Okay, this is a pretty big statement to make, but… This Yellow Jasmine Rice is the best rice I’ve ever had.
Yep. The flavor is simply out of this world. The aroma as it cooked almost gave me a high. Plain white rice is dead to me now.
If you follow the blog you’re probably familiar with how much I love jasmine rice. I don’t know how I lived my whole life without knowing about it, but since discovering it a year or two ago, I just can’t stop. It’s incredible. If you haven’t tried jasmine rice yet, go find it NOW.
What is Jasmine Rice?
Jasmine rice is naturally fragrant and has the most wonderfully rich, mellow, and almost nutty flavor. You can find it at most major supermarkets either in the international foods aisle or in the rice section, usually on the bottom shelf. Even Walmart is in the jasmine rice game and is selling Great Value brand jasmine rice. It can be pricy if you buy one of those small specialty brand containers but if you buy an Asian brand (usually in larger bags on the bottom shelf), it can be just as inexpensive as regular rice. Also check bulk bins. Some stores will have jasmine rice (white AND brown) in bulk.
Spice it Up!
Anyway, I decided to kick up the jasmine rice by adding a few spices and something magical happened. The turmeric and cumin added to the rich, nutty flavor of the jasmine rice and the little pinch of cinnamon added just a hint of spicy sweetness… like hitting the cymbals on a drum kit. The first bite was so good, I swear I saw angels.
What Do You Serve with Yellow Rice?
This super flavorful yellow rice makes an excellent side to just about any grilled or roasted meat. I have served it with Chicken Adobo, Garlic Butter Baked Chicken Thighs, and Chimichurri Chicken Kebabs. It also makes a great component to vegetarian meals. I like to pair it with a fried egg and some sautéed greens (see Golden Rice Bowls).
Can I Make This in a Rice Cooker?
Yes! While it does turn out a little better when you sauté the garlic and spices in a skillet first, you can just add all the ingredients to a rice cooker and press “go” when you’re in a pinch!
Yellow Jasmine Rice
Servings 6 cupsIngredients
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.22)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced ($0.16)
- 1 tsp turmeric ($0.10)
- 1/4 tsp cumin ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp cinnamon ($0.02)
- 2 cups uncooked long grain jasmine rice ($0.96)
- 3 cups chicken broth* ($0.38)
- 1 bay leaf, optional ($0.15)
Instructions
- Add the butter, garlic, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon to a medium sauce pot. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic has softened.
- Add the uncooked rice to the pot. Stir and cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes to slightly toast the rice. You may hear a slight popping or crackling noise as the rice toasts.
- Add the chicken broth and bay leaf to the pot. Place a lid on top, increase the heat to high, and bring the pot to a rolling boil. As soon as it reaches a full boil, reduce the heat to low and let it simmer (with the lid in place) for 20 minutes.
- After letting it simmer for 20 minutes, turn the heat off and let it rest (do not remove the lid) for an additional 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.
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Notes
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Yellow Jasmine Rice – Step By Step Photos
Add 2 Tbsp butter, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1 tsp turmeric, 1/4 tsp cumin, and 1/8 tsp cinnamon to a sauce pot.
Sauté the garlic and spices in the butter over medium heat for 1-2 minutes, or just until the garlic has softened.
Add 2 cups of uncooked long-grain jasmine rice to the pot. I use this brand, which can be found in 5 lb. bags, usually on the bottom shelf of either the rice aisle, or the Asian section of major grocery stores.
Stir and cook the rice in the butter and spices for about 2 minutes. This will toast the rice and spices giving them a deeper, nuttier flavor. You should hear a popping or crackling noise as the rice toasts.
Add 3 cups of chicken broth to the pot, along with one bay leaf (if using). I use Better Than Bouillon to make my broth because it’s less expensive than buying cans/boxes of broth and way better quality than the little cubes. It also provides all the salt needed to season the rice.
Give everything a good stir, place a lid on top, and increase the heat to high. Bring it up to a full boil then immediately turn the heat down to low. Let it simmer on low (with the lid) for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, turn the heat off and let it sit undisturbed (do not remove the lid) for another 10 minutes. If you’re using a bay leaf, it will probably have floated up to the top and you can remove it at that point. You’ll also see swashes of spices over the surface.
