Purple rice is a garlicky, butter rice side that owes its vibrant colour to red cabbage! Love this 2-in-1 that combines starch plus plenty of vegetables in one dish, rather than making a salad plus a starch separately. Goes with everything – Western, Asian, Mediterranean, Indian, Mexican!
Purple rice
You know those nights when you feel all smug because you got ahead on the weekend and marinated some chicken so you could whip up a “quick dinner” during the week, only to realise you didn’t plan for sides to fill out the meal?
Well, today’s recipe is just the sort of thing that will save you. It’s one of those side dishes I call a two-in-one because it includes plenty of vegetables as well as a starch to fill out the meal. As opposed to making two sides, like mashed potato plus a garden salad.
What it tastes like: Buttery and garlicky, and very mild cabbage flavour actually which will appeal to people who don’t jump up and down at the mention of cabbage for dinner. Bonus: it’s such a fun colour!!!
Ingredients in purple rice
Here’s what you need to make this colourful, veg loaded rice!
Jasmine rice – I like using jasmine rice in this dish because you get that lovely subtle fragrance.
Other rice – the recipe will work with long grain rice, medium grain rice and basmati rice, though you will need an extra 1/4 cup of water or vegetable stock/broth. This is because jasmine rice requires less liquid to cook than other varieties of rice (more on this in my plain jasmine rice recipe!).
The recipe is not suited to brown rice, arborio/risotto rice, paella rice, wild rice or faux rice (cauliflower rice, quinoa etc) as the cook times and methods differ so I’d need to alter the recipe.
Red cabbage – Also called purple cabbage, this is what gives the rice the vibrant purple hue! You can use plain ole’ green cabbage if you want, but where’s the fun in that?? 😎
Garlic and onion – Flavour base aromatics. You will adore the butter garlic flavour in this rice!
Butter – As above, for promised buttery flavour! You’ll be surprised how buttery it tastes even though we’re only using 30 grams / 2 tablespoons of butter.
Vegetable stock – The rice cooking liquid, tastier than water! Use low sodium stock. If yours is full salt, skip the salt in the recipe.
Salt and pepper – Seasoning for the rice.
Green onion – For fresh garnish at the end, though I wouldn’t say it’s critical.
No need to rinse your rice!
There is no need to rinse the jasmine rice to wash off excess starch to make the rice fluffy. This is a myth. You just need the correct liquid-to-rice-ratio which is 1.25 : 1 (1.25 cups of water/stock to 1 cup of rice) and the rice will be fluffy even without washing it. Most recipes get it wrong, using way too much water.
The only reason to wash jasmine rice is if you’re worried about the rice being dirty. If you bought yours at the supermarket, you shouldn’t need to clean it. If you clean your rice, reduce the stock by 2 tablespoons to account for the waterlogged rice.
How to make purple rice
One big, fat rice-making rule that applies to ANY rice you cook: DO NOT STIR, DO NOT PEEK once your put the lid on the pot! Unless, of course, you like your rice unevenly cooked, gluey and mushy. 🤷🏻♀️
Use a large saucepan or small pot, around the size of mine which is 28cm/11″. If you use a saucepan that is too small (~20cm/8″) then the rice-cabbage mixture will be too deep which will cause the rice to cook unevenly.
Sauté the garlic and onion in the butter until it smells amazing / onion is translucent. Then cook the cabbage for a few minutes until it starts to soften (rather than being stiff and pokey). Don’t let it get completely wilted and soft because it will cook more with the rice.
Add rice and stir to coat in the garlic butter.
Add stock then scrape down the sides and push the cabbage-rice under the surface of the liquid, as best you can. The main thing is that you want all the rice under the liquid. A few grains poking above the surface will be fine, they will steam-cook.
Cook 12 minutes – Bring the liquid to a simmer, then put the lid on and lower the heat to medium low, or low if your burner is very strong. Leave to cook undisturbed for 12 minutes. Do not lift the lid to peek and most definitely do not stir! That will disrupt the rice cooking and you’ll end up with unevenly cooked rice that’s mushy and gluey.
Check – At the 12 minute mark, working quickly, remove the lid and tilt the saucepan to ensure all the liquid has been absorbed. If it has not, leave it on the stove for another minute or two.
Rest 10 minutes – Remove the saucepan from the stove with the lid still on and rest for 10 minutes. Never skip the rice resting step! The rice will finish cooking and the liquid on the surface of each rice grain gets absorbed = fluffy rice.
Fluff then serve, garnished with a sprinkle of green onion!
What to serve with purple rice
This cabbage rice is fairly neutral flavoured, with a lovely buttery, garlic flavour. Which means it will go with pretty much any dish, and any cuisine, both Western and Asian.
While the possibilities are endless, here’s a starting point for you – some quick mains that I’d serve alongside purple rice:
And of course, it goes without saying that your purple rice will taste even better if you serenade it with Prince’s Purple Rain while it’s steaming on the stove. 🎶 Go on, do it. You know I did!! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Purple rice
Ingredients
- 30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 garlic cloves , finely minced
- 1/2 onion , finely diced
- 3 cups finely shredded red cabbage (tightly packed)
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt (kosher salt)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup jasmin rice , no need to rinse or soak (Note 1 for other rice)
- 1 1/4 cup vegetable stock , low sodium (or chicken stock or water + 1 stock cube- Note 2)
Garnish, optional:
- 1/4 cup green onion , finely chopped
Instructions
- Melt butter in a large saucepan or small pot over medium heat. (Note 3)
- Sauté veg – Cook onion and garlic for 1 minute until soft. Add cabbage, salt, and pepper. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring from time to time, until the cabbage starts to soften but not completely floppy (as it will cook more with the rice).
