This is a quick and easy family favorite that is asked for at home and at potlucks and parties. What makes this recipe so good is the endless ways that you can season it. It's also easily converted for a very large amount. I have made it for as little as my husband and I all the way to a group of 80 for my son's engagement party. Use Greek, Old Bay&reg;, seasoned salt, garlic powder - endless possibilities.

Ann's Rice Pilaf

chicken bouillon granules

water

butter

broken pieces vermicelli pasta

long grain white rice

black pepper

salt

Greek seasoning,

Dissolve chicken bouillon in water in a bowl.


Melt butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir vermicelli pieces until golden brown, about 5 minutes.


Pour bouillon mixture into the skillet with the vermicelli.


Stir rice, black pepper, salt, and Greek seasoning into the vermicelli mixture and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low; simmer until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes.


Not too bland, not too bold, just right - and for my turkey dinner tonight that means it was perfect.  Hubs and I both appreciated its simplicity.  I used orzo for the broken vermicelli and chicken broth rather than the bouillon and water.  Even tho’ the submitter encourages using your choice of seasoning, I stuck to the Greek seasoning as the recipe was written.  As she said, however, the recipe is versatile so it allows the flexibility to use any number of different herbs or seasonings.  We loved it, plain and simple.

What an absolutely delicious side dish for either chicken or pork.  The store didn't have either vermicelli or greek seasoning.  I used the greek seasoning recipe from the AR site (it was great) and whole grain thin spaghetti for the vermicelli.  From a presentation perspective, I think I'll break the pasta into smaller pieces the next time.  Since I used 2 tsp bouillon granules, I did not add the salt, and we didn't miss it.   We like pepper, and this was just the perfect qty for us, but if you're not a pepper lover, you may want to approach that measurement cautiously.  I think this would make an excellent filling for a hollowed out whole ripe summer tomato or even adding some shredded chicken to it for a summer lunch.  Moist, flavorful, and just downright tasty.  Thanks, Ann, this is a winner in my book.

A great base recipe. I like to add my own twist and this recipe certainly allowed for that. Will be using this recipe again.

I've tried so many rice pilaf recipes but they never seem to have the great flavor I'm looking for. This one intrigued me since it had the chicken bouillon, so I gave it a try. My only change was using Orzo in place of the vermicelli, and it worked out fine. I did add a bit more Greek seasoning, my own blend. Not only was the rice full of flavor it was a fluffy perfection.  I use Uncle Ben's Long grain rice and a pack of Goya chicken powder (it has a lot less sodium than other brands). This beats all other recipes I've tried. My husband said it was the best rice pilaf I've ever made. So this is now my go to rice pilaf recipe. Thanks Ann.

We enjoyed this recipe very much.  I didn't have Greek seasoning so I used Old Bay since I was serving shrimp also. I also used brown rice instead of white which, of course, increased the cooking time.  I liked the brown rice so next time would use about 1/2 the butter and increase the water to 3 cups.  Thanks for a great recipe!

We loved this recipe.  I was serving baked cod and wanted a rice side dish to accompany it.  This was perfect.  I also wanted to have peas as a side dish, so threw the frozen peas into the pilaf the last few minutes.  Saved washing a pan and looks very colorful.

I've purchased the prepackaged versions of pasta and rice and like this much better. Doesn't take separate shelf space in the cupboard, and I can put in the spice and bouillon to suit the entrée.

Makes a large batch, but reheats well.

Amazingly simple and amazingly fantastic! Thank you!

I expected a nice side dish - but I hadn't expected the WOW.  I didn't have vermicelli so I used orzo. I also used an extra long grain basmati rice (which I had rinsed first) .  I will make it again using the orzo, it was a nice shape contrast. I had no store bought Greek spice so I followed a recipe I found online  (I used fresh mint and fresh oregano).  I added this pilaf to  my permanent  recipe book. So simple to prepare, yet tasted top chef. This is a spectacular recipe, thank you Ann.

This was soo good. I took the leftover rice and ate it as a meal the next day at work. Its that good.

Made this recipe for 6 servings and it turned out great.  I served this with fish so I switched the Greek seasoning to Old Bay as suggested by the recipe submitter. Love that you can change the seasoning based on what type of meat it will be served along side.  I have made other recipes similar to this and they have lacked flavor; this one is now my favorite!

