that did it. Butter is not a commonly used ingredient in most of the country, but it is used in the dairy-rich regions of the northern states. Arroz blanco has since become my favorite Mexican rice. —Rick Martinez

Test Kitchen Notes

Recipe reprinted with permission from Mi Cocina: Recipes and Rapture from My Kitchen in Mexico (‎Clarkson Potter, May 2022).

This post contains products independently chosen (and loved) by our editors and writers. As an Amazon Associate, Food52 earns an affiliate commission on qualifying purchases of the products we link to. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Watch This Recipe
Arroz Blanco con Mantequilla
Ingredients
  • 4 tablespoons (57 grams) unsalted butter
  • 1/2 medium white onion (154 grams), chopped
  • 2 medium carrots (175 grams), finely chopped
  • 1 medium chile poblano (125 grams), stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
  • 1 cup (164 grams) fresh corn kernels
  • 1 garlic clove, finely grated
  • 2 teaspoons (16 grams) Morton kosher salt
  • 2 cups (200 grams) long-grain white rice
  • 3 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth
Directions
  1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion, carrots, chile poblano, corn, garlic, and salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and just beginning to brown, for 8 to 10 minutes.
  2. Add the rice, stir to coat in the butter, and cook until the rice is opaque, for 4 minutes. Add the stock, stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook undisturbed for 20 minutes. Quickly check to see if all of the liquid has been absorbed; if not, continue to cook and check again in 10 minutes. If the liquid has been absorbed, remove the pot from the heat and let sit, covered, for 10 minutes before fluffing with a fork to separate the grains and serving.
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  • Becky D
    Becky D
  • Charmaine Martinez
    Charmaine Martinez
  • benr4
    benr4
  • LeStentz
    LeStentz
Rick Martinez

Recipe by: Rick Martinez

Rick Martinez is currently living his dream—cooking, eating and enjoying the Mexican Pacific coast in Mazatlán. He is finishing his first cookbook, Under the Papaya Tree, food from the seven regions of Mexico and loved traveling the country so much, he decided to buy a house on the beach. He is a regular contributor to Bon Appétit, New York Times and hosts live, weekly cooking classes for Food Network Kitchens. Earlier this year, he was nominated for a James Beard Award for “How to win the Cookie Swap” in Bon Appétit’s holiday issue.

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6 Reviews

Becky D.
Becky D. June 12, 2022
We loved this! I halved the recipe using Rick's cup measurements and followed instructions precisely. I'm used to making regular red type Mexican rice and was worried that this recipe didn't seem very Mexican, but the flavor from that poblano pepper knocked it out of the park! Terrific with green chile pork and pintos.
 
Charmaine M.
Charmaine M. June 6, 2022
This is a fantastic recipe, but the weight measurement for the rice is incorrect as written. 200 grams is 1 cup of rice. If you watch the video, Rick uses 2 cups of rice to 3 cups of water. If you are measuring the rice by weight, use 400 grams.
 
LeStentz
LeStentz May 8, 2023
Agree.
This should be corrected in the recipe.
Using 400 grams of rice the recipe was great!
 
carol
carol May 28, 2024
thank you, I went to make this recipe - since I usually weigh the ingredients I realized that this is a mistake in the recipe. The 2 cups works well.
 
benr4
benr4 May 31, 2022
Simple, but so delicious and comforting. Kids loved it too. However, use the gram measurements or your proportions will be way off.
 
LeStentz
LeStentz May 8, 2023
The weight measurement is not correct. 200 grams of long grain rice= 1 cup. Not 2 cups.
I went with 400 grams of rice.
Turned out great.
The weight should be corrected in the recipe.