Simple Oven Baked Brown Rice
August 28, 2009 { }
I know this sounds like a boring dish but don’t give up on me just yet…it’s actually one of my favorite go-to recipes when I need a simple, healthy naturally gluten-free side that won’t compete with the flavors in the rest of my meal. It’s budget-friendly, too. Sometimes I struggle with what to post because I’m not sure what you want to read. It seems desserts are always a huge hit but, then again, practical dishes have their place too.
Cooking brown rice on the stove top is always a mess. It takes 45 minutes, it usually boils over, and it was either too dry or too sticky. I avoided it as much as possible. A rice cooker seemed like a great solution, so I bought one that would make brown rice. The rice burned. Shortly after that, I came across a recipe for oven baked rice in The New Best Recipe
I’d never heard of baking rice but I gave it a go and, to my surprise, the rice turned out perfectly. I’ve even put this in the oven and set my oven timer to come on while I’m gone so that the rice will be cooked when I get home and that works too. I like to use broth to give the rice extra flavor.
Even though it’s not the sexiest dish in the world I wanted you to have this recipe so you can make perfect brown rice, too.
If you want a great dish to use this rice in, visit Shirley at Gluten-Free Easily for her CrockPot Jambalaya.
You can also find more fabulous recipes at:
- Food on Friday at Ann Kroeker’s
- Amy’s Finer Things Friday
- Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum
- The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap
On another note, the construction part of my kitchen in finally finished! The contractors are gone, the house has been cleaned top to bottom, and now I just have some final touches to add – blinds, curtains, and such. I am going to post the pictures this weekend – you’ll never believe that it’s the same space.
What are your favorite go-to side dishes? And, what would you like to see here?
Simple Oven Baked Brown Rice
adapted from The New Best Recipe
serves 4 -62 1/3 c. homemade chicken stock or low-sodium chicken broth
1 T. unsalted butter
1 1/2 c. brown rice
1 t. kosher saltPreheat oven to 375 degrees.
Put chicken stock and butter in a mirowaveable container and bring to a boil.
Meanwhile, put rice and salt in a 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Carefully pour broth over rice and stir to mix well.
Cover rice with a double layer of aluminum foil, taking care to get the tightest seal possible.
Place baking dish on a sheet pan and bake for one hour, until rice is tender and liquid has been absorbed.
Remove foil from baking dish, fluff rice with a fork, and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let sit for 5 minutes, then uncover and let sit for 5 minutes more. Serve immediately.
Note: I put the baking dish on a sheet pan to catch any drips (doesn’t happen often but it has happened) and the baking dish is so much easier to get out of the hot oven this way.
Enjoy!
Like my recipes? Don't miss one - subscribe via RSS or e-mail today.
Follow me on Twitter.
Comments
25 Responses to “Simple Oven Baked Brown Rice”
Post your response
Meet Amy Green
Nearly 6 years of living free of refined sugars and gluten has stopped my food cravings enabled me to maintain a 60+ pound weight loss. Today I live with enormous freedom. Join me as I create healthier food that's SS&GF and delicious. I hope to help you do the same. Read more about my story here.
Search
Don’t Miss a Recipe!
Recent Posts
- Gluten Free Chocolate Teff Cake with Mixed Berry Coulis
- Apple & Carrot Gluten Free Breakfast Cake: VitaMixed
- Slightly Indulgent Tuesday – 3/16/10
- Southwestern Dinner Frittata
- Announcing The Spring Cleaning: Get the Junk Out! Carnival
- Slightly Indulgent Tuesday – 3/9/10
- Sugar-Free Mocha Frappe & Vitamin D
- Restaurant Style Mexican Black Beans Recipe
All photos and text (unless otherwise noted) on Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free are my own creations - and my intellectual property, all rights reserved. Please do not publish my work without my consent. Of course, you can use my work as inspiration to build upon (what a gift it would be to inspire others!) and in that case a link back would be appreciated. Copyright 2009, all rights reserved.
August 28th, 2009 @ 10:27 am
Boy, Amy, you know how to get a girl’s attention, don’t you?
Had you and several other wonderful blogs on my “to do” list today to catch up on, and then I checked my email and see you’ve mentioned mine here! Thanks so much! This rice recipe looks really good. My husband is a rice fanatic. Interestingly enough, one of my favorite recipes back in the day was a chicken and rice dish. You placed the uncooked rice in the baking dish and then topped it with chicken breasts over which you poured French Onion soup. Then you “glopped” cream of chicken or cream of celery soup over the breasts. The rice came out so flavorful and cooked perfectly. Your recipe is like a shortcut version of that. Once we’re back in full on baking mode here (not long, the squirrels are cutting acorns as I write), I may make that old favorite gluten free. 
But, I’ll try your rice dish soon and it would be great to use the rice for the jambalaya recipe like you said. Must check out the other links you’ve shared … I don’t know them, but if you’re recommending them, I know they are great.
Thanks again, Amy! Happy Friday! Oh, and can’t wait to see your “after” pics!
Shirley
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
August 28th, 2009 at 10:33 am
I love sharing great food with my readers and you got the spotlight today.
Your dish sounds great – if you make it please do post so I can whip it up at home.
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 11:35 am
This is a great idea. Another way to speed up the cookin process of brwon rice is to cover it with water and soak overnight in the fridge. The soaking will cut cooking time in half. Have a wonderful day.
