Simple Arabic Rice with Vermicelli is a basic rice recipe with a very special ingredient! It adds the most subtle flavor, yet you will never want to make plain rice ever again!
Good old white rice…it goes well with almost everything, true. But, sometimes, it seems like it could just use a little something special to call its own. Enter- vermicelli! Arabic style rice is only made this way. All over the Middle East, in every home, it’s a must use in any simple Arabic rice dish.
When I was growing up, I would always have tons of friends over all the time. My mom always had tons of food prepared and so they were constantly exposed to our Syrian cuisine. Since all the dishes they tried were exotic and unfamiliar to them, the one that stood out was our rice. It looked like regular rice, yet tasted so much better!
They would always ask why my mom’s rice tasted so good and what those little brown squiggly things in it were!? Was that what made it so different and so delicious!? I definitely think so. So, anyone who has experienced that simple addition in their rice knows the magic it is capable of. Those who haven’t, you must try! I’m pretty sure it will becomes the new way you prepare rice;-)
As a note, making rice can be very tricky. But you know what’s trickier, making a solid, perfect every time recipe for it! I know that different brands and sizes of rice produce different results. But, if you just make sure the water is about 1/2 inch above the rice when you first start cooking it, and check mid-way through that it didn’t dry out (because then you will add a little more), it should be fine!
This Simple Arabic Rice with Vemicelli will change the way you look at rice forever! It's amazing how one basic ingredient can do so much!
- 1 cup white rice
- 1/4 cup vermicelli noodles
- 2 tablespoons ghee or olive oil
- 2 1/2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, add ghee or oil and vermicelli. Cook for about 3-5 min until the noodles become a golden brown color.
As soon as vermicelli is the golden color, drop the cup of rice over the vermicelli and stir it around to toast and coat the rice in the butter or oil for about 2 min.
Add the water to the rice and bring it to a boil. Once boiling, add the salt, cover the rice and reduce the heat to medium-low or just enough to keep it simmering, but not boiling.
Check the rice after 10-15 min. Make sure there is still some water by opening the lid and giving it a stir. If it did dry out, add 1/4-1/2 cup water, stir, cover and continue to cook another 10 min.
Open lid, stir to fluff and serve along side a meal or top with nuts and herbs as its own dish!
Depending on the length of the rice, the water may need adjusting. This recipe was according to medium grain rice. The water should only cover the rice by about an inch or a little less.
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