How to Make Mexican Rice and Beans

Chef Saul Montiel walks through a from-scratch Mexican rice and beans plate, starting with a blender tomato sauce and ending with a garnish of queso fresco. The secret to his rice is canned tomatoes (more concentrated, sweeter, richer than fresh) and toasting the grains until they turn golden and nutty before adding any liquid. The beans are cooked separately until thick and creamy, then finished with crumbled cheese. The whole process is straightforward, but the small details -- washing the rice until the water runs clear, knowing when to stop stirring, letting the pot rest off heat -- make the difference between decent rice and the kind that smells like your grandma's kitchen in Mexico.

Mexican Rice (Arroz Rojo)

Ingredients

Tomato sauce base:

1 can (14 oz) whole or crushed tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 yellow onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic
Salt to taste
14 oz chicken stock (plus extra if needed)

Rice:

2 cups long-grain white rice
2-3 tablespoons canola oil
Corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
Fresh green peas
Fresh carrots, diced small
1 whole serrano pepper
A few sprigs of fresh cilantro

Method

Make the tomato sauce. Add the canned tomatoes, cumin, onion, garlic, salt, and chicken stock to a blender. Puree until smooth. You want a consistency somewhere between a sauce and a broth -- not too thick, not too loose. If it is too thick, add more chicken stock. If it is too thin, add more tomatoes.
Wash the rice. Rinse the long-grain rice under cold water, swirling it by hand, then drain. Repeat three or four times until the water runs clear. This removes the surface starch and prevents the finished rice from turning gummy.
Toast the rice. Heat canola oil in a wide pan or pot over medium heat. Add the washed, drained rice and stir constantly for five to eight minutes. Move the pan and the spoon at the same time so every grain gets even heat. The rice should turn a light golden brown and smell nutty. The color tells you when it is ready.
Add the sauce. Give the blender sauce a quick stir, then pour most of it into the toasted rice -- hold back some liquid so you can judge whether the rice needs more. Stir once to combine and bring to a simmer.
Add vegetables and aromatics. Once the liquid is simmering, reduce heat to low. Place corn kernels, green peas, diced carrots, a whole serrano pepper, and cilantro sprigs on top of the rice. Do not stir them in.
Cook undisturbed. Cover the pot and leave it alone for 12 to 13 minutes. No stirring.
Rest the rice. Check the pot. The rice should be evenly cooked and fragrant. Do not mix it yet -- it will still be slightly wet. Turn the heat off, replace the lid, and let it sit covered for another few minutes. The residual steam finishes the cooking and dries the rice out.
Fluff and serve. Remove the lid and gently fluff with a fork. The grains should be separate and dry. The serrano pepper sits on top as a garnish -- bite into it if you want extra heat.

Beans (Frijoles)

The video references the beans as a companion dish cooked separately. They should be rich, thick, and creamy -- not soupy. (The full bean-cooking method is covered in the chef's Part 1 video.)

Serving

Spoon the beans alongside the rice.
Crumble queso fresco generously over the beans. Queso fresco is a mild, salty, crumbly cow's milk cheese that adds a fresh contrast to the rich beans.

Key Takeaways

Canned tomatoes over fresh. They are more concentrated and sweeter, which gives the rice a deeper, more consistent flavor without needing to roast or reduce fresh tomatoes.
Wash the rice until the water is clear. Three or four rinses removes enough starch to keep the grains separate after cooking.
Toast before you braise. Browning the rice in oil for five to eight minutes adds a nutty base flavor that plain rice never develops. Keep stirring the entire time.
Leave it alone once covered. The biggest mistake is lifting the lid or stirring mid-cook. Twelve to thirteen minutes on low heat, untouched, then rest with the heat off.
Hold back some liquid. Pour most of the sauce in, then decide if you need the rest. You can always add more; you cannot take it out.
The serrano goes in whole. It perfumes the rice without making it spicy. You only get the heat if you choose to eat the pepper.