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 11:36 am
I have also found that dessert posts are wildly popular, but I want to post them like I serve them, in moderation! That being said, since we a gf family, I really appreciate your desserts, as those are the hardest to find/create.
Rice is a staple in our household and this recipe will definitely be on my menu next week! I love that I can take advantage of an already warm oven, if I am cooking something else.
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 2:03 pm
I’ve tried baking rice too and it works very well. A few years ago I attended a cooking class at Williams Sonoma. One of the dishes we made was a baked rice dish with beef broth and water chestnuts. I’ll have to dig out that recipe and share it with you.
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
August 28th, 2009 at 10:04 pm
I’d love to have your recipe – send it my way! Sounds like a fabulous side dish for the holidays.
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 2:31 pm
I love using my pressure cooker for brown rice. I like the idea of setting the oven timer, though. I might try it some time. I use chicken broth too. The family likes it much better that way.
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
August 28th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
I’ve never used my pressure cooker for rice – I bet that works perfectly. Thanks for the idea.
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 3:07 pm
We just made brown rice last night and I kept thinking I should have added some stock to it. Thanks for recommending a new way to prepare it!
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
[...] Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free (simple oven-baked brown rice) [...]
August 28th, 2009 @ 10:01 pm
Thanks for this post — sounds easier than stovetop, which always seems to lack consistent results — too mushy or too dry!
[Reply]
August 28th, 2009 @ 10:40 pm
This is a great idea. I love brown rice, but hate standing over the stove! Thanks for the recipe!
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 7:50 am
I seem to struggle sometimes with coming up with a starch side dish for meals. I tend to over-think it. This is perfect.
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 8:13 am
Hi Amy,
Will try the rice when the weather cools. (I’m in hot, hot NJ).
How about breakfast recipe ideas to replace the tradition cereals? Do you ever incorporate yogurt?
Also side dishes made with butternut squash or pumpkin? Autumn is on its way!
More desserts made with fruit?
You asked!! :>) Thanks for all you do for us.
Barbara
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
August 29th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
Thank you for the suggestions! I will see what I can come up with. I have some great soup recipes and have started thinking about fall sides. Breakfast…I’m off dairy for a little while. Maybe just a few more days and honestly, it’s been a struggle for me without cottage cheese or yogurt. I’ve been eating a lot of eggs and fruit. Carol at Simply…Gluten-Free had a great idea to make mini fritattas ahead of time and freeze them, then pop them in the microwave. I’ve never frozen cooked eggs, though, so I don’t know how it would work. She’s a great cook so I’m sure it’s fabulous.
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 10:18 am
I never would have thought to bake my rice! Actually, I rarely even serve rice. Should… but we’re more of a potatoes family than a rice family.
It would be good to bake up a big batch to have handy for a Mexican food filler.
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 11:18 am
What a cool idea – baking rice! Will have to try it – especially now that I have so much homemade chicken stock in the freezer!
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 12:26 pm
Just wanted to pop back in to say that you can also freeze cooked rice. I rarely remember that, but when I do I am very happy that I can pull out some already cooked rice for dinner, to add to soup, etc.
Shirley
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
August 29th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Great tip! I’ve never done that but am going to next time…I always throw it out.
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 3:31 pm
That sounds great!! I love brown rice, so I will try this tomorrow!
[Reply]
August 29th, 2009 @ 11:05 pm
When freezing the rice, what’s the best way to thaw it out?
[Reply]
August 30th, 2009 @ 8:32 am
[...] Chaos (modern medicine)11. WackyMummy12. Kitchen Stewardship (Bloggy Best Friend Birthday Gifts)13. Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free (Simple Oven Baked Brown Rice)14. Newlyweds [...]
August 30th, 2009 @ 11:51 am
Jessica–If you use a microwave, that’s the easiest method for reheating … just zap until it’s warm. Even if I freeze my rice in ziploc bags, I usually don’t microwave the rice while still in them, although some folks do. They just open the ziploc bag and then microwave. I have tended to dump my rice out of its container (may need to thaw a minute or so on the counter for easy removal) into a microwave-safe bowl, add a couple of drops of water on top, and then cover and microwave. Then fluff with a fork. (If I’m adding it to soup, I just dump it in.)
There are a few different opinions on how to prepare it before freezing, too. Some folks say to immediately put it in containers so you capture the moisture, but cool to room temp before you place in freezer. Others say to cool completely before adding to containers. Some use ziploc bags, some use plastic wrap. Some divvy it up into 1 to 2 cup portions before freezing; others sort of chip off what they need from the frozen package. For that latter method, freezing it in a flat container (like a flattened ziploc with air removed) would definitely make a difference.
The next time I freeze some I plan to divvy it out in glass jars for freezing (Im always saving those). I’d say just give whichever of these methods seems reasonable to you a try and go from there.
Shirley
[Reply]
September 9th, 2009 @ 9:57 am
We eat a lot of brown rice here, but I usually make it on the stove top. For me the last few times I’ve baked it I’ve had issues. Will have to try again.
I have found that brown rice makes an excellent breakfast or snack. I eat it with some yogurt, berries, raisins & shredded coconut. And eat it very cold…So yummy!
[Reply]
Amy Reply:
September 9th, 2009 at 10:07 am
That is a fabulous idea….I’ve never thought of eating rice with yogurt but I am going to now that you shared that. Thanks for the fabulous ideas and contributing to the discussion!
[Reply]