Chipotle Grill inspired cilantro lime rice is your favourite Mexican side dish homemade and gluten-free. A perfect side for chicken, burritos, tacos, and more for the whole family to enjoy, made under 25 minutes!
Chipotle Mexican Grill Inspired
A while back, I shared with you a favourite dish – my chicken burrito bowl recipe. It’s inspired by Chipotle Mexican Grill, my all-time favourite place for takeout.
This time, I wanted to take a step back and show you how to perfect their cilantro lime rice and how to make it right from scratch.
For those who are tuning in for the first time, you can get to know about my family and I a little better here. We’re a family of four living a simple life in northern Ontario, Canada–a place where fast food and restaurants aren’t available to us as compared to when we lived in the city.
Because of that, I’m all about making healthy, nutritious, and delicious meals right from home. All while saving money.
That means with this recipe, you too can save money by not eating out and making your favourite Mexican inspired meals right from home.
Homemade Cilantro Lime Rice
This recipe is the base for your favourite burrito bowl, burrito, taco, enchilada, or whatever else floats your boat. They’re all so yummy!
It’s a perfect blend of lime and fresh cilantro that you can most definitely eat as a dish on its own.
This cilantro lime rice recipe is extremely easy peasy and literally only takes only 20 minutes to cook!
How to Cook Cilantro Lime Rice
I use long grain rice, but you can also use basmati rice. Brown rice is really high in fibre, but has a very dense consistency. You want your rice to be lght and fluffy, with a light taste as well.
This is the Lagostina pot I used for cooking the rice, and my entire stainless steel pot and pan set here. We had gotten it on sale at the time and it really distributes heat evenly especially when cooking rice low and slow.
- You’ll need to first boil the rice in water and butter. When it comes to a boil, reduce the heat to a minimum (like 1), cover the pot and let simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Every so often, fluff the rice with a fork. This will prevent sticking to the pot as well.
- When ready, you’ll fluff some more and add in your spices, cilantro, lime, and red onion. Too good to be true.
Rice is Naturally Gluten-Free
The best part of it all is that this rice dish is light. It’s gluten-free because when using long grain rice, it has grains, and grains don’t contain gluten.
So, by skipping the bread and going for the rice is a much healthier choice at dinnertime.
Click here, here, and here for more of my weight loss tips and also here for postpartum weight loss.
Rice as a Side Dish
This cilantro lime rice is the perfect side dish to many of your favourite Mexican recipes.
You can use it along with this blackened chicken recipe, inside these chicken burrito bowls, or these rice and bean burritos!
It doesn’t have to always be about the chicken, though. Serve with savoury pork chops, ribs, or a pan seared steak. Talk about tasty!
Pin it for later!
Recipes to Serve Rice With:
- One Pan Asparagus and Salmon Dinner (Keto, Low Carb, GF, Paleo)
- Spinach Cream Cheese Stuffed Chicken (Gluten-Free, Low Carb, Keto)
- Oven Roasted Stuffed Turkey (Easy, Keto, Low Carb, Gluten-Free)
- Oven Baked Dry Rub Chicken Wings (Gluten-Free, Keto, Paleo & Whole 30)
Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain rice
- 3 cups water
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- juice of 1 lime
- 1 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup cilantro chopped
- 1/2 red onion chopped
Instructions
- Place rice, water, and butter in a medium size pot and bring to a rolling boil.
- Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 15-20 minutes mixing occasionally.
- Take off heat and fluff rice with a fork.
- Add lime juice, salt to taste, fresh cilantro, and red onion. Mix through. Serve.
Nutrition
Enjoy!
