Add to: Recipe Box | Grocery List | Meal PlannerRecipe submitted by Heather Wiatrowski
Mmmm Mmmm MexicaliIngredients (use vegan versions): 2 cups uncooked rice
2 cups V8
2 cups water
15 oz can black beans
15 oz can of corn (more if you eat it out of the can like I do when cooking!)
1/2 cup salsa (the perishable kind, not in a can)
1/2 of a fresh tomato
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
tortilla chips
Directions:Begin Cooking 2c rice in 2c V8 and 2c water and the chili powder and cumin. After 5 minutes add can of black beans. Wait five minutes and add the corn and salsa. Now chop the tomato, and add it when the rice is almost done cooking.
Crumble tortilla chips on top if you want.
I made it for my boyfriend, and he proposed to me.
Serves: 4-6
Preparation time: 20 min
This was quite good and very easy howe'ver, I would recommend a couple of changes. Since 2 cups of uncooked rice makes 6 cups of cooked, I ended up doubling the beans, corn, salsa and tomato in order to have a final product that wasn't too dominant in rice. Also, 2 cups of rice would normally need 6 cups liquid to cook properly. I started with the recommended amount of V-8 and water, but found that I needed to add a cup of each in order to fully cook the rice.
Archived comment by: betsy
Proposed?
!!!!!!!!
Archived comment by: holly
This was great. I cut the rice to one cup.
Archived comment by: vicki
This was pretty good but it makes A LOT. I had this stuff for lunch for days! I suggest adding onion.
Archived comment by: christine
Thanks for a great recipe! I also just used 1 cup raw brown rice and even had to add extra liquid. Great rolled up in a tortilla. I couldnt believe the good good flavor of this dish!
Archived comment by: barbara
What is V8?
Archived comment by: elin
V8 is a brand-name vegetable juice. Any grocery store would carry it, i think
Archived comment by: nami
GREAT TASTE!!! (even after a couple of days) ....im new at this, I recently became a vegetarian and while looking for an easy recipe this one jumped at me. My meat eater husband REALLY liked it, it is also very filling....i followed the recomendations at the top...doubled the beans ...PERFECT POT LUCK DISH!!
Archived comment by: maria
This is wonderful and really easy. I've made it twice since reading this recipe, and the last time I doubled it so I could freeze a bunch for lunches. Thanks for a great recipe!
Archived comment by: beth
I can't wait to try this, although I'm already married. If it brings such good luck, maybe we will conceive! (been trying for quite some time)
Archived comment by: jennifer
This was a very good recipe. Super easy and everyone (even the non-vegan here and my 1 year old baby!!!) Loved it. Thanks for a great recipe.
Archived comment by: kelley
I just made this tonight for my family. I wasn't sure whether they would like it or not because of comments from dh and my dd when they saw it in the pot. But they really liked it once they tasted it. I am trying to make more vegan meals and I think this one is a keeper. Lisa
Archived comment by: hsmomof6
I made this the other night and I absolutely loved it. It had excellent taste, was very filling and nutritious. Even DH who says he hates Mexican food gave it a thumbs up. I used the recommended 1 cup of rice and it turned out perfectly. I think I may add onion and green pepper the next time I make it. I'm having a birthday party for my 16 yr. old son, who loves Mexican food, and this will definitely be on the menu. Thank you Heather for a wonderful recipe. Linnie
Archived comment by: linnnie
I made enchiladas out of this for my sons birthday party and they were fabulous. Fill tortillas with bean & rice mixture, pour some pican'te sauce in casserole dish. Place enchiladas side by side. Pour more pican'te sauce over enchiladas. Top with shredded soy cheese. Bake at 350 about 25 minutes, depending on whether your filling was hot or cooled. My son called me a cooking genius. Thank you so much for the recipe.
Archived comment by: linnnie
Mmmm Mmmm Mexicali is Mmmm Mmmm Good!!! My husband thought it was awesome!! And it reheats really well.
Archived comment by: poison_ivy1125
I'm a recent vegetarian with a limited budget and schedule, and this recipe is PERFECT for me (and others like me). Not only is it delicious and hearty and extremely satisfying, but it makes tons of left-overs, making the work of one meal last for at least two or three. I also like the slow and easy pace of making this meal...I hate those meals that send one into a frenzy juggling four things at once, so the relaxed simplicity of preparing this meal was wonderful. The tortilla chips really enhance the meal, adding a nice crunch to balance out the stew-like texture of the rest. I think I might add a bit more chili-powder next time, for an extra kick. Thanks for a great recipe!
