➤ story by SOFIA MARTINEZ
My NDA is up y’all. That means it’s time for me to share Chipotle’s top secret cilantro lime rice. I’m kidding, of course—Chipotle is famously very transparent about their ingredients and process, and on one occasion, even shared a TikTok of their iconic rice being made! As for the actual measurements of the recipe, Chipotle is a bit more tight-lipped. So for those of you who want to recreate the rice at home, I’m here to help you out.
What Actually Makes It Taste Like Chipotle?
There isn’t a special groundbreaking ingredient in Chipotle’s cilantro lime rice, but as someone who made it (and ate it) every day for four years, what I truly believe gives it that specific, recognizable flavor is two crucial components: citrus juice and bay leaves.
Minute Maid Citrus Juice
Contrary to popular belief (and also contrary to the name of the actual menu item), Chipotle’s cilantro lime rice isn’t flavored with just lime juice. It’s actually a special blend we refer to as “citrus juice.”
I used and handled the same bottle of citrus juice every single shift of my working at Chipotle, so I can say with absolute certainty it’s a product called Minute Maid 100% Lemon-Lime Citrus Juice. I have yet to find this specific product in a regular grocery store, however, the label on the back just says “Ingredients: lemon, lime.” When I’ve made the rice at home, I’ve always mixed together half lime juice and half lemon juice, and I assure you it tastes exactly like the Minute Maid stuff.
Bay Leaves
This is the detail that gets overlooked in a lot of copycat recipes, but it’s the one that changes everything. Bay leaves! You’d be surprised at how much of a difference this ingredient makes. I’ve made the same recipe at home, with every ingredient exactly the same EXCEPT the bay leaves, and I found that it doesn’t taste quite like Chipotle’s. Case in point.
What brands does Chipotle use?
If you really want to get specific with brands of the ingredients, Chipotle uses Morton Kosher Salt in their cilantro lime rice. Standard iodized table salt tends to make the rice noticeably saltier, at least if you’re using the ratios Chipotle teaches us.
As for the rice, back when I worked there, we used Producers Long Grain White Rice and Rito Rice Bran Oil, though I’m told by current employees that they’ve switched to a different brand of rice—Riceland, and they now use sunflower oil instead of rice bran oil.
And as mentioned earlier, we use Minute Maid Citrus Juice, which you can easily substitute for any brand of lemon and lime juice.
Morton Kosher Salt (from $4)
Rice Bran Oil (from $12)
Riceland Long Grain Rice (from $14)
Lemon & Lime Juice (from $10)
The Technique
Chipotle uses large industrial rice cookers, but the cooking method alone isn’t really the key to making the rice. I’d say it has more to do with the order you put the ingredients together.
- Specifically with the citrus juice, we never added the juice into the rice cooker. If you did, the end result would come out somewhat bitter.
- The cilantro always got tossed in after the rice was fully cooked. When you try to put it in the rice cooker along with the rice, it gets mushy and loses that bright, fresh flavor and color.
Related: How to Make Chick-fil-A’s Mac and Cheese, According to a Former Employee
There’s also a texture component that copycat recipes often miss. The manager who trained me taught me to transfer the rice into a big bowl after it was done cooking, and break it up with a spatula so the granules didn’t clump together. In my experience, this step did make a difference.
And now for the moment you’ve all been waiting for… here’s the recipe for Chipotle’s cilantro lime rice, scaled down to the serving size of approximately one Burrito Bowl:
How to Make Chipotle’s Cilantro Lime Rice, According to a Former Employee
Ingredients:
- 1⅓ cup Riceland long grain white rice
- 1⅓ cup water
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon Rito rice bran oil or sunflower oil
- 1 tablespoon Minute Made citrus juice (not citrus punch!) or ½ tablespoon lemon juice and ½ tablespoon lime juice
- 1¼ teaspoon Morton Kosher salt
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped, rinsed, and thoroughly dried
Directions:
- Rinse the rice until the water runs mostly clear, then add it to a pot with the water, bay leaves, and rice bran oil.
- If using a rice cooker, cook according to the machine’s standard setting. If using the stovetop, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low, cover, and simmer until the water is fully absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let the rice rest, covered, for 15 minutes.
- Discard the bay leaves. While the rice is still warm, transfer it to a large stainless steel bowl. Using a spatula, gently break up the rice so the grains are separated and not clumped together.
- Add the kosher salt and citrus juices, folding lightly to distribute.
- Finally, add the chopped cilantro and mix just enough to incorporate without bruising the leaves.
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