This is how to cook brown rice in slow cooker on high to fluffy. It’s a cheap side dish we love and more nutritious than our white rice in slow cooker but just as delicious and goes with any dinner.
Love a good Crockpot side dish? Well this slow cooker brown rice is going to surprise you. Didn’t think you could make grains fluffy in this thing did you? We will show you the trick of how it’s done, and done right. Just one of many Crockpot recipes we have on our site.
This is specific to brown vs. the white variety of this grain. More nutritious than it’s counterpart you can add quite a bit of flavor by using broth instead of water. Using a bit of butter, and salt is great too. We do the same thing when making our Instant Pot brown rice. I make this with chicken and vegetables.
When making our slow cooker rice pudding, white is much better for sure. With dinner I prefer this since it offers more fiber with the husk still in tact. Toss with some vegetables and diced meat for a sort of stir fry is great too.
There is a trick to getting the texture just right. Grains typically are best made in a pressure cooker or stovetop, we have figured this one out after many trials though. I’d say how to cook pearl couscous is not a go slow cooked, just saying. We share above how to make that the best way, we wouldn’t want to disappoint you.
Slow Cooker Brown Rice to Water Ratio
Rice in a slow cooker is more than a 1:1 ratio actually, rather it is closer to almost double the water but not quite. Brown, wild and black need more water than white rice which makes sense since it needs to soften the outer husk to get the center tender.
Should you cook brown rice in water or broth?
When cooking white, brown or even our Instant Pot black rice I highly recommend using broth instead of water because otherwise it won’t have much flavor. Especially if you are serving this to kids you need it to taste good. They aren’t going to appreciate it just because it is good for them, just sayin’.
How Long to Cook Brown Rice in Slow Cooker
You need to prep with the proper ratio of liquid to dry grains and I like to stir. Adding a pinch of salt is good with this one or else it is rather bland. Then you are going to want to cover crock pot and cook on high for 2.5 hours cook time.
Slow Cooker Brown Rice and Vegetables
You could in fact add some slow cooker summer vegetables but I would do this halfway thru the cook time if using those that don’t take long. I don’t like them getting too mushy and on high things like zucchini, dials of squash and mushrooms would only need 1-2 hours.
Another great add in is butter, I mean that makes everything better. This is the hack I was talking about. This initial step isn’t used in any other method of cooking this grain, but is needed here. This allows it to soften just a bit and soak up a bit of the creaminess in the pot. Seasonings like salt and pepper could be sprinkled in at this point as well, your choice. When done use a fork or large spoon to fluff. Can dice fresh parsley on top, then serve with your meal.
Can you add chicken?
You could in fact add some chunks of raw chicken. Cut into bite size pieces, up to 1 cup, and add at the beginning. I would increase the liquid by another half of a cup or so in this case but other than that nothing would change.
Can you add beans?
Want to make this a bit heartier?? You could drain and rinse a can of black beans and add that in + I’d add 1/4 c. more amount of water. Stir and use the same directions as below. It would come out a bit like our Instant Pot red beans and rice. We use kidney for that but any variety would really do. Reason you rinse is if you don’t it will change the dishes color.
To counterbalance that I would add an additional 1/4 cup cold or boiling water with your cups of brown rice. If you make a large batch you would need to adjust the heat to a bit more but not double. Increase time by 30 minutes and check.
Slow Cooker Brown Rice Recipe
Equipment
- 1 slow cooker
Ingredients
- 2 cup brown rice
- 3.5 cup chicken broth, or water
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Set slow cooker to high and melt butter, or microwave and pour inside pot. Pour rice into a strainer and run water over it to rinse. Shake off to let the excess water drip off. Pour into pot.
- Stir with butter, cover and allow to sit for 10 minutes on the high setting.
- Stir in broth and salt. Recover and cook on high for 2.5 hours. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Can you save leftover cooked rice?
Um technically yes you can save it and reheat the next day but it really doesn’t save well. It is the one thing I do not save and yes I feel guilty throwing it away. I’ve tried a bunch of methods and the only one that is halfway decent is in a freezer bag with air sucked out.
How to reheat cooked rice
You really need to add moisture, butter is best for this. You can find a dairy free plant based variety that is almost as good as the real thing if needed. 1 Tbsp. on top of about 1 cup will do it. Microwave for 45 seconds or so until it melts, toss to moisten and enjoy.
Other Easy Slow Cooker Side Dish Recipes You’ll Love
If you want to make other gluten free options alongside your long grain rice I would suggest glazed Crockpot carrots for sure. If you haven’t tried making baked potatoes in slow cooker they turn out super fluffy and can sit in there for hours on warm if you have guests over.
