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Home » Recipes » Side Dishes

by Traci · Published: 05/11/2022 · Updated: 05/11/2022 · This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

Cilantro Lime Brown Rice Recipe

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5 from 25 votes
10 minutes

Copycat Cilantro Lime Brown Rice is the 10-minute homemade version of the famous Chipotle brown rice. It's so easy and goes with all things Mexican!

cilantro lime brown rice in serving bowl with serving spoon garnished with lime wedges and chopped cilantro

If you love Chipotle Cilantro Lime Brown Rice, this recipe lets you make it right at home with minimal effort! In 10-minutes, you can turn brown rice into a citrusy, festive side dish for your Mexican-inspired eats.

You'll love the simplicity of heating up cooked brown rice and adding fresh cilantro and fresh limes. Not only is it crazy easy and bursting with flavor, but it's naturally vegan and gluten free!

Cilantro lime brown rice is super versatile too! We love it with burritos, steak nachos, taco meat, healthy taco bowls, vegetarian skillet enchiladas, burrito bowls, refried black beans, and of course, restaurant style salsa. Whether it's game day, family dinner, or Taco Tuesday, copycat Chipotle brown rice fits right in with all the Mexican recipes.

Table of Contents hide
1) Key ingredients
2) How to make Chipotle brown rice
3) Rice tips and variations
4) More recipes we love
5) Cilantro Lime Brown Rice

Key ingredients

  • avocado oil - or preferred cooking oil
  • cooked brown rice - use stove-cooked, rice cooker, or Instant Pot brown rice. Also you can use brown rice in the form of basmati. long grain, or jasmine rice.
  • fresh limes - always zest and juice the limes to get the full flavor
  • fresh cilantro - you can never use too much fresh cilantro in cilantro lime brown rice
  • salt and pepper - to taste
chipotle brown rice ingredients measured out and ready to be cooked

How to make Chipotle brown rice

Heat oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
Add cooked brown rice and saute until warmed through, stirring as needed.
Stir in fresh cilantro, lime juice, and lime zest. Add salt and pepper, to taste.

silicone spatula stirs brown rice in skillet
silicone spatula stirs cilantro into brown rice in skillet

Remove from heat and serve warm, garnished with fresh limes and chopped cilantro.

cilantro lime brown rice in serving bowl with serving spoon garnished with lime wedges and chopped cilantro

Rice tips and variations

You can substitute white rice for brown rice in this recipe. Of course you'll lose the nutritional value of the brown rice, but it'll be just as delicious.

I recommend using long grain brown rice for its fluffy texture and nutty flavor.
You can certainly use short grain brown rice but it tends to be stickier.

Use any method to cook the rice for this recipe. My go-to is pressure cooked brown rice, but rice cooked on the stove or in a rice cooker works beautifully too.

When cooking rice for this recipe, I recommend adding a bay leaf to the cooking liquid if you want to model the official Chipotle® Cilantro Lime Rice.

If your brown rice was cooked with salt, I recommend adding salt to this recipe in very small amounts, if at all. You may not need it.

cilantro lime brown rice in serving bowl with serving spoon garnished with lime wedges and chopped cilantro

More recipes we love

  • Black Bean Corn Salsa
  • Avocado Ranch Dressing
  • Homemade Pico de Gallo
  • Taco Pasta
cilantro lime brown rice in serving bowl with serving spoon garnished with lime wedges and chopped cilantro

Cilantro Lime Brown Rice

Copycat Cilantro Lime Brown Rice is the 10-minute homemade version of the famous brown Chipotle rice. It's so easy and goes with all things Mexican!
5 from 25 votes
Print Pin
Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 5 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes
Yield: 4 cups
Author: Traci The Kitchen Girl

INGREDIENTS
 

  • 2 tablespoons Avocado Oil, or any oil
  • 4 cups Cooked Brown Rice (or white rice), *see recipe footnote
  • 2 Limes, zested and juiced
  • ⅓ cup chopped Fresh Cilantro
  • Salt and Pepper, to taste

Instructions
 

  • In a nonstick skillet, heat OIL over medium-high heat until shimmering.
  • Add COOKED BROWN RICE and sauté until warmed through, stirring as needed.
  • Stir in CILANTRO, LIME JUICE, and LIME ZEST.
  • Add SALT and PEPPER, to taste.
  • Serve warm, garnished with fresh cilantro and lime wedges.

RECIPE VIDEO

Tried this recipe? I'd love your review!Visit the comments below and tell me how it went.

Traci's Recipe Notes

* Cooked brown rice - use stove-cooked, rice cooker, or Instant Pot brown rice. Also you can use brown rice in the form of basmati. long grain, or jasmine rice.
Storing - Refrigerate in an airtight container with a locking lid. Cooked brown rice dries out quickly in the refrigerator, and the locking lid helps delay that process.
 
Reheating - 2 ways
  1. Microwave: Sprinkle a few drops of water over it, cover, and reheat rice in one-minute increments until warmed through.
  2. Stovetop: On medium heat in a nonstick skillet, heat a few drops of oil, add rice, saute until warmed through, stirring as needed.

Equipment

  • chef's knife
  • cutting board
  • citrus squeezer
  • 12" nonstick skillet

NUTRITION

Serving: 0.5cup | Calories: 136kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 74mg | Potassium: 36mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 35IU | Vitamin C: 2.6mg | Calcium: 11mg | Iron: 0.2mg

Nutrition data provided as courtesy estimates using unbranded ingredients from a nutrition database. Please consult preferred resource for precise data.

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Comments

  1. Jeff says

    May 11, 2022 at 1:10 pm

    5 stars
    Oh mann, just had this very Chipotle brown rice last night on homemade taco salad. So dang good! Used your Instant Pot brown rice recipe too. Perfection!

    Reply
    • The Kitchen Girl says

      May 13, 2022 at 2:03 pm

      Woohoo!! You know what's good and I'm glad you love it as much as I do 🙂

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