Brown rice pilaf is a simple dish with tender, perfectly cooked brown rice that gets extra flavor from cooking with the broth, butter and onions. It’s great for a spruced up side dish any night of the week.

Brown rice is a staple in my house. I buy it by the 2-lb. bag and I always have at least one extra bag on hand at all times.

We go through the stuff.

Making just plain steamed brown rice is my uninspired go-to most nights, to be honest.

(And if you think it’s difficult or tricky or you’ve had trouble in the past, read that post I just linked to there. It tells you how to cook it perfectly every time. No guessing.)

If I’m feeling a bit more together, I’ll make one pot broccoli cheese brown rice or easy cheesy zucchini brown rice. Those were invented when my kids were little ones and needed some help eating their veggies.

Who am I kidding? They are 8 and 10 and still need help eating their veggies. 🤪

This brown rice with spinach and Parmesan cheese has been a long-time reader favorite. It’s easy but sophisticated and so flavorful. And one pot brown rice with veggies has loads of veggies for an all-in-one side dish.

And if you want to make a big batch of rice - for meal prep, for instance - this Instant Pot brown rice is a great way to go.

Today’s recipe is a bit of a different take.

Brown rice pilaf is so simple, but seriously delicious.

The rice gets perfectly tender but has so much added flavor from cooking in the broth with the onions and butter.

Just a few extra minutes and ingredients, but it’ll transform your regular steamed rice side dish into something truly scrumptious.

Plus, we’re getting all the benefits of those whole grains with the brown rice and its extra added flavor and oomph. (White rice is just blah in my opinion.)

This recipe is also super versatile. 

These are just basic, on-hand ingredients, so you can make this anytime. 

And it’ll go great with all your favorite veggie sides and meat main meals to make dinner come together effortlessly.

OK, let’s get cooking.

Now, I’ve got those notes and tips coming up below on how to make brown rice pilaf. Just tryin’ to be helpful.

If you want to jump on down to the recipe, simply scroll right on through the rest of the text. The recipe card is near the bottom of the page, above the comments section.

Notes on making brown rice pilaf:

• Brown rice: We’re using a whole grain brown rice for this recipe (the standard you’ll find at the store.) Just make sure you don’t have a quick cook or instant kind, as the timing will be much different.
• Butter: I opt for half butter and half olive oil to cook the onion and then coat the rice. You can certainly use all butter if you’d prefer.
• Broth: Chicken broth is what I always have on hand, but you could use vegetable broth if you want to keep this vegetarian. I recommend low-sodium so you can control the amount of sodium.
• Garlic: Want a garlic kick to your pilaf? Add 2 cloves of garlic, minced, after you’ve sautéed the onion and before you add the brown rice. Cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant, and then proceed with the recipe.

Ours is topped simply with some chopped, fresh parsley. It really just finishes the dish off.

You could also finish yours off with some extra butter or a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese if you’d like.

Ands I mentioned, this brown rice pilaf is super versatile.

It works great with most veggie sides - steamed or roasted broccoli or asparagus, green beans, green peas, etc.

Serve it with chicken, pork, steak, fish - it really just goes with everything! A great addition to your regular cooking repertoire.

I hope you give this a try if you want to spruce up your regular weeknight sides. (And if you do make it, leave me a comment below or tag me on Instagram - I love hearing from you!)

Enjoy!

XO,

Kathryn