Fluff the Yellow Jasmine Rice with a fork to redistribute all the spices, then serve!
Not kidding. Best rice I’ve EVER eaten.
Need more help with cooking rice? Check out my guide for How to Cook Rice.
Is there a way to make this in a “rice cooker”?
I haven’t tried that, but it probably would work. You’ll want to melt the butter and spices together in a sauce pot first, add the rice, toast it for a minute or two, then transfer everything to the slow cooker.
I was looking for an easy and quick rice dish to accompany our lamb kebabs and found this recipe. OMG, this is by far the best rice I have had, at home or at a Mediterranean restaurant. The hubs was very impressed. This recipe is going into my ‘favorite recipes’ file. I didn’t have Jasmine rice, only long grain enriched rice, and it still turned out amazing. I will buy Jasmine rice for the next time.
Hi love the recipe if in using a low sodium broth how much salt could I add to make it taste ok for the rest of the family? A teaspoon? Also do you have. A recipe for pineapple fried rice? How could I adapt this recipe? Help lol
I think a teaspoon might be too much salt. I’d try 1/4 to 1/2 tsp first. As far as turning this into pineapple fried rice, that’s a bit too complicated to answer here. :) I’d need to experiment with it first.
This rice is so easy to make, always comes out perfect, and is so fragrant and full of flavor. It’s one of my favorite things to make!
This is a really great rice recipe! We have made it several times, and it has become our go to recipe for yellow rice. Thank you!
Dude, I love this rice
this is amazing. very addictive. i was looking for a recipe that mimics my favorite vietnamese restaurant, which serves this with grilled five spice chicken. i made the yellow rice and chicken for the first time using internet recipes. the results put my favorite entree at my favorite restaurant to shame. this rice especially tastes better the second day. so easy to make and all ingredients are in the house. this is a crowd pleaser (party or family). make extra because it will be eaten!
This was very tasty rice.
Made a half recipe last night. Wonderful. Turned leftover meatloaf into a great meal!
This would be a great recipe if it wasn’t so damn addicting! Seriously, I’ve made it four times in the last three weeks. This rice, crock pot curry and your naan recipe is my new favorite meal!
The only change I made was using coconut oil instead of butter and I highly recommend it if you have some laying around :)
How much is a serving, approximately?
Have you tried Basmati rice? It’s significantly cheaper than Jasmine most of the time, and I actually like it better when I want a nice sturdy nutty rice to add to fried rice or use as a base for sauces. Comes in white and brown! And you can get it in 10kg+ bags for a good deal.
I need to! I can find big bags of jasmine at my local store, but I don’t think I’ve seen basmati except in the smaller (super expensive) bags. I’ll have to look closer to make sure, though!
Could you substitute curry powder for turmeric? & garlic powder for the minced garlic? I don’t have either in my kitchen right now.
P.S. I can’t wait to try this for lunch on Monday.
The flavor will be quite different, but I’m sure it would still be delicious! :)
Made this to go with black beans and pulled pork. I used homemade turkey stock, as that was what we had on hand, and it was great. Added a teaspoon of sugar to the stock as well. It might sound weird, but it added a bit of sweetness that is necessary when you make authentic yellow rice. Would add some finely diced onion to it next time as well, to bump up the authenticity. Delish as is though!
Interesting! I’ll have to try sugar next time. Thanks for that tip!
This was great. I think I’m going to try this with Arborio rice and make risotto. Add lamb I’m pretty clear it will be deliscious.
Nice blog!
I loved these! The taste reminded me of Knorr’s Indian Rice (available in Denmark but cant find it when googling it). There you brown some ground meat, add the spice package (which contains spices, raisins, peas and red peppers i think), then water and rice and you cook it all together. Now I would like to try to make that myself. I was wondering if you think it is possible to cook it all together like that? And if so, are more spices and water needed? :-)
Yes, you probably could! I would probably increase the spices a smidge, since you have more food to cover. Although you probably could cook the browned meat with the rice, I’d probably stir it in at the end to prevent it from getting soggy. The vegetables and raisins I’d cook with the rice, though.
Hi Beth, I am not sure here in NZ we can get chicken broth, I have never seen it. So was wondering if substituting chicken stock would work the same? We can buy that in liquid form, so thought I might give it a go. Thanks :-)
Yes, chicken stock would be an appropriate substitute. :)