I love a good rice pilaf, and this mushroom and onion version is my very favorite! It’s so easy to make and even my kids devour it. I often serve this rice as a side dish for slow cooker chicken or brown sugar pork chops.
Rice and mushrooms seem to be two very popular foods in my house. It’s why I came up with this mushroom rice, because I always have the ingredients on hand, making it a super easy dish to whip up. The best part of this dish is that it can be a side or a vegetarian main course, whichever you prefer.
HOW DO YOU MAKE MUSHROOM RICE?
This baked rice only has 6 ingredients, making it simple to put together on a busy weeknight. The first step is to cook up your mushrooms, you can even buy pre-sliced mushrooms to save on prep time. The mushrooms are combined with rice, butter, beef consomme and french onion soup for a savory and flavorful dish.
Tips for Mushroom Rice
This baked mushroom rice can be cooked in an ovenproof pan with a lid, or in a square baking dish that’s covered in foil. Either one works, although I prefer the lid option myself. Be sure to use long grain rice for this dish, as short grain rice will become sticky during the longer baking time. Do not add any salt to this baked rice recipe. The dish has plenty of salt from the canned soups. Watching your salt intake? Look for low sodium versions of the soups.
Mushroom rice variations
I love this rice as-is, but sometimes I stir in other ingredients at the end of the cooking time for a different flavor.
Greens: Add 2 cups of baby spinach or kale leaves. Cheese: Add 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese. Vegetables: Add 1/2 cup of diced tomatoes. Nuts: Add 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts.
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN LONG GRAIN AND SHORT GRAIN RICE?
The biggest differences between the two types of rice is their starch content. Short grain rice is far more starchy than long grain rice so it often cooks up much softer and sticker than long grain rice does. Long grain rice has less starch so it turns out drier and is commonly used in pilafs and dishes with large amounts of sauce.
WHAT ARE THE BEST MUSHROOMS TO USE WHEN COOKING?
It really depends on the recipe you’re making on which mushrooms would be the best. However, with this baked mushroom rice, and most rice dishes, crimini mushrooms and white button mushrooms are the more common options. If you want to get fancy you could try a more exotic mushroom like shittake, oyster or chanterelle.
This is one of my favorite side dishes because it’s so easily turned into a main dish by tossing some cooked chicken or ground beef into it. I have often eaten it as a main dish without adding any protein because it’s just that good. It’s definitely a winner in this house and one of our first go-to side dishes.
MORE SIDE DISH RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
Homemade Rice-A-Roni Loaded Mashed Potato Casserole Zucchini Gratin Broccoli with Cheese Sauce Stove Top Mac and Cheese
