Lazy Slow Cooker Rice Recipe

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Modified: Jul 28, 2025 · Published: Aug 27, 2021 by Susan · Post contains affiliate links. ↓ Jump to Recipe silver bowl of white rice topped topped with fresh chopped cilantro

rice with chicken and peppers blurred off to the side

A bowl of white, fluffy crockpot rice with diced parsley on top

Slow cooker rice is so easy to make it is practically foolproof. Just add some water and rice and let your crockpot take over. You will have fluffy, delicious, perfectly cooked rice with minimal effort.

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📝Shopping List
🥣How to's
Top Tip
🍚Serving suggestions
Cooking in bulk
Storing leftovers
😉Hints & hacks
❓FAQ's
📖 Recipe

Rice is one of the most versatile foods around. There are an unlimited number of ways to flavor it. You can use it as a base, as a filler, and even as a wrapper (sushi roll).

It can be a perfect side dish, main dish, and even an awesome dessert (love rice pudding!). Plus, it is inexpensive

However, (there is always a but...), It is not that easy to make (at least for me). I don't have a rice cooker and always made my rice stove top. No matter how hard I tried or how closely I watched it, my end product was always mushy. And stuck to the side of the pot!

Until I decided to try to my old faithful slow cooker! Now...I make perfect rice. Every single time!

📝Shopping List

To make this simple recipe you will need:

rice - this recipe calls for white, long grain rice. Brown rice can be made this way too, but cooking time will need to adjusted
water
salt - just a pinch of table salt will do
non-stick cooking spray - you can also use olive oil or butter if you prefer.

🚀Jump to recipe card for exact quantities and detailed instructions

🥣How to's

When making crock pot rice, first place it in a strainer in the sink and run it under cold water. This helps to remove some of the excess starch on the surface of the rice.

Taking this step will help to reduce clumping and leave you with perfectly cooked, tender rice. The most important thing is to continue rinsing until the water runs clear.

Next, coat your slow cooker with a non-stick spray or another coating. Olive oil is always my non-stick choice.

I use a spray bottle to make sure it covers as much of the cooking surface as possible. You can also use a paper towel to spread it around.

Crockpot with a spray bottle of oil in front of it

Finally, add rice, water, and a pinch of salt to your slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 - 2&½ hours. Right around the 1:45 mark, or when all of the water is fully absorbed, check on your rice. If it still feels too firm or crunchy, it needs to continue cooking.

Once the texture feels right, remove your slow cooker from the heating element. Be sure to do this carefully. It will be HOT!

Top Tip

The key thing to remember is that you will need one cup of rice for every two cups of water. So, for example, if you wanted to cook 2 cups of rice, you would need 4 cups of water (which would yield 6 cups of cooked rice).

🍚Serving suggestions

Anyone else out there love plain rice? It is a staple in my house. If not, there are so many other great ways to serve it.

It is awesome in slow cooker soup like my favorite: Lemon chicken and rice soup. Italian roast and slow cooker chili are both delicious served on top of the rice. Additionally, slow cooker chicken recipes such as apricot chicken and chicken lettuce wraps make great rice companions.

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Cooking in bulk

It is always great to make an extra-large batch of rice when cooking it this way. Rice stores well and is so versatile. You can add it to almost any meal.

There is a misconception that it's not safe to reheat leftover rice. Check out what the Food Network has to say on the safest way to reheat it.

Looking to add some extra flavor? Instead of using plain water, try cooking your rice with chicken, beef, or veggie broth. Add in some cut-up veggies and you have an easy, homemade vegetable rice dish!

Storing leftovers

Cooked rice stores really well! Airtight meal or recipe-sized containers or bags work perfectly. Your delicious rice will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator. Freezing is also a great way to store cooked rice and it will last up to 6 months. Just use a microwave to reheat and you are set!

If you love this recipe, please let me know in the comment section below!

😉Hints & hacks

I always like to cook a big batch of rice and keep it in the freezer for future meals. (That's me being lazy!!)
There are many different types of rice, each with its own unique flavor. From white rice to jasmine rice to basmati rice to brown, whole grain rice, they are all delicious and slightly different. So far, this cooking method has worked with every type of rice I have tried. Don't be afraid to experiment.
Brown rice will take 30-90 minutes longer to cook than white. Keep an eye on it towards the end of the cooking time to make sure it doesn't get overdone. Long-grain brown rice is a great option if you are looking to add more fiber to your diet.
I always recommend the use of a slow cooker liner. Of course, this is an optional step. I like to purchase my liners in bulk for a less expensive per-piece price.
In the market for a new slow cooker? I love mine!
When you are finished cooking, use a fork to help fluff your rice.

Recipes that are great with rice

Lazy Slow Cooker Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken Rice Soup
Lazy Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff
Lazy Slow Cooker Chicken Fajitas

❓FAQ's

Why add salt when cooking rice?

Adding a small amount of salt to this easy recipe will help to keep the rice from getting too sticky

Aren't you supposed to stir rice while it cooks?

