Raise your hand if you grew up eating Rice-a-Roni on occasion. I feel like it’s safe to say that we all did at some point. I still remember the jingle from the commercial as a kid and would always try to bribe my mom into bringing home a box or two on our grocery store trips. I’m not above eating nostalgic foods, I honestly think that most of us aren't, but I like being able to make this at home instead of using the boxed stuff since I can control what spices and flavors I use. Want to make it really garlicky? Go for it. Cheesy? Why not? Add some veggies to jazz it up if you like.

This isn’t much of recipe-recipe since the method is pretty similar to making other rice dishes on the blog already. The only change here is what kind of seasonings we use and the addition of pasta noodles to the rice! Super simple and straightforward. Let’s get to it!

Homemade Boxed Rice

Cook time: 35 minutes

Serves: 4

2 tbsp vegetable oil

2 tbsp unsalted butter

1 small onion, finely diced

Large pinch kosher salt

Large pinch cracked black pepper

1/2 cup fideo noodles (see note)

Favorite salt-free spice blend, to taste

1 cup jasmine rice

1 large bay leaf

1/2 vegetable bouillon cube

2 1/2 cups water

Note: you can find small fideo noodles in the Latin food section, often sold in small bags for less than one dollar. They’re awesome to keep in the pantry for soups and rice dishes like this. If you can’t find the small noodles, simply use some thin spaghetti and break up the noodles into smaller pieces. An easy way to do this is place some in a plastic storage bag and break them in the bag so you avoid making a mess and having pasta fly everywhere.

In a medium pot over medium heat, add the oil and butter to heat up. Once the butter is fully melted and the oil is shimmering, stir in the diced onion and season with a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper. Cook until slightly translucent, about 5-7 minutes.

Next, add the fideo noodles and to toast with the onions. At this stage, you want the noodles to get very brown and almost burn, they’ll start to smell nutty from the butter as well. Season with your favorite no-salt spice and herb blend. Get everything nice and almost charred here, this should take about another 5-8 minutes.

Then, pour in the rice to toast with the noodles. Stir everything together to ensure that the rice is fully coated with the oil mixture. Add the bay leaf, bouillon cube, and water. Stir and bring to a boil.

Once the mixture is boiling and most of the liquid has evaporated (you’ll see little pockets form in the rice where the bubbles form), turn the heat down to low and cover with a tight-fitting lid. Let the rice finish cooking for at least 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve with your favorite protein and veggie for a full meal!

¡Buen provecho!