Easy Rice Pilaf (3 Ingredients Only)

Ready to eat in 20 minutes and using just 3 ingredients, this deliciously easy rice pilaf recipe is the definition of a simple, versatile, and tasty side dish.

Rice is a wonderfully filling meal stretcher and if you’re anything like me, you’re always looking for another way to use it! Enter rice pilaf. If you’re wondering what rice pilaf is, it’s a rice dish of South Asia, Central Asian, and Middle Eastern origin. It involves cooking rice in chicken stock or broth and then adding flavor through meat, spices, or vegetables.

When I was shopping for my steak kabobs post, I tossed around an easy rice pilaf idea in my head. I instantly thought of vegetable soup mix and how flavorful it is. I wanted an easy rice pilaf recipe that didn’t have you going to the pantry for fifty thousand different herbs so decided this was definitely worth a try.

This simple but deliciously seasoned rice pilaf recipe involves just three ingredients: long grain rice, the aforementioned vegetable soup mix, and chicken bouillon cubes. The end result? Oh my goodness, we love it and I was right about the flavor. My only complaint from the kids was that I didn’t make enough, so next time I’ll be doubling this recipe so we can have some for later.

Rice pilaf is a very versatile side dish recipe and you can serve it alongside any main course, like steak kabobs or roast chicken.

Recipe Ingredients

• Dry rice (we’re using long grain white rice)
• A packet of vegetable soup mix
• A few chicken bouillon cubes

You can use chicken broth in place of the cubes if you like but I prefer bouillon cubes for budget reasons.

Place all of the ingredients (plus water) in a small saucepot.

Bring this to a boil over medium heat, stirring every now and then. Then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until all the water is absorbed.

Stir in some fresh or dried parsley if you would like or you can skip this step entirely if you’d rather.

Fluff it up a bit and enjoy!

It tastes delicious served with green beans and roast chicken!

Storage

Store cooled rice pilaf leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Simply reheat leftovers in the microwave.

Recipe Notes

• You can use whatever rice you like in this side dish recipe: white rice, brown rice, jasmine rice, basmati rice, wild rice, or a wild rice blend… the choice is all yours.
• To keep this a vegetarian side dish, you can substitute the chicken broth for vegetable broth.
• Here are some easy ways to customize and add some extra flavor to your simple rice pilaf:
  • Add in vegetables, like 1/2 cup of caramelized onion (cooked with minced garlic), peas, diced carrot, chopped pepper, chopped celery, or sautéed mushrooms. You’ll want to cook these vegetables separately either in butter or olive oil on the stovetop before adding them to the rice pilaf. Alternatively, cook them in the same saucepot before you add the rice and broth.
  • Add a pinch of herbs or spices, like saffron, parsley, paprika, ground turmeric, cayenne pepper, or ground coriander.
  • Serve your rice pilaf with dried fruit or nuts on top. For the dried fruit, I recommend either raisins or chopped dried apricots. As for the chopped nuts, opt for walnuts, pine nuts, or sliced almonds. If you have a nut allergy, you can easily swap them for sunflower seeds or pepitas.
  • Sprinkle some green onions or fresh parsley on top.

You may also enjoy these sensational rice dishes:

Cheesy Chicken And Rice (Crock Pot Version)

Chicken With Fried Rice

Hot Buttered Sweet Rice

Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole

Chicken Teriyaki with Brown Rice

Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken & Rice

“It isn’t what you have, or who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy.

It is what you think about.”

~Dale Carnegie