Not in a slow cooker! Just put the lid on and let it work its magic

📖 Recipe

Lazy Slow Cooker Rice Recipe

Slow cooker rice is so easy to make it is practically foolproof. Just add some water and rice and let your crockpot take over. You will have fluffy, delicious, perfectly cooked rice with minimal effort. 4.84 from 25 votes

(Click on the stars to leave a rating)

Print Pin Rate Save Saved! Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 2 hours Total Time: 2 hours 5 minutes Servings: 6 Servings Calories: 225kcal

All nutrition information shown here is automatically generated and should be considered an estimate. If you follow a specific diet, please calculate your own values to ensure accuracy.

Author: The Lazy slow cooker Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

▢ 4 quart or larger slow cooker
▢ measuring cup
▢ spoon and fork
▢ slow cooker liner (optional)
▢ strainer

Ingredients

▢ 2 cups uncooked long grain white rice**
▢ 4 cups water
▢ pinch salt
▢ non-stick spay of choice

Instructions

add rice to strainer. hold over sink and rinse with cool water until water runs clear
spray slow cooker (or liner if using) with non-stick agent of choice
add rice, water and salt to slow cooker
cover and cook on high 2-2½ hours
After about 1¾ hours, test rice to see if the grains are cooked all the way through. Continue to check every 5 minutes or so until rice reaches desired consistency.
once rice is fully cooked, remove from the slow cooker. If you leave this dish on warm, the rice will stick to the pot, and/or become mushy
rice can be used immediately or stored for future use,

Final Step

If you love this recipe, please let everyone know by giving it a star rating and leaving a comment. This will help my business to grow and allow me to keep on testing and sharing free recipes with you.😊

Notes

Notes: Cooked rice left in the slow cooker will become mushy and and/or can burn to side of slow cooker **Brown rice can be made this way as well. Cooking time will need to be increased by about a half hour depending on your slow cooker. Once water is fully absorbed, promptly remove from the heating element and fluff with a fork. If you allow it to cook longer, it will quickly get mushy.

Nutrition

All nutrition information shown here is automatically generated and should be considered an estimate. If you follow a specific diet, please calculate your own values to ensure accuracy.

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Comments

Can’t…WON’T…scroll thru all these adds etc
Reply
- HI Bob. You don't have to scroll! Every recipe has a "jump to recipe" button - right under the title. It allows you to skip to the recipe card with all measurements and other details. Those ads are necessary to pay for all the expenses that go into making these recipes, photographing them, writing about them, and hosting a website so that I can share them with you for free. 🙂
- Lazy slow cooke where/how do I leave a comment?
- You just did! This is the spot to leave it in.
Four cups or water is wayyy to much water for this amount of rice, I made this recipe exactly like the directions call for and the rice is all mush. It should be 1 and 1/2 cups of water for every 1 cup of rice.
Reply
- Sorry to hear the rice didn't come out the way you hoped. I make this recipe all time and always use 2 cups of water for every one cup of rice. The only time my rice gets mushy is when I cook it for too long. Since every slow cooker is a little different, it could be that yours runs hotter than mine and may be finished a little sooner.
Lol, I saw stainer and the amount of water and thought you were going to strain cooked rice. Your recipe turned out beautifully for me. Rice cooker who? Thank you!
Reply
- Hi Andi, Thanks for sharing! I agree! Who needs another appliance when your slow cooker can do it all? See you later rice cooker!! 👋
Just tried this and it worked perfectly! When I make rice on my stove, it always gets mushy and overdone. I was thinking of investing in a rice cooker, but there is no need. I am never making it any other way again!!
Reply
This worked great! I halved the recipe and used a 2 QT slow cooker. 1 3/4 hrs was perfect.
Reply
- Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I know I will never make rice any other way again (I always ruined it on the stove)!
It's been 1 3/4 hours, my rice is still really hard, I only used 1 3/4 cups of water per cup of rice, still seems like too much water. I set the timer for another hour, so we will see. My crock pot must run lower than others.
Reply
- Every slow cooker is a little different. Some of mine take the full 2.5 hours to make the perfect rice. Did you cook it on high heat?
If i want to try to fill an 8qt oval crock how many cups should i do?
Reply
- I have never tried filling up an 8-quart slow cooker with rice. I would start with 3 cups of rice and 6 cups of water and see how it goes. As long as you keep the ratio of 1 cup rice to 2 cups water, you can try different size combinations. If you give it a try, I would love to hear how it goes!
Rice was pasty. Not flaky
Reply
- Usually when that happens, it means it cooked a little too long.
Good
Reply
FYI - your link for slow cooker liners goes to a vanilla extract product (B00CQAVSLM)
Reply
- uh oh! Not sure how that happened, but it has been fixed! Thank you for taking the time to point that out to me!
Cold or hot water?
Reply
- I start this with cold water.

4.84 from 25 votes (23 ratings without comment)

Hey there!

Welcome to The Lazy Slow Cooker. I am so happy you are here! My name is Susan (yep - I am Lazy Susan!) and I am the recipe developer/photographer behind these easy dishes. I am the mom of three amazing but super busy kids and the wife of one awesome and also super busy guy. All 5 of us have very different schedules and I would not survive mealtime without my crockpot

Lazy Slow Cooker Rice Recipe

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🥣How to's

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