This easy cilantro lime rice recipe is fresh and bright. Serve it as a side dish with Asian or Mexican food, or use it as the base of your next burrito bowl.
This cilantro lime rice recipe is even better than Chipotle’s.
Yup, I said it. This easy cilantro lime rice is fresh and bright, flecked with chopped cilantro, lime zest, savory scallions, and jalapeños for heat. It’s an epic base for a homemade burrito bowl—just add black beans, fajitas veggies, salsa, and guac!—but it’s also a versatile side dish. Serve it with Mexican fare like tacos or enchiladas, with an Asian-inspired meal like crispy sesame tofu, or with whatever you’re grilling. This recipe couldn’t be easier or more delicious. I think you’ll love it!
How to Make Cilantro Lime Rice
This cilantro lime rice recipe is easy to make!
First, cook the rice. I recommend using long-grain white jasmine or basmati rice for this recipe.
- Both these varieties cook quickly, in about 15 minutes.
- They’re also fragrant and aromatic, so they add depth of flavor to the final dish.
For rice cooking instructions, see my guide to how to cook rice on the stove. You can also make Instant Pot rice or prepare the rice in a rice cooker. Tip: Rinse the rice before cooking to remove excess starch from the outside of the grains. Without rinsing, the cooked rice will be sticky. You want it to be fluffy for this recipe.
When the rice is cooked, but still hot, toss it with garlic, scallions, and lime zest. Adding these ingredients while the rice is still warm helps it soak up their flavor.
Let it cool slightly, and then add olive oil, sea salt, diced jalapeño, lime juice, and cilantro. I wait to add these ingredients until the rice has had a chance to cool so that the cilantro and jalapeño don’t soften or wilt.
Season to taste and serve. That’s it!
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
Variations
Not feeling white rice? Feel free to use another type of rice in this recipe.
- Brown rice makes it nuttier. Long and short-grain both work well. Note that you’ll need to increase the water measurement to 2 cups.
- Or, for a lighter twist, replace half the regular rice with cauliflower rice or broccoli rice. I love this variation in veggie burritos!
How to Serve Cilantro Lime Rice
This cilantro lime rice recipe is a fresh, flavorful side dish. I especially love it with Asian and Mexican-inspired dishes. Pair it with crispy sesame tofu or baked tempeh, or serve it alongside enchiladas or taquitos. It’s also a great addition to a taco bar!
Of course, à la Chipotle, the rice is a tasty base for burrito bowls too. Build your own with
- Black beans or pinto beans
- Tofu sofritas
- Fajita veggies
- Guacamole
- Pico de gallo, salsa verde, or corn salsa…
…or check out my burrito bowl recipe. Tip: cilantro lime rice is delicious in a sushi bowl too!
How do you like to serve cilantro lime rice? Let me know in the comments!
Storage
This recipe is best on the day it’s made, but leftovers keep well in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Enjoy them cold or at room temperature, or pop them in the microwave to reheat!
More Favorite Rice Recipes
If you love this cilantro lime rice, try one of these easy rice recipes next:
- Spanish Rice
- Coconut Rice
- Wild Rice Pilaf
- Forbidden Black Rice
- Broccoli Rice
- Cauliflower Rice
- Or any of these 25 Healthy Rice Recipes!
Cilantro Lime Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup long-grain jasmine rice, rinsed well and drained
- 1½ cups water
- 3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 small garlic clove, finely minced
- 2 scallions, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
- ½ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
- Pinch red pepper flakes, or ¼ diced jalapeño, optional
Instructions
- Combine the rice, water, and 1 teaspoon of the olive oil in a medium saucepan with a lid. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 20 minutes (or check the time listed on the package of your rice).
- Uncover and fluff with a fork. Add the garlic, scallions, and lime zest and stir to combine. Let cool for 1 minute, then add the remaining 2 teaspoons of olive oil, ¼ teaspoon salt, lime juice, cilantro, and red pepper flakes or jalapeño, if using. Stir to combine and season to taste.
lovely flavours, and so simple. went great with our stir fry tempeh.
Very good. Family loved!
I didn’t know I could be obsessed with rice??
I make mexican/south american type food a lot, and I now really struggle to ever have plain rice with it when I could have this, and it’s so easy! I tend to use basmati as that’s what I buy in bulk, and if I don’t have fresh limes then I just use a bit of bottled juice and it’s still great.
Personally I salt the rice water when cooking it so don’t add it after, but that’s just habit really
Unbelievably good!
I used basmati and unsalted butter instead of jasmine and olive oil because that’s what I had on hand. I double rinsed and soaked my rice. I doubled the recipe for meal prep. Otherwise followed exactly and it came out so good, I couldn’t stop eating it out of the pot.
Hi Chelsea, I’m so glad it was a hit!
10/10 recipe, just what I needed! brings freshness and flavors to balance a tacos party
Hi Coco, I’m so glad you loved it!
Delicious! You’re right, it is even better than Chipotle’s.
Also made your Pico de Gallo. spectacular and so fresh. Added some black beans for creaminess as per one of your suggestions. So gooood lol !
I love your site and use it often.
Made this tonight because it sounded fresh and different from the average recipe (and simple enough to have everything already on hand). I adore it! My kids all kept stealing tastes of it as it was being finished. I quadrupled the recipe because we had so much cilantro and we are a family of seven. WE HAD ZERO LEFTOVERS. That is a major win in my opinion, thank you for your inspiration and direction!
Ha ha, thanks so much for coming back to let me know what a hit it was!
I don’t know why I doubted this recipe before making it, but it was the most delicious rice I’ve ever had, much less made!
This turned out better than original! Be careful with salt…a little goes a long way.
Hi Rose, I’m so glad you loved the rice!
I made today to bring to a family dinner , I didn’t have garlic cloves so used garlic powder. Can’t wait to see how it turns out ! 🙂
Hi Erin, I hope it was a hit!
Perfect recipe. Making again.
The family gave it 5. I had picked up a boxed cilantro lime to have with my chicken taco dinner and said I would make this with the leftovers and must say it was awesome!!!!
Hi Greg, so glad it was a hit!
Is there nutritional information for this recipe?
This recipe worked wonderfully for me.
I only had leftover rice so I first steamed it and put garlic, grated lime zest and scallion.
I will do it again, and I will tell Japanese ladies to try this recipe mentioning your website name.
Huge hit
This was delicious and the garlic and lime just popped! Served with stir fry veges!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Janice!
Turned out sticky. Not sure what I did wrong.
Hi Kayh, did you use long grain rice? Short grain rice would be a bit more sticky.
You should have rinsed the rice first thing. It’s the starch from the rice that makes it sticky.