For flawless white rice that isn’t made in a rice cooker, try this baked rice pilaf. You won’t ever cook rice on the stovetop after you try this approach out and realize how tasty and hassle-free it is.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 45 mins |
| Additional Time: | 10 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr 10 mins |
| Servings: | 6 |
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ medium onion, chopped
- 2 cups long-grain white rice
- 3 cups chicken stock
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 pinch saffron (Optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Melt butter and oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until lightly browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat.
- Place rice into a 9×13-inch casserole dish. Add onion and stir until rice is thoroughly coated. Place the dish on a baking sheet.
- Combine chicken stock, salt, cayenne pepper, and saffron in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Pour stock mixture over rice in the baking dish and stir to combine. Spread mixture evenly along the bottom of the pan and cover tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to rest, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove the foil and fluff rice with a fork.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 312 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 52 g |
| Cholesterol | 11 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 5 g |
| Saturated Fat | 3 g |
| Sodium | 956 mg |
| Sugars | 1 g |
| Fat | 9 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
OH MY!! Best rice I’ve ever made. I never would have thought of this technique. I did have to add about 15 more minutes to the cook time in the oven. I followed instructions exactly and didn’t even peek at the rice for 15 minutes after taking it out the first time. It wasn’t done.
I added 3 cloves garlic finely chopped and 1 cup bell pepper finely chopped to the onions. Used marissa blend spices that had cayenne, paprika, etc. Used brown rice instead of white. Baked at 348 degrees for 37 minutes. And its cooking now so it hasn’t been tasted yet. Other than that I followed the recipe EXACTLY. Hopefully it goes well with my sisters Easter dinner (it smells goooood). In honor of my dear wife that would have enjoyed my comment.
WOW! So impressed with this easy to make recipe. Did not have saffron, or turmeric as some suggested, so that was omitted. It was still wonderful and flavorful. Husband is not much of a rice fan, but even he liked it. It made enough to have leftovers for tonights dinner. Will definitely make again with the saffron.
The best rice recipe! I usually add turmeric or garlic instead of saffron.
My new way to cook rice! Added some garlic powder instead of the cayenne and omitted the saffron. Perfect!
I liked it alot. Received complimentary responses on it. Made it with turmeric instead of saffron. Didn’t have saffron. I liked the favor and the color it gave the rice.
Perfect as it is. The first time I made it I even sprung for the saffron. It has become a staple here with a few changes. I add garlic and mushrooms with the onions, canned or fresh. (If canned mushrooms, I drain off the water and dice them to match the onions.) Skip the saffron and chili flakes but while the broth/stock (whichever I have at the time) is simmering I add a little onion powder, a little garlic powder, maybe a 1/2 tsp or so paprika and some parsley for color. I may also dice in some cooked shredded chicken or sliced smoked sausage. I’ve even tossed in 1/2 cup or so of frozen peas to the broth a couple times. With the additions I will usually go 375 for 40-45 minutes then the 10 minute rest. My son and I also like sprinkling some soy sauce on our portions. If you actually read that whole speech my main point is this, you can do anything with this and it’s awesome!
This is really amazing. I did make a couple of changes – After putting the onion in the butter, I added the rice to the onion and butter to put a light toast on the rice. Instead of chicken stock, I used Better than Bouillion veggie base and omitted the extra rice (it isn’t necessary imho). Put everything together in a baking dish and baked according to the directions. I will make this again for sure.
This rice dish turned out perfectly! It was delicious and comforting, pairing well with baked salmon with lemon cream sauce and roasted asparagus. The texture was great, not sticky or soggy at all. The only change I made was that I didn’t have saffron so added a pinch of turmeric instead, to give that slight golden hue. I also decreased the salt by 1/4 teaspoon as I was worried it would be too salty with the chicken broth. Our teen-aged kids both enjoyed this as did one of their friends who had 3 servings! 🙂
This is my hubs fav. I’ve made this recipe several times. Sometimes I half it and it comes out just as good. We prefer using bouillon cubes to chicken broth and eliminate extra salt.
Excellent recipe, and easy customize. My no stove top/method: I have don’t use any pots on the stove (I don’t use raw onions). I melt/heat the butter/oil in the baking pan while preheating the oven and use a measuring cup for the hot liquids and seasoning.
A wonderful recipe!!! I didn’t put onion in it & I didn’t have saffron. It will be a great go to recipe for me.
I followed this recipe exactly as written. I was so surprised at how much flavor and baking it created the perfect side dish! We all loved it!
Just your basic rice dish with the addition of saffron, which in all honesty didn’t make much difference to the taste.
Prepared as directed and it was perfectly cooked. I love how easy this was to prepare.
It was perfect rice pilaf. I added some leftover fresh mushrooms and it was fantastic.
Did not add saffron. Guests late so it warmed in oven 45 minutes. Had a little kick. Was a HUGE hit and favorite thing in meal with tuna steaks, shrimp app, and fried beans.
It was good and my husband liked it. Was out of onion so used a red onion, however it was a bit strong. Cut it down to 4 servings and that worked well. I probably could have cooked it a little longer due to my altitude.
Perfect every time!!!
Simple delight! I was so surprised at the difference technique made. The texture is so light and wonderful. The only change is I didn’t have saffron so I substituted a clove of garlic. I served with wild ginger salmon (from this site) and fresh green beans on the side.
Simple, delicious. A family favorite