Since I serve Lebanese rice with nearly everything, from weeknight dinners to big Lamb Roasts on the holidays. This is a simple vegan rice pilaf made of three ingredients: vermicelli pasta, rice and olive oil. Add a bit of toasted pine nuts, and you have the best side of rice! Check out the video and step-by-step tutorial.
Throughout the Mediterranean, you will find rice dishes like, Paella; Mujadra (lentils and rice); or Hashweh (Beef and rice), that are certainly more of a meal. But this Lebanese rice with vermicelli is the every-day rice of the Middle East, and it's by far the most served side dish in that part of the world.
What is in this Lebanese Rice
Basic Lebanese rice typically consists of broken vermicelli pasta, rice (medium or long grain rice works), and extra virgin olive oil or butter (or a combination of both). I use only extra virgin olive oil here. There is but a pinch of salt to season this rice.
And to jazz things up, I like topping the rice with toasted pine nuts adds a nice nutty flavor and texture.
Tips for making the best Lebanese Rice
1- You must rinse the rice to get rid of excess starch which causes rice to be sticky (Lebanese rice is not meant to be sticky). Then soak the rice for 2o minutes or until you can break one grain of rice by pressing it between your index finger and your thumb. This way, you shorten the cooking time making sure the interior of the grain actually cooks before the exterior looses its shape. Remember that the rice to use here should not be partially cooked rice.
2- To give the Lebanese rice flavor right from the start, toast the vermicelli in olive oil until golden brown (as you'll see in the step-by-step below), then add the rice and toast so that each rice grain is coated with the olive oil.
3- Once the rice is fully cooked, let it rest for 10-15 minutes or so, then fluff it with a fork. This again helps keep it from becoming sticky or gluey.
Here is the step-by-step for how to make Lebanese rice:
- Rinse the rice well then place it in a medium bowl and cover with water. Soak for 20 minutes. Test to see if you can easily break a grain of rice by simply placing it between your thumb and index finger. Drain well.
- In a medium non-stick cooking pot, heat the olive oil on medium-high. Add the vermicelli and continuously stir to toast it evenly. Vermicelli should turn a nice golden brown, but watch carefully not to over-brown or burn it (If it burns, you must throw the vermicelli away and start over).
- Add the rice and salt and continue to stir so that the rice will be well-coated with the olive oil. Now add 3 ½ cups of water and bring it to a boil until the water significantly reduces and you're able to see the rice through (see the photo below). Turn the heat to low and cover.
- Cook for 15-20 minutes on low. Once fully cooked, turn the heat off and leave the rice undisturbed in it's cooking pot for another 10-15 minutes, then uncover and fluff with a fork.
Watch my video for this Lebanese Rice Recipe:
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Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: Serves up to 6 people
Description
Vegan Lebanese rice with vermicelli and pine nuts. A great side dish next to many Mediterranean favorites.
Ingredients
- 2 cups long grain or medium grain rice
- Water
- 1 cup broken vermicelli pasta
- 2 ½ tbsp olive oil
- Salt
- ½ cup toasted pine nuts, optional to finish
Instructions
- Rinse the rice well (a few times) then place it in a medium bowl and cover with water. Soak for 15 to 20 minutes. Test to see if you can easily break a grain of rice by simply placing it between your thumb and index finger. Drain well.
- In a medium non-stick cooking pot, heat the olive oil on medium-high. Add the vermicelli and continuously stir to toast it evenly. Vermicelli should turn a nice golden brown, but watch carefully not to over-brown or burn it (If it burns, you must throw the vermicelli away and start over).
- Add the rice and continue to stir so that the rice will be well-coated with the olive oil. Season with salt.
- Now add 3 ½ cups of water and bring it to a boil until the water significantly reduces (see the photo below).Turn the heat to low and cover.
- Cook for 15-20 minutes on low. Once fully cooked, turn the heat off and leave the rice undisturbed in it's cooking pot for 10-15 minutes, then uncover and fluff with a fork.
- Transfer to a serving platter and top with the toasted pine nuts. Enjoy!
Notes
- Pro Tips: 1. You must rinse the rice to get rid of excess starch which causes rice to be sticky (Lebanese rice is not meant to be sticky). Then soak the rice in plenty of water for 15-20 minutes or until you can break one grain of rice by pressing it between your index finger and your thumb. 2.toasting the vermicelli in EVOO as a first step is what gives this rice great flavor. Do not skip this step. 3. If you can at all help it, let the rice rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
- Recommended for this recipe: Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil (from organically grown and processed Koroneiki olives).
- SAVE! Try our Greek extra virgin olive oil bundle!
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Hi, i'm making lebonese rice which is the way my mom made it. This reminds me of my mom while I would sit in the kitchen and watch her make all of these wonderful, delicious dishes. She learned from her mother and grandmother who were great cooks...from the "old country". I can't wait to get cooking! Tomorrow I'm maki ng stuffed grape leaves and stuffed cabbage with tabouli salad, yu~mmmmm!! I'll b following your dishes. Thanks so much for taking me home. Sylvia
Awwww! So glad to hear this, Sylvia. Thank you so much for sharing!
