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    Home » Recipes

    Arroz Con Queso – Bolivian Cheese Rice

    Published: Oct 2, 2018 · Modified: Mar 5, 2020 by Sonila · This post may contain affiliate links · 25 Comments

    • 1
    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video Print Recipe

    My husband and I cook Arroz Con Queso or cheese rice quite often. Our kids love it and it is always a hit dish when we host BBQs. We have cooked arroz con queso in so many different ways because we do tend to improvise a lot. However, below I will describe the most traditional way we can cook it with ingredients commonly found in US markets.

    Two bowls served with Arroz Con Queso (cheese rice), one topped with green onions and the other one topped with chopped fresh parsley. There's a lot of chopped parsley and green onions next to the bowls too for a stylish effect.
    Bolivian Cheese Rice (Arroz Con Queso)

    Some links in my posts may be affiliate links, which means that I may receive a commission if you purchase items by clicking on these links. I will always disclose when a product in a post has been gifted by a company as well as when a post or product is sponsored.

    What Cheese to Use?

    In Bolivia, arroz con queso is cooked with a special local cheese that we cannot find here in Miami.

    We have tried through the years to use mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, swiss cheese, a combination of these cheeses etc.

    Finally one day, we cooked arroz con queso with Mexican queso fresco and it is the closest we have gotten to the actual taste and texture of the actual dish.

    Special Rice

    I recommend you use a short grain rice, pearl or arborio rice for this rice dish.

    The reason is that the rice will first boil with water and then you’ll add a cup of boiling milk. At that point you’ll stir the rice, which is unlike most other rice dishes where you don’t mix or stir until they are cooked completely.

    Cheese rice topped with green onions served in a bowl as a side dish.
    Cheese Rice

    Use this cheese rice as a side dish with your favorite meal. It is best served fresh, it does become a bit sticky if you have refrigerated it. However, the taste is still delicious the next day so we always love having some leftovers too!

    If you would like to use a simpler rice for your meal, please check out my garlic jasmine rice recipe.

    Recipe Notes & Tips

    I included lots of process pictures in this recipe as well as a short video to make it easier to follow instructions.

    • You can replace red onion or other types of onions, however keep in mind that flavor will change. Red onions tends to give a strong flavor to this side dish.
    • You can top your serving of cheese rice with green onions or chopped parsley.
    • Milk needs to be very hot before you add it in, so try to coordinate warming up the milk and have it ready for step #4 in the recipe instructions below.

    See below a picture of all ingredients used to cook this recipe:

    Ingredients used to cook cheese rice: pearl rice, milk, salt, queso fresco, green onions, garlic, olive oil, cilantro and red onion.
    Ingredients for Cheesy Rice
    A bowl of cheese rice topped with green onions

    Arroz con Queso – Bolivian Cheese Rice

    Sonila
    This cheese rice dish is called Arroz con Queso in Bolivia. It's a delicious side dish that we often serve in BBQs or get togethers. It's the perfect, comforting side dish!!
    5 from 9 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 30 mins
    Total Time 40 mins
    Course Side Dish
    Cuisine Bolivian, Gastronomia Latina, Latin American
    Servings 6 servings
    Calories 360 kcal

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 cups short grain rice or pearl rice
    • 1 cup milk boiling
    • 0.5 red onion medium
    • 2 garlic cloves minced
    • 4 tbsps olive oil
    • 10 oz queso fresco
    • 0.5 tbsp salt
    • 5 cups hot water
    • 2 green onions (optional) chopped for decorations
    • 2 tbsps chopped fresh parsley (optional) for decorative use

    Instructions
     

    • Saute finely chopped onion and minced garlic in olive oil. Keep heat in medium setting.
      Sauteing onion and garlic
    • Add rice when onions look translucent. Saute all together, be careful not to burn the onions.
      Sauteing rice with onions and garlic
    • Add 5 cups of hot water and salt. Stir well and let the rice cook. 
      Cooking pearl rice in water
    • Once water is running out, but rice is not fully cooked yet, then add a cup of hot milk and shredded cheese. 
      Adding queso fresco and hot milk
    • Lower heat to low. Cook until cheese is melted and you see no more water/milk. Let it cool and serve as a side dish.
      arroz con queso

