LauraF Recipe – Baked Mexican Rice

I've tried a lot of variations on baked rice, and wanted to try it with Mexican flavors. It's so easy to let the rice bake away while you take care of other things, or prep the rest of the meal. Garnish with additional green onions if you like.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups parboiled rice (such as Uncle Ben's®)
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
• ½ onion, finely chopped
• 2 large green onions, sliced
• 1 (.18 ounce) packet sazon seasoning with saffron (such as Goya® Azafran)
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ¼ teaspoon salt, or more to taste
• 1 ½ cups water
• ¾ cup tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Place rice in a 9-inch square baking dish. Drizzle in canola oil; stir to coat rice completely. Stir in green pepper, onion, and green onions. Season with sazon seasoning, cumin, garlic powder, coriander, and salt.
3. Combine water and tomato sauce in a microwave-safe bowl or measuring cup. Heat until simmering, about 2 minutes. Pour over the rice and stir briefly. Cover the baking dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Let stand, covered, for 5 minutes. Uncover and fluff with a fork. Stir in cilantro and squeeze lime juice over the top.

Nutrition Facts

• calories238.3
• carbohydrateContent42.9 g
• fatContent5.4 g
• fiberContent2.6 g
• proteinContent4.8 g
• saturatedFatContent0.5 g
• sodiumContent389.2 mg
• sugarContent2.7 g