Green Onion Rice

Green onion rice might just be the best rice you have ever had. It is buttery and delicious with just the right amount of onion, pepper, and salt. It is so easy to make and has so much flavor – it will quickly become a family favorite.

🥘 Ingredients Needed

• Salted Butter
• Diced Onion
• Diced Celery
• Chopped Green Onions
• Fresh Parsley
• Kosher Salt
• Black Pepper
• Water
• Long-Grain White Rice (Rinsed) – I like to use any kind of long-grain white rice. Most sticky, short-grain rice varieties will get really mushy in when cooked for a while in the Instant Pot, but long-grain rice holds up really well. I don’t like rice like jasmine or basmati in this context because they have a strong aromatic flavor, so I stick to just plain old Mahatma white rice.

🍽 Equipment Needed

• An Instant Pot (or 3-quart pot on the stove, see alternative directions below)
• A Rubber Spatula
• A Sharp Knife and Cutting Board
• Measuring Spoons/Measuring Cups

🥣 How to Make It

Green onion rice is so easy to make and is SO damn delicious.

To Make Instant Pot Green Onion Rice

Begin by pressing the Sauté button on your Instant Pot and letting it heat up. (Picture 1 – 2)

Add butter and let it melt. (Picture 3)

Once melted, add onions, celery, and green onions. Cook for a few minutes, just to get the veggies a little tender. (Picture 4 – 5) While this is cooking, you can rinse your rice until the water runs clear.

Then add salt, pepper, fresh parsley, rice, then water. (Picture 6 – 9)

Stir everything together. (Picture 10)

Close the lid on the Instant Pot and close the vent so it is set to Sealing. (Picture 11)

Now, cancel Sauté mode and press the rice button if your Instant Pot has one. (Picture 12 – 13) If not, use the +/- buttons or the dial and set the Instant Pot to Manual or Pressure Cook mode at LOW Pressure for 12 minutes.

After the cooking cycle is finished, press the Cancel button and let the Instant Pot sit and naturally release pressure for about 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, carefully manually – or Quick Release (QR) – the pressure. AKA, turn the knob and let the steam release. Do not stand above the pot when doing this. (Picture 14)

Once the pin has dropped, carefully open the lid. Fluff the rice with a fork and season with a little extra salt if needed. Then serve. (Picture 15)

To Make this on the Stove

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, add celery and onions. Cook until the onions are translucent, approximately 2 – 3 minutes.

Add rice and cook for about a minute.

Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cover and reduce heat to very low.

Cook for about 20 minutes until the rice is tender. Fluff with a fork, season with a little extra salt if needed, then serve.

🙋‍♀️ Frequently Asked Questions

🍳 Serving Suggestions & Uses

Green onion rice is a pretty unique thing. It is not very common, but my gosh is it good. We like to serve it with Crawfish Étouffée, Shrimp Étouffée, or Shrimp Creole. It is also really good with a big bowl of gumbo or served just plain. I usually gobble it up while I am serving it!

🥫 Storage/Shelf Life/Reheating

Green onion rice, much like most cooked rice, will only be good for a few days. My favorite way to reheat rice is to cover it with a damp towel and microwave it on low heat. Stir, then repeat once or twice. This will add moisture back into the rice and make it soft again.

✏️ Helpful Tips

• Don’t use short-grain rice when making this – it will get mushy – use long-grain white rice. Cheap, store-brand white rice is perfect – just make sure to rinse it first.
• When you buy green onions, dice up whatever you don’t use so that it doesn’t go bad and store it in a container in the freezer. You can throw frozen green onions into gumbo and green onion rice – still frozen – and you can’t tell the difference.

🌶️ Other Great Cajun & Creole Recipes

• Chicken and Sausage Gumbo
• Red Beans and Rice
• Raising Cane’s Sauce
• Skillet Cornbread
• Creole Jambalaya