Chipotle Rice Recipe + Video (2024)

FAQs

What kind of rice is used at Chipotle? ›

In general, the longer the grain, the firmer and fluffier the rice. Short and medium grains tend to be soft, moist, and sticky. Around here, all you need to know is that we use long-grain white rice. We have always been committed to preparing real food made with real ingredients.

Lime juice lends sweetness and just a touch of bitterness, while lemon juice adds a little sourness. But the real secret to this famed rice isn't what you may think it is. It's not some special spice blend or magical cooking method — it's a bay leaf.

Every morning in each of our restaurants, we make our cilantro-lime brown rice from scratch. We simmer the whole-grain rice with bay leaves to add savory flavors, then season it with lemon and lime juices and toss it with cilantro for a slightly tart, fresh taste.

This is likely because seed oil is used to cook and prepare most of Chipotle's food. For example, the rice that is served with Chipotle's burritos and bowls is cooked in rice bran and sunflower oil. The chicken, steak, and barbacoa that are used in these dishes are also cooked in seed oils.

Chipotle's Version

Apparently Chipotle simply cooks the rice grains in water with a bay leaf and then they add the salt, oil, cilantro, lime juice, and lemon juice all after the rice is done cooking. Some sources say they use rice bran oil but it can be both hard to find and more expensive.

Choose your rice

The brown rice contains less sodium and more fiber than the white rice. If you did choose the burrito or tacos, you might want to skip the rice (210 calories) altogether since you're getting your grains in your shell. That said, white rice can also be a healthy choice if that's what you prefer.

We do not put milk in our rices. White rice is cooked with bay leaves on/in it, then after cooking we add cilantro, lime juice, and salt. Brown rice is very similar, it also is cooked with bay leaves on/in it, then receives cilantro, lime juice, and salt as well.

Rice bran oil is our primary cooking oil at Chipotle.

Your choice of meat or sofritas served with our fresh supergreens lettuce blend made of Romaine, Baby Kale, and Baby Spinach.

Is brown rice healthier than white rice? ›

The bottom line

Brown rice is a more nutrient-dense product than white rice. Because of this, brown rice may help reduce blood sugar levels and aid in managing weight. But white rice is good for people with certain digestive issues and those who can't digest fiber-rich foods well.

Trust me, it's the same Daisy Brand sour cream you get at the store in the tub, they just stir it each time before they portion it out.

While Chipotle's standard white rice contains cilantro and lime, many users in the comments justified their requests for plain white rice by noting a gene variation that makes cilantro taste like soap.

What type of rice is used in Mexican food? The most popular type of rice used in Mexico is a medium long grain rice. Two types are cultivated in Mexico, Sinaloa (long grain) and Morelos (short grain). Rice is served as a food, in and of itself, in Mexican meals.

We use bay leaves to add a subtle depth of flavor to dishes like our beans, rice, Barbacoa, and Carnitas. We remove the leaves from our rice before serving, though we've been known to miss one here and there.