I love taking concepts from old recipes and reinventing them into something new. For this Tomato Herb Rice with White Beans and Spinach I’ve taken my (not) Sun Dried Tomato Sauce and used it to flavor a rice and bean combo, similar to my Spanish Chickpeas and Rice. The resulting dish is a full flavored, filling concoction that can be served as either a vegetarian (or vegan) main dish, or a side to go with just about any type of grilled meat. After eating my first bowl I thought that this would also be a great meal if topped with a fried egg (because fried eggs on everything).
What Type of Skillet is Best?
As with most rice dishes, the success of this recipe depends greatly on having a heavy bottomed skillet or pot. The heat from your burner must be distributed evenly for the rice to cook evenly, so find your thickest, heaviest pot or deep skillet to use for this recipe. I’m using the 3 qt. covered sauté pan from OXO that came with this set.
Can I Make This with Brown Rice?
Unfortunately simply swapping brown rice for the white rice in this recipe will not work. Brown rice requires more liquid and a longer cooking time to cook through, so several adjustments would need to be made to make brown rice work. Unfortunately I have not tested or developed a brown rice version of this recipe.
Tomato Herb Rice with White Beans and Spinach
Servings 6 8 cups total/1.33 cups eachIngredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil ($0.22)
- 2 cloves garlic ($0.16)
- 1/2 tsp dried oregano ($0.05)
- 1/2 tsp dried basil ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary ($0.03)
- 1 pinch crushed red pepper ($0.02)
- Freshly cracked black pepper ($0.05)
- 3 oz. tomato paste (about 1/4 cup) ($0.33)
- 1/2 tsp brown sugar ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1 yellow onion ($0.25)
- 1 15oz. can fire roasted diced tomatoes ($1.50)
- 1 15oz. can cannellini beans ($1.29)
- 1/4 lb. frozen chopped spinach ($0.43)
- 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice ($0.48)
- 1.5 cups vegetable broth* ($0.19)
Instructions
- Place the spinach in a bowl and allow it to thaw slightly as you prepare the beginning of the recipe.
- Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Set the onion aside. Add the olive oil, minced garlic, oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, a pinch of crushed red pepper, and a little freshly cracked black pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill) to a heavy bottomed pot or deep skillet. Sauté the garlic and spices over medium-low heat for about one minute.
- Add the tomato paste and brown sugar to the pot and continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until the tomato paste takes on a deep burgundy color. Add the onion and salt and continue to sauté for a few minutes more, or until the onions become soft and transparent.
- Meanwhile, drain and rinse the cannellini beans in a colander. Add the diced tomatoes (with juices), cannellini beans, spinach, and uncooked rice to the pot. Pour in the vegetable broth and stir briefly to combine the ingredients.
- Place a lid on the pot and turn the heat up to medium-high. Allow the contents to come up to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to the lowest setting that allows the liquid to maintain a simmer. Let the pot simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed (there may still be some around the edges. Turn the heat off and let the pot rest, undisturbed, for 10 additional minutes.
- Finally, fluff the contents of the pot with a fork, making sure to not stir vigorously. Serve immediately.
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Notes
Nutrition
How to Make Tomato Herb Rice – Step by Step Photos
Start by mincing two cloves of garlic and dicing one onion so they’re ready to go when you need them. Add 2 Tbsp olive oil to a heavy bottomed pot or deep skillet, along with the minced garlic, 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp basil, 1/4 tsp thyme, 1/4 tsp rosemary, a pinch of red pepper flakes, and a little freshly cracked pepper (about 10 cranks of a pepper mill). Sauté the spices over medium-low heat for about one minute.
Add 3oz. tomato paste (about 1/4 cup) and 1/2 tsp brown sugar to the pot. Continue to sauté for 2-3 more minutes, or until the tomato paste takes on a darker burgundy color.
Add the diced onion and 1/4 tsp salt. Sauté until the onion is soft and transparent.
Add one 15oz. can of fire roasted diced tomatoes (with juices), 1/4 lb. frozen chopped spinach (does not need to be completely thawed), one 15oz. can cannellini beans (rinsed and drained), and one cup uncooked long grain white rice.
Finally, add 1.5 cups vegetable broth and stir briefly to combine the ingredients.
This is what I use to make my broth because I can mix up any volume that I need (unlike bouillon cubes) with no leftovers (like cans or boxes of broth), the packaging is small, and once opened it lasts just about forever in the fridge. #winning #notsponsored
Place a lid on your pot, turn the heat up to medium-high, and let it come up to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to the lowest setting that still allows the liquid to simmer. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until most of the liquid is absorbed (there may still be a bit pooling around the edges). Turn the heat off and let it sit for 10 minutes with the lid in place.