    Video

    Notes

    Queso fresco can have different salt quantity depending on brand. Be careful how much salt you add to arroz con queso so it doesn’t come out too salty. Also, to shred queso fresco I use a simple grater as below. 
    shredding queso fresco

    Shredding queso fresco

    Nutrition Label

    Nutrition Facts
    Arroz con Queso – Bolivian Cheese Rice
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 360
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 360kcal
    Keyword arroz con queso, bolivian arroz con queso, bolivian cheese rice, latin food
    Tried this recipe?Mention @mediterranean_latin_love or tag #mediterraneanlatinloveaffair!

    If you would like to save this recipe for later, please pin the below image to Pinterest. Don’t hesitate to contact me with questions or tag me in social media if you made my recipe:). Thank you so much!!

    Instagram: mediterranean_latin_love or Twitter: MediterrLatin or Facebook: Mediterranean Latin Love Affair.

    Bolivian cheese rice served as a side dish, topped with green onions.
    Bolivian Cheese Rice – Arroz Con Queso

    Other Bolivian Recipes

    Bolivian Silpancho

    Christmas Soup (Picana)

    Bolivian Peanut Soup – Sopa de Mani

    Bolivian Papas a La Huancaina

    UPDATE: This recipe was first published on October 2nd, 2018 and updated on March 2nd, 2020. I replaced earlier cell phone pictures with better ones taken with my camera. However, if you are a returning reader of this recipe or found the recipe in Pinterest from an older picture, I’m leaving one of my earlier pictures below as reference.

    Serving cheese rice (arroz con queso) as a side dish. Rice is decorated with some parsley.
    Serving Cheese Rice As A Side Dish

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    • 1

    Filed Under: Bolivian, Latin, Recipes, Rice, Side Dish Tagged With: Arroz con queso, cheese rice

    About Sonila

    Mom of 2, wife, engineer, food blogger & recipe creator! Sonila was born in Albania, her heritage inspires her Mediterranean recipes while that of her husband the Latin ones. Sonila has 2 degrees in Engineering from University of Miami.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Felicia Austin

      July 01, 2020 at 9:07 am

      5 stars
      Oh my gosh! I didn’t know this dish was Bolivian lol we make cheese rice all the time. I love your recipe and I think I will try and make it in the instant pot. I will be sure to refer your link for the stove top directions. 🙂 This is amazing thank you

      Reply
      • Sonila

        July 04, 2020 at 5:14 am

        Thank you so much Felicia:)). Maybe other countries cook this too, I wouldn’t know. But I learned this recipe from my husband who is Bolivian. Can’t wait to see your instant pot version, yayy!! This made me so happy!!

        Reply
    2. Pilar

      April 21, 2020 at 7:29 pm

      5 stars
      Me encanta este arroz con queso boliviano!! Se ve suculento!!!

      Reply
      • Sonila

        April 21, 2020 at 7:56 pm

        Muchas gracias Pilar, asi es:)

        Reply
        • Stephanie Zacharias

          June 24, 2020 at 6:04 pm

          What meat would go well with this dish? Going to make this meal on Friday.

          Reply
          • admin

            June 24, 2020 at 8:10 pm

            Hi Stephanie, thank you for reading my post!! My husband is from Bolivia so I learned this rice recipe from him. He says that’s it’s typical to be served on ‘parrilladas’ BBQs. He usually cooks churrascos and we make big salads and add arroz con queso as a side dish.

            But I suppose it should taste great with roasted or grilled chicken too!! I sent the question to some family members in Bolivia, if they give me any other ideas other than grilled meats I’ll come back to let you know.