I like the flexibility with this recipe. It beats buying it in a box!  My local grocer only had Orzo, which I actually prefer.  I keep Knor bouillon cubes in my pantry at all times.  It is more seasoned, so I didn't have to add extra salt. This was a perfect compliment to the Lemon Chicken Piccata, also on this site.

Thanks for sharing Ann!  A great base recipe to serve with just about any entree. I didn't have the vermicelli so substituted spaghetti, also used Old Bay and 1/4 tsp of pepper.  Will add mushrooms next time and use the Greek seasoning.  Happy Eating!

Delicious! I was making schwarma chicken so I decided to add hot curry powder in place of the Greek seasoning and it turned out well.  I like being able to adapt it to the main course.  Thank for a great recipe!

WOW, this rice is fantastic! I used 1/2 butter and 1/2 olive oil to cook the vermicelli in, just to try to make it a bit healthier (worked out great). Also, I did not have Greek seasoning on hand, so I used 1/2 garlic powder and 1/2 season salt, which was awesome. The family LOVED this rice...a definite keeper~YUM, YUM, YUM!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing. :)

but my rice wasn't dry, it was still UNCOOKED.. i added a couple of tablespoons after cooking for 20 minutes and it was done enough, but the bottom was overcooked/crunchy.. if i were to try this again i'd use 3 extra tablespoons of water and watch it closely.. i liked the amount of pepper, but we're pepper lovers.. felt it was salty and i didn't even add the 1/2 tsp of salt.. i should have taken the advice of other reviewers and used 2 tablespoons of olive oil in place of the butter.. i think that would have solved the salty issue

I used brown rice and modified the recipe to account for the additional cooking time.   About 50 minutes before serving I started a cup of brown rice with about 2 cups of water and chicken bouillon.   About 30 minutes later, I used the butter to cook the small pasta pieces as recommended and then put them into the rice mixture, stirred and kept cooking until rice and pasta was tender.    I also cooked some chopped onions and garlic with the pasta which is purely optional, but suits our love of vegetables.

Really good recipe for rice pilaf and easy to make! I subbed the vermicelli with gluten free thin spaghetti. I confused recipes and thought I needed ½ diced onion. So, I ended up sautéing it with the spaghetti. I used 2 cups homemade chicken broth instead of bouillon and water. I simply added a little of each spice (except for onion) from the Greek Seasoning recipe on this site. I also added about ¼ tsp turmeric because I wanted more of a yellow tint to the pilaf, which bouillon probably would have given. The only change I might make next time is to use 1/2 of the butter called for in the recipe, but that’s a personal preference. Recipe is excellent as written and we’ll definitely make it again. Thanks for the recipe!

My entire (very picky) family loved this recipe!  Very easy and much healthier than the boxed kind.

I've been backing off box/bagged rice mixes and this is a winner! I used whole orzo to bump up the fiber and will also try with brown rice, but really good. This recipe is so versatile to add veggies &amp; different spices. Possibilities are endless. 10 WWPP as the recipe reads but I'm sure that can be lowered a bit with the whole wheat and brown rice. Very grateful that you shared; thank you.

Made this for my husband's birthday and everyone loved it. Even my three picky boys. I did make some adjustments to the recipe. To manage the salt, I didn't use bouillon, just used chicken stock. Then added salt, pepper and dried parsley for my seasonings. Another reviewer commented that the amount of liquid in the recipe was not enough. I had a similar issue and doubled the amount of liquid (chicken stock) that the recipe called for and this solved the issue.

I love, love this rice pilaf recipe it is great.

This recipe fooled my husband!  It was very flavorful and well loved by all.  I will be making this recipe again and again and avoid the box of rice, salt and chemicals ;)

Fantastic!  I had to cut the black pepper by half, but otherwise make this as written.

The family really liked this recipe.  I added orzo instead of the broken noodles and it came out great.  I also added a little chopped onion and garlic.

This is my go to recipe to add rice with my souvlaki dinner.  Sometimes I cheat and just add a bit of fresh souvlaki marinade as I'm cooking the rice for the seasoning.  The kids love it, and it makes a lovely twist on boring old rice. Have made it a few times already, and will continue to do so!

