Help! Quick rice question (Wendy's Spanish Rice).

[slknight]

I'm making Wendy's Spanish Rice recipe tonight for guests and realized I don't have any long-grain rice. I've got medium-grain white rice and long-grain brown rice. Could I use either one of these? I really don't want to go back to the store. :(

Here's the recipe:

Spanish Rice (from From Arizona with Love)
1 cup long grain rice
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped green pepper (I used red & yellow, that’s what I had)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 T vegetable oil
1 16 oz. can whole tomatoes, cut up reserving juice (I’ll bet that Mexican style would be really good)
1 t. salt
1 t. chili pepper or to taste
¼ t. pepper

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 1 ½ qt. baking dish. In large skillet, sauté rice, onion, green pepper and garlic in oil until onion is tender. Put rice mixture into baking dish. Stir in tomatoes and seasonings. Add enough water to reserved tomatoes juice to make 2 cups liquid. Pour into baking dish. Cover and bake for 1 hour or until all liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Fluff with fork and serve with pinto beans or refried beans as an accompaniment to Mexican/Southwestern dishes.

[Shirley Panek]

Cooks Thesaurus (http://www.foodsubs.com) says medium-grain rice would work.

Have a nice meal! :)

long-grain rice Notes: Long-grain rice has slender grains that stay separate and fluffy after cooking, so this is the best choice if you want to serve rice as a side dish, or as a bed for sauces. American long-grain rice (which includes Carolina rice) has a somewhat bland flavor, and is what cookbooks usually have in mind when they call for long-grain rice. Patna rice is a mild rice grown in India. Basmati rice, another Indian import, has a nutty taste and goes well with many Indian and Middle Eastern dishes. Jasmine rice is also aromatic, and usually less expensive than Basmati. It often accompanies Thai and Vietnamese dishes. Americans have crossed Basmati with American long-grain rice to get popcorn rice, which is milder and less expensive than basmati. Another hybrid is wild pecan rice, which retain most of the bran for a nutty, chewy flavor. Substitutes: medium-grain rice (less fluffy, stickier)

[Gail]

I'd use the medium-grain (which I actually use with my Mexican rice anyway.)

[slknight]

Thanks you guys! I thought I could use medium-grain, but DH was trying to tell me otherwise. :p :p on him.:D

[Wendy w]

Hi Susan, either rice would work, but given the choice, I would go with the medium grain. Have a great evening.