- Coat rice – Add rice and stir well to coat in the flavour.
- Add the vegetable stock. Scrape down the sides and press the cabbage-rice mixture down so all the rice is submerged.
- Cook 12 minutes – Bring to a simmer, then cover with a lid, turn the stove down to medium low (or low on a stronger burner) and cook for 12 minutes. Do not peek or stir!
- Rest 10 minutes – Turn off the heat, remove the saucepan from the stove and let to rest for another 10 minutes (with the lid on).
- Fluff & serve – Use a rubber spatula or rice paddle to fluff the rice then tumble into a serving dish. Sprinkle with green onion and serve!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
What do you think – will he spit it out?? 😂
Looks dazzling, smells divine and tastes delicious!
Wonderful post
I have wanted to make this recipe since it was posted and finally have some leftover red cabbage in my fridge from making salads. I am shocked at how tasty this rice is, in so little time! You’re a genius Nagi! I cooked my onions until golden because I prefer them that way. Otherwise I followed as written. I served my portion of rice with fried eggs, Cholula hot sauce and lime juice. Thanks again!
Also works with a curry (I defrosted lentil curry and reheated the rice), potato soup/corn chowder/mixed veg chowder. Whoops, forgot to rate!! Oh and increasing the recipe by 1.5x did not work (stock comes in 500ml) – rice didn’t cook evenly. Any tips? Do you need more water, stir during the cook stage? Thank you to anyone who replies 🙂
Made this; loved it. MMMmm-wah! I served it as a side with some grilled smoked-sausage & frozen mixed veg. Easy peasy and delicious. Thanks again Nagi.
so good….love your recipes
I saw the recipe and was instantly entranced! So I bought a small red cabbage, which sat in my refrigerator for a week or so with me peeling off leaves to snack on. Finally made this tonight as my main dish and it is fantastic as I knew it would be! I put some plain Greek yogurt on the side of my bowl because I needed some protein. Did not diminish the wonderful flavor at all. Thanks Nagi for another stellar recipe!
Lovely, Nagi!
I cooked my dish in a non-stick pot and not one grain stuck together!
I love the ‘delicate-firm’ texture of the Jasmine rice and the contrast of the ‘soft-crunch’ of the cabbage!
Simply delicious – buttery, garlicy, and peppery! (LOL! I surely have made up some word combinations today!)
It was so easy to prepare and I even made it easier on myself by shredding and washing my cabbage the night before!
Thank you, Nagi for another wonderful recipe.
Thank you so much too for the extra treat of additional recipes as we patiently wait for our cookbook deliveries – in March for Canada! That was very thoughtful of you!
Hugs to you and Belly Rubs to that cutie, Dozer!
“Cheers” from the Canadian prairies.
mmmmm, awesome rice recipe. The garlic and butter make it so flavorful. The purple colour is fun. I did add some caraway seed during the sauteing and that added a little yum too.
Can I do up to step 2 or 3 in frypan then put it in a rice cooker ?
Loved this!!! The color, the flavor combination of garlic and butter, having vegetable with rice. Definitely will repeat this recipe again and again.
The purple rice was So Delicious! Served it alongside garlic butter salmon with lemon white beans and a salad and my husband said this was definitely a high end meal. I did have to add 1/4 cup water and cook it an additional 10 min after the rest, with another rest, but no big deal at all! Great way to use up leftover 1/2 a red cabbage.
Another delicious dish Nagi! I made this to go with some Sichuan eggplant and your spicy shrimp recipe and Asian cucumber salad. The rice went with everything. Plus it was pretty! I molded it into some ramekins and unmolded onto the center of the plates and put everything else around it. Beautiful to look at and tasty! 😋
Made this today. Unbelievably delicious!
So glad you enjoyed it Ron!! N x
Cooked this recipe tonight and it was bloody delicious. Sweet, salty, buttery…just yum!!
I am sorry that I can not comment very often,but you should know that I cook with pleasure and confidence most of your recipes.
You are my favorite,THANK YOU!
Wow this is nice, and I don’t even like rice… fabulous leftover cabbage recipe saved my nightshift, quick&easy&delicious, had it together with your courgette fritters from yesterday 😋 😀
Absolutely yummy!!! Thank you very much! Can’t wait for the kids to come home for a visit to use it…
made this tonight, sadly only had green cabbage…..I can confirm it was absolutely delicious!
This was a WOW. My husband is very frail and I nurse him at home in a hospital bed with community support here in France. He is Australian, that’s how I found your site. I cooked up this rice and served it with smoked sausages. He can’t feed himself but he was very happy. Along with a little red wine of course. What else would you expect from an Ausi.
Can this recipe for purple rice be made in an instant pot?
Can’t wait to try this!
Hope you get a chance to! It really is good 🙂 N x