My hubby really liked this recipe. I couldn't find greek seasoning and was to lazy to make the greek seasoning from this site. He still gave it a 5 star rating. Thanks for sharing

It is so easy and taste so good.  Next time I will add red peppers only because I love red peppers. It is a very flexible recipe. it's a keeper. I agree with the review "beats buying it in a box. thanks for posting it.

Awesome! Rice roni without the box and makes me feel better about serving it to my kids. They loved it. I have used both precut spaghetti (sometimes I find this in the grocery store other times not) and orzo. Both work out great. I added most of the ingredients for the recipe for Greek seasoning found on this site.

This was a winner - even with my daughter who is not much on rice.

Made this as a side dish for dinner tonight and followed the recipe exactly.  Very easy to make and a big hit with the family.  There wasn't a grain of rice left:)  I always like following a recipe exactly the first time I make it so I can submit a fair review.  I would definitely make this again and again and change it up with different spices.  Thank you for sharing.

This has become a regular side at our house. It is perfect as is, however, sometimes I add some broccoli florets (chopped pretty small) towards the end of the cooking. The family likes that, too.

I will use this again.  I made it exactly as written.  I thought the amount of liquid was spot on.  I did wash my rice first and used Balsamic rice.

I love this, especially with minor adjustments:  I use brown rice because it's healthier, and Fideo instead of broken vermicelli. (Fideo is available in the Mexican food section.)  I use 3.5 cups of water because brown rice needs more liquid and just a tad more chicken bouillon powder (Caldo de pollo is the best).  I also add herbs de provence instead of greek seasoning. And simmer for about 45 minutes.  We love it and leftovers freeze and reheat well.

I've made this three times in the past three weeks. I CAN NOT believe I used to buy this stuff in a box. This is so easy and tastes excellent! I did adjust a few spices to my own taste, reducing pepper and increasing the Greek so all three spices ended up around 1/2 tsp. I have also subbed vermicelli for orzo with great results.

I didn't have vermicelli so I used 1cup of rice only. I diced one medium onion and sauted it in 4 Tbsp.  butter until  translucent then added a heaping Tbsp. of minced garlic and sauted for one minute. After that I added 2 cups of Turkey broth and followed the recipe from there.  It took about 20 minutes on low heat after bringing to a boil to cook through and absorb all the liquid. Very tasty rice dish. Served with baked chicken and kale. I will make this again.

This has become my go-to for rice pilaf. Much tastier than any box mix and not much more work.

Really Good!  I had hubbs fooled into thinking I bought the box stuff!  If you are used to eating the -a-roni brand....  you will most likely never know the difference except this is definitely less salty - not less flavor just not as salt laden as the box stuff.  I used my kitchen shears to cut some long spaghetti noodles into small pieces instead of breaking vermicelli noodles.  Will definitely make this again.

Wow, pretty easy and good! As almost anything can be added to this great base, while it was simmering, in a site pan I did chopped onions, red pepper, and also some celery (which is is good for adding an earthiness flavor). I stirred it in after rice simmer was complete. Delicious. Amazing hw easy. Don’t be intimidated by frying vermicelli — it was my first time and it was easy. Adds amazing flavor to rice that rice so much more savory.

THIS IS THE MOST INCREDIBLE PILAF I HAVE EVER TASTED. I didn't have Greek seasoning so I made it without, but it's seriously incredible. Perfect flavor to go with meat of any kind.

Fabulous but a little dry. Needs more broth and a little less salt. Will make this again.

I used orzo because it's what I had on hand.  This is a good, basic rice pilaf.

I made this as written last night,  halved for 2 people and subbing low sodium chicken broth for the bouillon/water. It was very good, and it's light flavor profile paired nicely with fish. This is a simple recipe for DIY (and healthier) Rice A Roni that can easily be changed up to go with whatever you're serving. It would be nice with Italian Seasoning II served with chicken Milanese. Beef broth will pair it with simple chopped steak, add some cumin, coriander, paprika and tomato paste to give it a Mexican profile, and so on. Easy and versatile, it's a recipe easily committed to memory, ready whenever you need something quick and easy. Thanks for sharing, Ann.

I use orzo and add about 1/4 cup chopped mushrooms and 1/4 cup chopped onion as soon as the orzo is becoming golden. I also add some minced garlic and parsley and saute right before adding the rice and liquid. VERY GOOD. I could only find Cavender's Greek Seasoning, and I used twice as much. Nice flavor. Sometimes I add 1/4 cup heavy cream at the end of cooking and let it sit 10 minutes--heavenly!! The family and teens eat this right up. Goes well with broiled fish or any meat dish.