Archived comment by: jMichaelIU
i made this today for lunch. my take on this much loved recipe -- i sauteed some onion and garlic in a little oil before adding the rice in. im not one for corn kernels so i added in broccoli, capsicum, leek, cubed tofu and baby corn --- was good. My fussy 4 year old loved it. I found it a little lacking in spice -- so over my portion i added generous lashings of tabasco sauce and this really tiny red chilli known in South East Asia as chilli padi -- potent stuff. made a great lunch. Thanks
Archived comment by: rani
The first time I tried this I made it exactly like the recipe said. (A chef friend of mine said the ratio of liquid to rice should be 2:1, like the recipe specified.) Howe'ver I found that with all of the additions, it was just too much rice, and I had to add quite a bit of extra liquid. My daughter (17 months) LOVED it, but my husband and I found it pretty flat. Smelled great, but very little flavor. Made this again a couple of nights ago, and sauteed 2 tsp each cumin, coriander, and chili powder in some oil with finely diced red onion. Add rice (1 cup works best) and saute until fragrant, then add your liquid (preferably not cold because your rice will end up tough), and other ingredients as specified. When cooking rice you should bring to a boil, cover and simmer over LOW heat for 20 minutes. Flavor was still flat, but better the second day. Green olives would be good with this, and cilantro makes a great garnish. Next time I think I'll add 1 TBS chili powder. The recipe has potential if you can get the flavors right.
Archived comment by: ranae
My family (the meat-eaters) love this recipe, and that makes me happy. I make it with brown rice, and I think it tastes better with sauted onion and garlic. I like it best on whole wheat tortillas with diced tomatoes, bell peppers, olives, and a little soy cheese. Hooray for Mexicali!
Archived comment by: halfaveggie
oh, yum. this is a staple for me, with variations - i brown the rice at first with a little bit of oil before i add the liquid - gives it a nice texture. then i add tomatoes, beans and corn, etc. at the end, before serving, i put on some taco sauce, fresh chopped cilantro, black olives and whatever else is catching my eye. i top that all off with some cheddar cheese (im not vegan, but id imagine the follow your heart cheddar or similar would be perfect). and then i stuff myself stupid.
Archived comment by: plainjewel
I made this today for lunch, and it was delicious! I followed several suggestions given in the comments, but was still a little confused as to how much liquid to use with 1 cup of rice. I went ahead and used all of the liquid called for in the original recipe (2c V8 + 2c water). I sauteed 1/2 lg onion, chopped, 1/2 lg green pepper, chopped, and 2 cloves garlic, chopped, in about 1 T oil. I used brown rice, which I browned a little in the onion mixture before adding the rest of the ingredients. I also doubled the cumin and chili powder for a little more flavor. 50 minutes later, the end result was moist and quite tasty. I didn't have to worry about the liquid--even though I reduced the rice to 1c, all of the liquid was absorbed by the time the dish was removed from the heat and rested a few minutes.
Archived comment by: willwolf
This stuff is great. I accidentally added twice as many black beans because someone else was reading the ingredients off of the computer screen for me while I was preparing it and for some reason he thought it said 2 15 oz. cans of black beans. It still turned out great, though. In fact, I think I prefer the error. Instead of the fresh tomato, I added a can of undrained diced tomatoes and I didn't drain the corn either. I also added a 1/2 teaspoon of pepper and doubled the cumin and chili powder because it needed some kick. I used canned salsa, too. Why not? Also, I just dumped everything into a pot and started cooking. I didn't add stuff in stages, like the recipe says. I used brown rice and brought everything to a boil and then turned the heat down and let it simmer for 35 minutes. I checked it at 30 minutes but the rice wasn't quite done, so I let it cook 5 more minutes. The rice still needed a couple more minutes but it was starting to stick to the bottom just a tiny bit so I turned the heat off and left the lid on the pot for about 10 minutes so the steam could finish cooking the rice . Then it was perfect.
Archived comment by: tT
Wow! So easy and versatile! I ended up doubling the beans, corn, salsa and tomato and added some onion and garlic. I'd actually say doubling the non-rice stuff actually makes it so there's not quite enough rice, but I guess that's personal preference. Cheap, easy, and tasty! It was great wrapped up in tortillas with a little bit of vegan cheese.
Archived comment by: vlyandra