            Reply
            • Stephanie Zacharias

              June 26, 2020 at 5:04 pm

              Thank you! Instead of red onion can I use white onion? Decided to make a shredded chicken in the crockpot to go with it!

            • admin

              June 26, 2020 at 5:30 pm

              Yes you definitely can!!! My husband says that he likes this rice with green onion too so you can definitely use different types.
              Oh that chicken sounds delicious!!! Are you planning any salads or steamed veggies too? Might be too much food but a fresh side might balance out this rice, it’s a bit heavier than regular rice dishes.

    3. Enriqueta E Lemoine

      March 11, 2020 at 9:55 am

      5 stars
      This looks so good that I sent it to my Hispanic Heritage, Risotto and Side Dishes boards on Pinterest. I love that it looks like an Italian risotto but with our Latin flavors. I think Valencia rice will do the job too.

      Reply
      • admin

        March 11, 2020 at 9:56 am

        Yes:))) it definitely works with Valencia rice!! Yumm. Gracias Enri

        Reply
    4. María

      March 11, 2020 at 8:57 am

      5 stars
      Nunca he probado el arroz con queso boliviano y de ve delicioso!!! Adoro el queso, y además seguro que está muy jugoso. Gracias por compartir!

      Reply
    5. Maria Jose Cayuela

      March 11, 2020 at 8:22 am

      5 stars
      Que delicioso y que sencillo, nunca se me habría ocurrido hacerlo. Una buena idea y rápida. Probaré de cocina este arroz con queso boliviano. Gracias

      Reply
    6. Veronica

      March 11, 2020 at 7:31 am

      5 stars
      I didn’t know this rice cheese rice! Love it! Will save the recipe to try it soon! Thank for all the details and for finding the right cheese to make it in Miami.

      Reply
      • admin

        March 11, 2020 at 9:58 am

        That’s the hardest part about trying to get Bolivian & Albanian dishes right here in Miami. While there’s an abundance of food, I have to fine tune by trying different flavors until I can get it right!!

        Reply
    7. Yasmari Bello

      March 11, 2020 at 7:16 am

      5 stars
      Gracias Sonila me ha encantado esta variedad de arroz que además actualizaste y se ve delicioso el arroz con queso boliviano.

      Reply
      • admin

        March 11, 2020 at 7:30 am

        Muchas gracias Yasmari:))

        Reply
    8. Krish

      October 19, 2018 at 9:38 pm

      Looks great and yummy…worth a try

      Reply
    9. Ntensibe Edgar Michael

      October 11, 2018 at 6:03 am

      Hhhhhhmmmmm….will try it out as soon as possible!

      Reply
    10. Juna Kandha

      October 08, 2018 at 3:15 am

      5 stars
      Yummy , I want to test it . It looks delicious .

      Reply
    11. Gina Shirley's Everything

      October 03, 2018 at 11:27 pm

      5 stars
      Yes!!! I will definitely be trying this soon. Looks so delicious and I can’t wait

      Reply
    12. Lorraine

      October 03, 2018 at 1:48 pm

      Sounds delicious! I’m definitely going to try it. Thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • admin

        October 03, 2018 at 2:12 pm

        Thank you so much Lorraine!!

        Reply
    13. Tamieka S

      October 03, 2018 at 12:46 pm

      You had me at Queso. Mixing rice and cheese together is a wonderful. Thank you for sharing this recipe.

      Reply
      • admin

        October 03, 2018 at 1:17 pm

        Thank you:))

        Reply
    14. Omede Deborah

      October 03, 2018 at 11:37 am

      Delicious. Sometimes, we run out of ideas of what to cook per time. With this yummy recipe, our food table has been made robust, we have an added item; Arroz Con Quesse. Thank you for the recipe, sure it will taste great with milk.

      Reply

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    Sonila Zarate
    Sonila Zarate

    Mom of 2, wife, engineer, food blogger & recipe creator! Sonila was born in Albania, her heritage inspires her Mediterranean recipes while that of her husband the Latin ones. Sonila has 2 degrees in Engineering from University of Miami.

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