Garlic rice in a rice cooker takes plain rice from a boring side dish to an aromatic star! With just a few extra ingredients you can transform plain rice into a flavorful crowd pleaser. Both simple and versatile, this easy rice cooker recipe for garlic rice can make even a basic weeknight meal something extra special.
Jump to:
A rice cooker is the perfect appliance for making rice, obviously, but it can do so much more! With just a few extra ingredients, you can transform plain rice into a whole array of flavorful side dishes right in your rice cooker. One of my favorite easy rice cooker recipes is for garlic rice. It takes less than 5 minutes to throw together and the rice cooker does the rest, infusing the rice with sweet garlic flavor.
What I love about rice cooker recipes is how little effort they require to make rice exciting. No more boring white rice -with recipes like rice cooker coconut rice, cilantro lime rice, or turmeric rice, your rice cooker can turn out restaurant-quality sides. The flavors really get a chance to soak into the grains when cooked directly in the rice cooker.
This garlic rice is a perfect example. With just some minced garlic and butter, you end up with rice bursting with flavor. The garlic mellows out and infuses into every bite. It's the ultimate rice upgrade!
🛒Ingredients
- Rice: I am using long-grain rice in this recipe, but you can use short grain rice, jasmine rice, basmati rice or even brown rice or wild rice in this recipe.
- Butter: Use your favorite brand of plant-based butter.
- Garlic Granules & Garlic: A combination of fresh garlic and garlic granules gives the most intense garlicky flavor to this dish. Fresh garlic adds a strong, pungent flavor, while the garlic granules contributes a more subtle and evenly distributed garlic flavor throughout the dish.
- Vegetable Stock: You can use vegetable stock made from a stock cube or homemade vegetable stock. You can also use water, but I like how the vegetable stock infuses the grains with additional savory notes.
👨🍳How To Make Garlic Rice In A Rice Cooker
- Prepare the Rice:
- Rinse the rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Drain any excess water.
- Sauté Garlic:
- In a large skillet or pan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the minced garlic to the melted butter and sauté for about one minute until fragrant, being careful not to burn the garlic.
- Coat Rice:
- Add the rinsed rice to the skillet with the garlic butter mixture.
- Stir well to coat the rice grains evenly with the garlicky butter.
- Transfer to Rice Cooker:
- Transfer the garlic butter-coated rice to the rice cooker pot.
- Pour in the vegetable stock over the rice.
- Add salt to taste and stir gently to combine.
- Cook:
- Close the rice cooker lid and set it to the regular cooking setting or as per your rice cooker's instructions.
- Serve:
- Once the rice cooker indicates that it's done, allow it to sit for a few minutes to steam.
- Fluff the garlic butter rice with a fork.
- Garnish with chopped green onions or parsley if desired.
Top Tip
Make sure that you don't burn the garlic while sautéing it in the butter. Burnt garlic tastes bitter, so keep an eye on it and remove it from the heat as soon as it becomes fragrant, usually within about a minute.
🍽️What To Serve With Rice Cooker Garlic Rice
- A stir fry like this broccoli cashew stir fry would be perfect paired with garlic rice.
- This chickpea curry would be lovely served over rice cooker garlic rice.
- Any crispy tofu dish like this salt and pepper tofu would be great served over this rice.
- Garlic rice works well with Mexican food like these vegan enchiladas or these birria tacos.
❄️Storage Instructions
Refrigerator
Allow the garlic rice to cool to room temperature before storing it in the fridge. Transfer the rice to an airtight container or a resealable plastic bag and store in the refrigerator for up to 4-5 days. Reheat refrigerated garlic rice in the microwave or on the stovetop with a splash of water or broth to prevent it from drying out.
Freezer
Allow the garlic rice to cool completely to room temperature before freezing. Portion it into individual servings in freezer-safe containers or heavy-duty freezer bags, removing as much air as possible. Store the garlic rice in the freezer for up to 2-3 months for best quality.
Thaw frozen garlic rice overnight in the refrigerator before reheating. Then, reheat as instructed for refrigerated rice. Alternatively, you can reheat frozen rice directly in the microwave, adding a bit of water or broth to it and stirring occasionally until heated through.
🙋Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, you can add garlic powder to your rice cooker. Simply sprinkle the garlic powder into the rice cooker along with the rice and other ingredients before starting the cooking process.
Yes, you can substitute vegetable stock with water or other types of broth, such as mushroom broth. Keep in mind that using different liquids will give the rice a different flavor.
Absolutely! You can customize the garlic rice by adding herbs like parsley, thyme, or rosemary, or spices like black pepper or paprika to enhance the flavor further.
More Rice Cooker Recipes
I have an extensive collection of flavorful rice cooker recipes that you might like.
More Easy Rice Cooker Recipes
Turmeric Rice ~ In A Rice Cooker
Mushroom Rice In A Rice Cooker
Perfect Basmati Rice In A Rice Cooker (White & Brown)
How To Cook Farro In A Rice Cooker
How To Cook Couscous in a Rice Cooker
How To Cook Quinoa In A Rice Cooker
📖 Recipe
Buttery Garlic Rice ~ In A Rice Cooker
Ingredients
- 2 cups long-grain white rice rinsed
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 teaspoons garlic granules
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- Salt to taste
- Optional: chopped green onions or parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Rinse the rice under cold water until the water runs clear. Drain any excess water.
- In a large skillet or pan, melt the butter over medium heat.
- Add the minced garlic to the melted butter and sauté for about one minute until fragrant, being careful not to burn the garlic.
- Add the rinsed rice to the skillet with the garlic butter mixture. Sprinkle the garlic granules over the rice. Stir well to coat the rice grains evenly with the garlicky butter.
- Transfer the garlic butter-coated rice to the rice cooker pot and pour the vegetable stock over the rice. Season with salt and pepper and stir the rice gently.
- Close the rice cooker lid and set it to the regular cooking setting or as per your rice cooker's instructions.
- Once the rice cooker indicates that it's done, allow it to sit for a few minutes to steam.
- Fluff the garlic butter rice with a fork.
- Garnish with chopped green onions or parsley if desired.
Amy
So much flavor and so easy! Thank you! I had to stop the cooking at 40 min in my zojirushi because it tends to overcook long grain rice but it turned out perfect!