• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
A Pinch of Adventure
  • Home
  • Main Dishes
  • Lebanese Cuisine
  • Snacks & Appetizers
  • Soups & Salads
  • Side Dishes
  • Desserts
  • Products
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • RSS
    • Snapchat
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Categories
  • Lebanese Cuisine
  • Main Dishes
  • Snacks & Appetizers
  • Subscribe
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • Categories
    • Lebanese Cuisine
    • Main Dishes
    • Snacks & Appetizers
    • Subscribe
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×

    Home » Lebanese Cuisine

    Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli - Arabic Rice Recipe

    December 7, 2020 by Emily Ackerman 2 Comments

    Share it!

    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    Lebanese rice is a staple food. To make Lebanese vermicelli rice, pasta pieces are sautéed in butter and cooked with white rice. This Arabic rice with vermicelli noodles can be served by itself as a side dish or with Lebanese beef and green beans and other stews. It is absolutely delicious!

    Jump to Recipe
    Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli, Arabic Rice with vermicelli and topped with parsley

    This is uniquely a Lebanese/Middle Eastern way of making rice. The sautéed vermicelli is very reminiscent of "fideos" in Mexican cooking, however this totally different than that! Lebanese rice with vermicelli is a satisfying side dish and a complement to almost any meal. It is also referred to as Lebanese rice pilaf or Middle Eastern rice pilaf.

    Since rice is served so often in Lebanese cooking, I thought it appropriate to share the best recipe for rice with vermicelli. This way of cooking Lebanese rice is very common and traditional.

    Jump to:
    • 🍚 Ingredients
    • 🔪 Instructions
    • 🍽 Equipment
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This post contains affiliate links. The author may receive commission on purchases made through these links at no cost to you.

    Vermicelli rice pairs well with many different dishes. In Lebanese cooking, this Middle Eastern rice dish can be served alone or as a base for stews like Lebanese stewed green beans. It is divine when adding Hashweh, which is a spiced ground meat with pine nuts. Many dishes call to add toasted pine nuts as well, which gives it a deeper flavor. I highly recommend buying QUALITY pine nuts in bulk, toasting them and storing them in a jar in the freezer. For more on that see How to toast pine nuts.

    🍚 Ingredients

    The lovely thing about this recipe for Lebanese rice, is that it is easy and only has 3 main ingredients:

    • Vermicelli pasta noodles
    • Long grain white rice (or Jasmine rice if you prefer)
    • Butter

    And of course, you will need water and salt, just like any other rice recipe.

    I highly recommend these pine nuts from nuts.com. The quality and price is worth it!

    Pine Nuts
    Buy Now

    Let's talk about what kind of vermicelli to use in Lebanese rice with vermicelli.

    It is imperative to use a very thin pasta like vermicelli pasta, otherwise the texture and flavor will not be right. You will not be using Asian rice noodles, but rather vermicelli pasta that you find in the Italian section of your local grocery store.

    🔪 Instructions

    How to make Lebanese Rice:

    The steps are very simple as well...

    • Brown the vermicelli noodles
    • Cook the rice with the noodles

    If you are not familiar with Lebanese food or Middle Easter cuisine check out this article on my ultimate guide to Lebanese food!

    How to brown vermicelli noodles for Arabic Rice:

    Did you know that after we sauté the vermicelli, we love to reserve some and eat it as a snack? Just put it on a paper towel and sprinkle some salt on it, and it is a super tasty snack!

    There is something about browned butter that gives a depth of flavor to recipes like this one. It is IMPERATIVE to brown the noodles before cooking it with the rice. The flavor in this Lebanese vermicelli rice recipe will not be the same and it will seem very bland if this step is omitted.

    Ok first, start off with a package of vermicelli noodles. Break some of the noodles apart into about 1-2 inch pieces. You will need ½ cup of the broken pasta noodles for this recipe for Arabic rice.

    browning vermicelli noodles for Lebanese rice

    Add 3 tablespoons of butter to a saucepan and turn to medium heat. Add the noodle pieces and sauté them stirring them constantly. they are going to brown up very nicely, but make sure you are stirring it and don't have the heat set to high. It browns quickly.