Great recipe!  I have made this a few times using different seasoning blends. Also, since I am allergic to stuff that is in bullion, I used home made bone broth for the liquid. It turned out wonderful!

I tried this recipe and substituted some long grain/wild rice that I had made up for part of the white rice and adjusted water amount. It was delicious! Will definitely make this again!

Very good! I really like it and so easy to make. Thank you!

Good basic pilaf recipe. I used brown rice and orzo,

I used organic chicken stock rather than granules 2 cups and no additional water

This  is delicious!! I will certainly make it again and again!
I made a few changes since I had to use what I had on hand;
chicken broth, whole grain brown rice and whole wheat
thin spaghetti. It was perfect, thank you!!

This is an easy and quick dish that everyone likes--adults and kids alike. Very versatile, just change the seasonings. It's reminiscent of Rice-Roni which my mom used to make.

Amazing rice recipe! along all that was listed -changed it up a bit and sautéed left over cold rice in wok with a bit of olive oil and tablespoon of butter add 1 tsp of garlic, sprinkle of red chilli pepper and paprika for colour, Italian herbs like rosemary, basil,oregano and add to oil and onion and sautéed till clear then added the left over approx  2 cups of cooked cold rice  and vermicelli and fried until some rice was crisp on med heat. My family wants me to keep making it...they love it!

giving this 3 stars because the hubby really liked it, but i thought it was just blah. Didnt really like the flavor so i will not make again. thx anyway.

Fabulous. Easily multiplied for large crowds.

Easy and delicious!  The only change I made was to use vegetable boullion  for the vegetarians in my family!

My kids loved this.  I prepared pretty much as written except for the Greek spice.  I added my own seasonings. I prepared it for 8 servings instead of 4 and had leftovers even with me, my husband, and three hungry teenagers who each had generous seconds.  As another side note, I'll probably use about half the butter next time.

I used Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice.  I had a crowd of 10 for dinner and wasn't sure how much to fix.  Since the box of rice said serves 4, I used 3 boxes.  WAY too much!  I would only use two boxes for that size crowd again and figure to still have leftovers. I added all the seasonings listed in the recipe but  I wasn't sure what to do with the seasoning packet that came with the rice. I added one of the three packets I had.  Next time I think it would be fine to just add the packets of seasoning from ever how many boxes I use.  The only other change I made was to use 1 t. of Chicken Flavored Better Than Bouillon instead of the granules.  It has so much more flavor than the regular bouillon cubes or granules.  Easy to make and all loved it.  Served it with Turkey. Since I had so much left over, I used it to make a Long Grain and Wild Rice Soup with Turkey.   I'll defiantly make this again.

I used orzo and vegetable seasoning instead of the other spices listed. Sooo yummy!

Love this recipe! It is easy to make and delicious.

Have not made yet, but too closely to rice a Toni to not do it! You can bet you bottom dollar I will try and adjust to my taste. I'll re-post when I do indulge! No I'm gonna love it! Thank for sharing in advance!!

One of my family favorites! perfect as is, no changes.

ann's rice pilaf

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total: 35 minutes

Servings: 4

Cost: $6.48 /serving

Author : Ann Bray

Ingredients

Instructions

Top Similar Recipes from Across the Web

Ann's Applesauce Brownies

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Ann Haines

Rice Cooker Rice Pilaf

Southwestern Rice Pilaf

Mushroom Rice Pilaf

Asian Rice Pilaf

Basmati Rice Pilaf

Sarah's Rice Pilaf

Rainbow Rice Pilaf

Wild Rice Pilaf

ann's rice pilaf

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total: 35 minutes

Servings: 4

Cost: $6.48 /serving

Author : Ann Bray

Ingredients

Instructions

Top Similar Recipes from Across the Web

Ann&#039;s Applesauce Brownies

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Rice Pilaf

Ann Haines

Rice Cooker Rice Pilaf

Southwestern Rice Pilaf

Mushroom Rice Pilaf

Asian Rice Pilaf

Basmati Rice Pilaf

Sarah's Rice Pilaf

Rainbow Rice Pilaf

Wild Rice Pilaf

Ann's Applesauce Brownies