Carefully fluff the tomato herb rice without over stirring (you don’t want the beans to break down or the rice to get gummy). Serve immediately! Or garnish with a bit of parsley to make it look even prettier, like I did. ;)
Love your site and your recipes! Wanted to ask on this one: I’m wanting to sub quinoa in my rice dishes, so for one like this, if I put in quinoa, would that affect cook time or other ingredients? I’m thinking I might want to add a little more water but am unsure.
Yes, it will definitely affect the cooking time and liquid ratio, so you’ll need to do some experimenting there to get it right. I haven’t cooked with quinoa enough to give an estimate of where to start with this one. It’s tricky! :)
I made this with bulgur instead of rice and used fresh spinach. It was delicious and super easy! I topped it with feta cheese. Thanks for a great recipe! I will definitely be making this more often.
What about brown rice? More liquids? Cook longer?
Yes, it would probably take more liquid and a longer cooking time, but I can’t suggest specifics without having tested it.
Whenever you use the better than buillon, do you just stir the paste to cold water and use, or do you stir into hot water separately?
thanks!
It really just depends on the recipe. For something like this where I don’t want to be stirring the pot (stirring makes rice gummy), I dissolve the BTB in hot water to make it broth first. If I’m making a soup or something that I’ll be stirring a lot, I’ll often just add the BTB and water separately because it will have plenty of time to dissolve as I cook and stir. :)
Has anyone calculated the nutritional content of this recipe?
I adapted this a little bit so I could make it in the pressure cooker (as I generally burn rice when I attempt it on the stove top!). So I can’t comment too much on the cooking technique but I can say that the flavors came together nicely! Loved the addition of beans and spinach to the rice dish. I could eat this as a meal itself! Will definitely be making this again.
Could you elaborate? I was thinking I could maybe do this in the Instant Pot.
Saw this recipe on Sunday and said I had to make it. Made it last night and it was delicious! Some of my rice didn’t cook through but I’m guessing it’s because I used cheap rice; that didn’t stop any of us from inhaling it. I ate it as a meal but I served it with morningstar chik patties for my kids. As a vegetarian family on a budget I really appreciate recipes like this. Thank you and look forward to more great recipes.
Could this be made in an Instant Pot?
Probably, although I can’t offer specific advice without testing it out.
Here’s a similar recipe (not nearly as tasty though – I made this one last night and it’s amazing). I plan to use the budgetbyes recipe and do it in the instant pot using the saute function and then manual 28 minute cook recommended in the reddit recipe.
https://www.reddit.com/r/instantpot/comments/4k3nsf/instant_pot_for_brown_rice/d4rix66/?st=iuo64a50&sh=d982f3de
I had a difficult time simmering long enough to cook the rice in my heavy bottomed all clad wok pan – I realize the problem is probably that it was a wok shaped pan and I simply had to simmer longer with more stirring, but the instant pot seems much easier!
I love making your spanish chickpeas with rice dish, so I’m sure I’ll love this one as well.
Thank you!
Yum this look so delicious, healthy and filling!
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Congratulations Beth for the recognition of your food blog by Saver Magazine as one of the best in 2016. I also discovered you this year. I love your writing.g and tasty recipes.
This is delish, esp. With fresh spinach
Hey Beth, I’m also a BtB fanatic but until recently never used it in anything but soups. How do you know whether to make the broth first v when it’s okay to just put the concentrate in? And do you reconstitute with hot or cold water? I usually use hot but did so with one of your wonderpots and I think it made the pasta cook too quickly…
And btw, Americas test kitchen recommends only buying the full salt but using 3/4 teaspoon instead of a full one per cup of water to cut down on salt without sacrificing flavor.
I use BtB ALL THE TIME and I don’t think it hurts anything at all to just dump a couple teaspoonfuls in with everything else (if you’re stirring anyway). But my laziness is extraordinary :) If there’s a way to make even the easiest thing one step shorter, I’ll do it.
Also, Beth? That spanish chickpea rice thing is one of my favorites, so I know what I’m making for dinner tomorrow!!
Oh, I like that salt tip!
Here’s how I determine whether I’m going to mix it with water first, or just add the BTB and water separately to a recipe: If it’s a recipe that I will be stirring often as it cooks, like a soup or stew, I’ll just add them separately because they’ll have plenty of opportunity to mix together as the dish cooks. If it’s for something that you shouldn’t stir a lot, like a rice dish (this recipe), I’ll dissolve the BTB in water before adding it. :)
I usually use hot water to dissolve the BTB because that makes it a LOT easier. I suppose if hot water is making it cook too quickly, you can try dissolving in hot water first, then cooling it a bit in the fridge or freezer first?
Yum! I’m always looking for delicious rice and bean recipes and this fits the bill. Pinned!
I will totally make this and eat it and love it. And yes, fried egg on everything.