    The browned vermicelli is so lovely because it has that wonderful flavor of brown butter! As soon as it is browned, put a little on a paper towel and lightly salt and use for snacking... EVERY. SINGLE. TIME! Love this stuff!

    browned vermicelli noodles for Lebanese Rice

    Now with the rest of your browned verrmicelli noodles, add the rice, water and salt (add ¼ cup of toasted pine nuts if desired). Bring to a boil then reduce to medium heat and cook for 20 minutes until the rice is tender.

    Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli

    Serve with Lebanese Beef and Green Beans, or as a side dish for shish kabob, or any shawarma dish.

    You are going to LOVE this rice recipe!

    🍽 Equipment

    Shop kitchen Products from this article

    Pine Nuts
    Buy Now
    6 qt pan
    Buy Now

    Check out these other popular recipes by A Pinch Of Adventure!

    • Lebanese Lentil soup (vegan)
    • Mediterranean Grilled Chicken
    • Za'atar Bread (Lebanese Flat Bread)
    • Lebanese Baked Kibbeh
    • Burrata Caprese Salad
    • Fried Kibbeh Balls

    Like this recipe? Don’t forget to rate it below and follow me on Instagram!

    📖 Recipe

    Lebanese Rice with Vermicelli

    Lebanese Vermicelli Rice

    Vermicelli noodles browned in butter are cooked with white rice for an amazing side dish to pair with any Middle Eastern recipe!
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 5 mins
    Cook Time 20 mins

    Ingredients
      

    • ½ cup vermicelli broken into 1-2 inch pieces
    • 3 tablespoon butter
    • 1 cup white rice
    • 2 ½ cups water
    • 1 teas salt

    Instructions
     

    • Break the vermicelli noodles into 1-2 inch pieces
    • in a saucepan add 3 tablespoons of butter and turn it to medium heat
    • Add the vermicelli noodle pieces and sauté them stirring constantly
    • As soon as they are brown add the rice, water and salt
    • Bring it to a boil then reduce to medium heat and cook until rice is tender
    • Serve with your favorite Middle Eastern dish and enjoy!
    Middle Eastern recipes are delicious, especially this rice dish. This rice is made with vermicelli browned in butter and served with your favorite shawarma or with Arabic food. This side dish is full of flavor and easy to make!
    Middle Eastern recipes are delicious, especially this rice dish. This rice is made with vermicelli browned in butter and served with your favorite shawarma or with Arabic food. This side dish is full of flavor and easy to make!
    Middle Eastern recipes are delicious, especially this rice dish. This rice is made with vermicelli browned in butter and served with your favorite shawarma or with Arabic food. This side dish is full of flavor and easy to make!

    More Lebanese Recipes

    • Sumac Onions
    • Shish Tawook (Lebanese Chicken Kebabs)
    • Lebanese Baba Ganoush Recipe
    • Kafta- Lebanese Beef Kafta Kebabs

    Join!

    Learn how to incorporate the Mediterranean Diet into everyday eating

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. sandy avkerman

      December 08, 2020 at 9:02 am

      these recipes sound amazing

      Reply
      • Emily Ackerman

        December 08, 2020 at 2:05 pm

        It is!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    Here you will find delicious Mediterranean cuisine, Lebanese recipes and more family friendly meals. There is no end to adventurous eating!

    Popular Posts

    • Lebanese Chicken Shawarma: The Best Authentic Shawarma Recipe
    • Baklawa - The Best Lebanese Baklava Recipe
    • Lebanese Squash (Kousa) - Stuffed Yellow Squash
    • Lebanese Cabbage Rolls - Malfouf
    SUBSCRIBE!

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Terms & Conditions

    Newsletter

    • Subscribe

    Contact

    • Contact
    • Work with me

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2020 Brunch Pro on the Brunch Pro Theme