5 Ways You Should Be Seasoning Rice But Aren't

From arroz con pollo, to red beans and rice, there are so many different types of rice to cook with and even more ways to season it. Savory or sweet and served with vegetables or meat, there's a sauce, spice, and seasoning blend that will perfectly complement every kind of rice you can think of. If you've been looking for new ways to add more flavor to your rice, it's time to get creative in the kitchen. Think of hot honey, jerk spices, cacio e pepe, togarashi, and calamansi juice, and you'll get plenty of ideas for seasoning and serving your favorite rice in a whole new way. 

The easiest way to add extra flavor to your rice starts with the water in which the rice is cooked. Rather than opt for plain water, use a broth to infuse rich, savory flavors into your rice while it's cooking. From there, consider the overall flavor profile you wish to achieve and let this guide your choice of seasonings both for cooking your rice and adding a sauce or mix-in to cooked rice. For example, cooking rice in chicken broth would enhance the poultry flavors for an ideal rice base in a baked chicken fajita bowl recipe, while a tangy chile lime sauce poured on top of cooked rice would make a great accompaniment when served alongside freshly grilled carne asada.

Sweetness and rice is not just for rice pudding, rest assured. Hot honey has a number of clever uses as a marinade, dressing, finishing sauce, and more, making it an ideal addition to your favorite type of rice. The mix of sweet and heat will only serve to enhance your rice for a perfectly paired side dish to your favorite barbecue meals, especially if they are similarly saucy, tangy, and sweet. For example, if you're preparing baked hot honey bourbon barbecue chicken wings, consider serving them with a side of white rice that has been cooked in chicken broth and drizzled with a generous portion of hot honey for the ultimate taste sensation.

You can also use hot honey to jazz up your favorite basmati rice recipes to bring a balanced level of spice and sweetness to the dish. Mix a portion of hot honey into a sweet coconut rice recipe to serve alongside barbecue pork or chicken skewers for a perfect combination. This would also work well as just the right hint of sweet seasoning for a bowl of brown rice and grilled vegetables. Any way you choose to use hot honey, make sure to taste it first or try your hand at making a homemade batch to ensure that the spiciness is as tolerable as it is tasty.

Commonly associated with Jamaican jerk chicken, jerk seasoning can be used on a variety of different proteins and with vegetables, breads, and rice. Not all packaged jerk seasoning blends are made equally, though most will feature a combination of common spices, such as dried onion, garlic, salt, cumin, and black pepper punctuated by heat from paprika, red pepper flakes, and cayenne powder, and further enhanced by allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove. Depending on the brand, specific ingredients and ratios will vary, but one popular store-bought choice is Gustus Vitae's Taste of Jamaica Gourmet Seasoning (available on Amazon).

Whether you're using a rice cooker or a pot on the stove, it's a good idea to follow chef Gordon Ramsay's rule for when to season rice and add your seasonings before you begin cooking your rice to allow the flavors to fully permeate while the rice cooks. There are a few different options for what type of rice to make with a jerk seasoning blend. It will depend on the entree to which you're pairing the rice. Either a slow-braised oxtail stew or jerk chicken recipe would make a delicious combo with jerk seasoned rice. Take a cue from a traditional Jamaican rice and peas recipe by using jasmine rice with jerk seasoning or choose a long-grain rice such as the kind typically used for Caribbean confetti rice.

Take an elevated twist on a parmesan risotto recipe by making your rice with a cacio e pepe-inspired flair. "Cacio e pepe" literally translates to cheese and pepper, and the traditional Roman spaghetti dish bearing that name is one that is synonymous with comfort and classic tastes. Between the rich creaminess of Pecorino Romano cheese and the spiciness of freshly ground black pepper, this flavor combination can be easily applied to a number of different dishes like roasted vegetables, breads, and much more. Arborio rice is typically used in traditional risotto recipes, but you can also adjust your cooking methods to accommodate other styles of your favorite rice by simply cooking it first and then topping it with a generous helping of cheese and pepper seasoning.

With such a hearty amount of dairy protein in your cacio e pepe rice, it's basically a meal in itself; however, if you pivot from a heavier risotto to a wild rice or brown rice, you can grate Pecorino Romano cheese and crack black peppercorns over a dish of the just-cooked rice while it's still warm to allow the cheese to melt from the residual heat before stirring it together. This makes an ideal side dish to pair with a heavier, earthy protein dish such as an oven to cast iron reverse sear steak or an herb-roasted chicken.

Also known as Japanese Seven Spice, Shichimi Togarashi seasoning is a bright and tangy seasoning blend characterized by notes of umami, citrus, and heat. Typically, this seasoning mixture consists of dried chilis, citrus peel powder, black and white sesame seeds, sansho pepper, ginger or hemp seeds, and seaweed flakes. The brightness of the citrus paired with the spiciness of the chili and balanced with sesame seeds and nori to give a well-rounded flavor profile to just about any kind of rice you can think of. Keeping with similar culinary inspiration, the mixture of flavors is ideal for seasoning sushi rice or other sticky white rice to make a base for a poke or teriyaki bowl. Brown rice would also be a good option to use with this seasoning.

You can add Shichimi Togarashi to a batch of freshly cooked rice to set the stage for a bowl or plate of deliciously seasoned rice piled high with your favorite proteins or vegetables. For example, add slices of simple seared ahi tuna to this flavorful rice for a well-balanced and nutritious meal. To get more vegetables into the mix, top everything off with a homemade seaweed salad that will play well with the notes of nori present in the seasoning.

What makes calamansi fruit so unique is its distinctive flavor. Close to a lime with hints of lemon and orange, this citrus has a variety of culinary applications, many of which are traditional to Filipino cuisine. If you are looking to take your regular rice to new heights of flavor, prepare a calamansi fried rice. This is especially effective if you have leftover rice that you're looking to breathe new life into. Using the citrus juice along with garlic and soy sauce, you can make a dish that can be a meal all by itself with the addition of hearty proteins or the best side dish to a Filipino inspired entree like slow cooker adobo-ish soy sauce chicken thighs.

If you want your dish to lean into traditional Filipino flavors and textures, start with a short-grain or medium-grain white rice, such as Botan Musenmai Calrose Rice (available on Amazon) to flavor with calamansi juice and other complementary seasonings. If you're pairing this with a chicken or pork adobo dish, adding garlic is a must. On the flip side, if you intend to use your calamansi juice for a dessert style of rice, try using Malagkit, or glutinous rice. This type of rice is used in a traditional Biko, or Filipino sticky rice cake, for which you can cook the rice alongside calamansi rinds to infuse flavor.