Baja Rice Stir Fry! If you’re after a crowd-pleasing, weeknight-friendly dinner that delivers bold flavor and a touch of Mexican-inspired magic, this Baja Rice Stir Fry is a must-try.
Baja Rice Stir Fry is a vibrant, one-pan fusion of fluffy rice, hearty beans, and sweet corn all dressed in a tangy Baja sauce that bursts with brightness. This Mexican-inspired dish delivers color, texture, and bold flavor in minutes, making it perfect for busy evenings. It’s highly customizable and works beautifully as a quick dinner or a satisfying make-ahead lunch bowl.
Whole Food Plant Based, Vegan, plant based, oil free, refined sugar free, no highly processed ingredients and gluten free.
Hi there, Ameera here!
Our family devoured this Baja Rice recipe in record time. We absolutely loved the lively tang from the Baja sauce, the way the beans melt into the rice, and the corn’s sweet pop in every bite.
You’ve got to give this one a try!
Tips for Success:
- Flavor Profile: This Baja Rice Stir Fry is a delicious rice, bean, and corn dish all coated in a deliciously tangy Baja sauce that is bursting with flavor.
- Vinegar Tanginess: This recipe uses 2 types of vinegar and lime juice, each bringing a different nuance of flavor. The flavor of this rice dish is full of tangy Southwestern flavor. The zing and tang are prominent in this dish. If you are not a fan of tanginess, then perhaps consider skipping this recipe.
- Cooked and Refrigerated Rice: Cooked and refrigerated rice works best when making this dish. If you use recently cooked rice, it will be too gummy and sticky. Using cooked and refrigerated rice (preferably made the day before or earlier in the day) allows the rice to dry out enough to showcase distinct individual grains of rice making a better textured dish.
- Stirring the Rice: Do not over stir the rice while sautéing. Over stirring will cause the starches to be released from the rice and create a more risotto type mixture. Thoroughly mix the Baja sauce in the skillet with all the ingredients, while the rice is still cold (from the refrigerator), then stir only occasionally while heating, just until everything is thoroughly heated through.
- Beans: You can pretty much use just about any bean you enjoy in this recipe. We suggest sticking to black beans, pinto beans, or kidney beans.
- Chili Powder: Feel free to use your favorite chili powder, just be sure to select a mild one and not one that has a lot of heat to it.
- Amount of Vegetable Broth: The total amount of vegetable broth is ¼ cup divided. 2 tablespoons are used to soften the onions, and 2 tablespoons are used in the Baja sauce.
- Wrap: We absolutely LOVED this dish in a wrap! We were making it for daysssss for lunches!
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Leftovers and Freezing:
Leftovers will generally keep 3 days in the refrigerator. Store in a covered air-tight container.
This dish can be frozen.
Pantry Products:
- Vegetable Stock: We use Pacific Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Stock. We love this brand because it is Whole Food Plant Based compliant, as it does not contain MSG, has no oil, and does not contain any highly-processed ingredients. Feel free to use your favorite vegetable broth.
- Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Kitchen Equipment:
- Large skillet
If you try this tasty rice dish, we would love to know if you enjoy it as much as we do! Please leave us a review! Post a picture on Facebook or Instagram and tag us! We would love to hear from you.
Print
Baja Rice Stir Fry
- Prep Time: 15 Minutes
- Cook Time: 15-20 Minutes
- Total Time: 30 Minutes
- Yield: 5 Cups 1x
- Category: Dinner, Lunch
- Method: Stovetop
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Baja Rice Stir Fry is a vibrant, one-pan fusion of fluffy rice, hearty beans, and sweet corn all dressed in a tangy Baja sauce that bursts with brightness.
Ingredients
Base Ingredients:
- 1 medium yellow onion, fine dice
- 2 Tablespoons low-sodium vegetable broth *
- 1 Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 – [ 15 oz. can ] black beans, drained and rinsed *
- 1 – [ 15.25 oz. can ] corn, drained
- 2 cups cooked and refrigerated rice (of choice) *
Baja Sauce Ingredients:
- 3 Tablespoons red wine vinegar *
- 2 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar *
- 2 Tablespoons low-sodium vegetable broth *
- 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoon tahini
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons pure maple syrup (+/-)
Baja Sauce Spice/Herb Ingredients:
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder *
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Pinch to 1 teaspoon sea salt (+/-) *
Serving Ideas:
- Avocado chunks
- Guacamole
- Shredded lettuce
- Soft tortillas (wrap)
- Baked tortilla chips (dip)
Instructions
- Place all the Baja Sauce Ingredients and all the Baja Sauce Spice/Herb Ingredients into a small bowl, mix well to combine, stir until thoroughly emulsified, set aside until Step 5.
- In a large skillet, add the diced onions, sauté over medium-high heat for 9 to 11 minutes to soften, then add the 2 Tablespoons of vegetable broth to get the onions perfectly tender.
- Then lower the heat to medium, add the minced garlic, sauté, stir constantly for one minute.
- Next add the corn, black beans, and cooked and refrigerated rice, stir well to combine, continue to sauté for several minutes until thoroughly heated through.
- Once heated through, add the Baja Sauce and stir well. Continue to sauté until thoroughly heated through, then serve inside a wrap or with tortilla chips and/or with chunks of avocado.
Notes
Please reference the blog post for Tips for Success, Pantry Items Used, Storage and Freezing, and Kitchen Products Used.
Sea Salt: Please adjust the sea salt based upon your family’s sea salt preferences and/or based upon dietary needs.
Servings: 5 to 6 (makes 5 cups)
This post contains affiliate links, and we may receive a very small commission if you purchase through those links at no additional cost to you. Thank you for supporting Monkey and Me Kitchen Adventures! For more information, see our disclosures here.