I just recently came across your site and recipes! I am so excited to try many of them....THANK YOU for sharing them with us. Today I made the Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli to go along with the Skillet Garlic Dijon Chicken. OH MY...They were both so delicious! I so love the rice and how it does not stick. I ordered some spices from you and cannot wait to get them so I can try more of your recipes. Again, thank you for sharing and teaching about Mediterranean cooking.
Thank you! So glad to have you here. Welcome to The Mediterranean Dish community. Can't wait to hear what you cook next!
This is the best rice I have ever made. After 33 years of cooking I am amazed. It was so good and fluffy. I can't believe just soaking it does that! I cooked the pasta in the skillet but transferred it to a rice cooker and added the rice to the cooker, mixing it with the pasta to coat the rice with oil. It came out perfectly. I topped it with roasted almonds. Thank you!
I am excited to hear this, Barbara! Thanks for sharing your adaptation!
Hi! When you cooked this in the rice cooker, did you still add 3.5C water? Please let me know, that is how I want to cook this. Thank you!
so pleased to find a recipe site that is interesting and uncomplicated
Thank you, Maureen! Glad to have you here!
My husband loved this. The recipe method, if followed as written, does result in a tender and fluffy rice that is not gummy. Couldn't find vermicelli so used angel hair spaghetti and that worked fine. I will make this again. Thank you for teaching me something new about cooking rice!
Tasty recipe. I added ground turmeric and chopped parsley for a bit of colour. Makes A LOT of rice, so will cut recipe in half next time.
Thanks for sharing your variation, Fiona! Always love to hear new ideas
My family and I can't stop eating this rice! I think I've made it weekly since I discovered this recipe on your blog. I use jasmine rice and usually like that it's a bit sticky, but I followed the soaking directions and LOVE how fluffy and light this rice is For those who have trouble finding vermicelli, you can try fideo (Mexican vermicelli, already broken). It's easy to find at just about any grocery store in Texas.
Thank you so much for sharing, Emily!
Just wondering if you could use rice vermecillia for a gluten free alternative.
Thank you 🙂
You can just eliminate the vermicelli if you like. I have not tried rice vermicelli, but it could very well work!
made this and the rice turned out very tight and sticky not fluffy and did not seem that the rice had expanded enough. I used medium grain white rice.
Hi Roo,
Rice is one of those things that may take a bit of time to "nail" the recipe. First, some rice brands can be more sticky than others. You must make sure you rinse the rice so well to actually rids the grains of surface starches and prevent clumping. Make sure you've soaked the rice long enough that you're able to simply break a grain just with a little pressure. Long grain rice actually still works well in this recipe, and may even give you better results if you're new to making this recipe.
This is a fun and creative recipe - it's easy to brown the (dry) vermicelli and its such a good addition to plain old rice.. soaking the rice is a key step here so be sure to allow time for that -- it took about 30 minutes for mine -- worth the time because this came out great -- no clumpy sticky rice or pasta! I used chicken broth instead of water. I can see lots of times when I will be making this as a side dish!
Wonderful Rachel! So glad to hear it! Thank you for sharing your review.
Delish...the rice tastes light and flavorful, perfect to serve with fish and chicken. And sooo easy to make.
Wonderful, Laurie! Thank you so much for sharing!
Wouldn't it add extra flavor to cook the rice & vermicelli in low-sodium chicken broth instead of water?
Sure, Ro. Low-sodium broth would be great. This is the vegan version, however.
It appears in the photos that the vermicelli is soft. Does it come that way in the package? The only vermicelli I've found is hard (dry). Do I have to boil it first? That would be a good thing to note in the recipe. Frying dry vermicelli will probably not result in much browning. For Liz Berman, who used orzo, does the same apply?
You can buy vermicelli in any supermarket in the dry pasta section. Mueller's is one brand that sells it. It is a very thin, angel-hair-type pasta. It is, indeed, dry, but you will saute it in this recipe, and it turns dark, so the rice comes out with a nice contrast. The vermicelli will become soft when it cooks with the rice.
Yes, thank you for sharing, Ro
Is vermicelli the same thing as angel hair pasta. I don't recall ever seeing "vermicelli" on grocery shelf.
Not sure where to look for it.
Hi Bonnie, my apologies, we had a bit of a glitch with comments, and I had not seen this question earlier. Angel hair pasta is still a bit thicker than vermicelli. Here is a link to the vermicelli I use https://amzn.to/2HWum1l
used orzo instead of vermicelli, and roasted chopped pecans instead of pine nuts. Great!
Awesome variation! Thank you for sharing!
Just wondering how long it takes comments to be read and posted. I have asked questions and left comments multiple times and never see them. Thanks.