Spanakorizo is a traditional Greek spinach and rice dish whose flavors blend together in the most incredible way. This simple and budget-friendly one-pot dish can be served as a side but is often eaten as a main course.
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A delicious way to feed a crowd
I’ve been making spanakorizo for years now and often make it to accompany Greek-inspired dishes like herb-crusted lamb chops or slow-roasted leg of lamb. It’s packed with wonderful flavors and the creamy consistency of the rice and spinach qualifies this dish as a true comfort food.
The thing I like best about spanakorizo is that it can be made in one pot and is relatively inexpensive which comes in handy when trying to feed a family or a crowd on holidays (spanakorizo is great for Easter!).
Recipe Ingredients
All ingredients for this recipe are shown in the pic below and special notes are made in this bulleted list to assist you.
- Rice. I’m using arborio rice which is a medium-grain rice. This type of rice is better for spanakorizo than long-grain rice as it has more starch and will yield a creamy texture.
- Spinach. I recommend using fresh baby spinach for this recipe, though you could use frozen spinach too. It’s important to note that fresh spinach shrinks substantially so you’d need far less frozen spinach than the 2 pounds of fresh called for here.
- Stock. I’m using low-sodium chicken stock (homemade chicken stock is even better!), but you could use vegetable stock in its place to make this a vegetarian or vegan meal.
- Herbs. Fresh dill and mint contribute great flavor to this dish.
- Feta and lemons. I serve my spanakorizo with feta cheese and lemon wedges as both flavors are perfect in this dish. I recommend using block feta rather than the pre-crumbled feta.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make spanakorizo
Each number corresponds to the numbered written steps below.
- Rinse the rice and place in a bowl and cover with water. Soak the rice for 5 minutes then rinse once more and set aside. Boil the spinach in a large pot of water for about 2 minutes or until it wilts, then drain well and set aside. Heat a large pot or high-walled pan to medium heat with the olive oil then add the onion with a pinch of salt and saute until translucent.
- Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes or until fragrant, then add the tomato paste and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring frequently. If the paste starts to burn, add a splash of water or chicken stock to cool down the pan.
- Add the drained spinach, lemon juice, dill, mint, salt, and pepper and mix well to coat. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, add the rice and stir once to coat each grain.
- Cover with a tight-fitting lid and turn the heat to low. Cook until the rice is tender, about 18-20 minutes.
- After 18 minutes, turn off the heat and taste-test the rice. If it’s too hard, cover and let it cook for another 3 minutes or so. Remove the pot from the burner and allow the rice to sit, covered for another 5 minutes before serving with a side of lemon wedges and feta. Enjoy!
Top tips
- Ingredients. Since there are so few ingredients in spanakorizo, I do recommend using fresh over frozen or dried. Fresh spinach, dill, and mint will yield better results. I also prefer to use block feta than the pre-crumbled feta which usually contains additives.
- How to serve. As mentioned above, I’ll often serve spanakorizo with other Greek-inspired dishes, but it’s also great with many other dishes. It’s a great side to turkey meatballs, lemon garlic grilled lamb chops, grilled chicken thighs, and baked chicken legs.
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Spanakorizo
Ingredients
- 2 pounds baby spinach
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion diced
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh dill minced
- 1 tablespoon mint minced
- 2 teaspoons (13g) fine sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups low-sodium chicken stock can also use water or vegetable stock
- 1 1/4 cups arborio rice soaked and rinsed
- feta cheese for garnish
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Instructions
- Rinse the rice then add to a bowl and cover with water. Soak for 5 minutes then rinse the rice once more and set aside. Boil the spinach in a large pot of water until it wilts (~2 minutes) then drain well and set aside.
- Heat a large pot or high-walled pan to medium heat with the olive oil. Add the onion with a pinch of salt and cook until translucent (7-10 minutes) then add the garlic and cook until fragrant (about 2 minutes).
- Add the tomato paste and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring frequently. If the paste starts to burn, just add a splash of the chicken stock to cool down the pan.
- Add the drained spinach, lemon juice, dill, mint, and salt and pepper, and mix well to coat.
- Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the rice and stir once to coat. Cover with a tight fitting lid and turn the heat to low. Cook until the rice is tender (about 18-20 minutes).
- After 18 minutes turn off the heat and test the rice. If it is too hard, cover and let cook for another 3 minutes.
- Remove the pot fromthe burner. Let the rice sit, covered for another 5 minutes. Serve with feta and lemon wedges. Enjoy!
Notes
- Make it vegetarian. Simply sub either vegetable stock or water for chicken stock.
- Make it more substantial. Add some meatballs or chicken if you like.
- Leftovers. Spanakorizo can be saved in the fridge for up to 3 days and can be reheated on the stovetop or microwave.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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I made this for Easter and everyone really enjoyed it! Thanks for all the great recipes.
We’re so happy you enjoyed, Lori!
This is a really great dish. I added about 20 little plumb Tomatoes cut in halves when the Rice was cooked & a sprinkle of Garlic Powder. I also zested the Lemon & added that in. I will add more Tomato Paste as well next time I make it. Thank you for this recipe.
So happy you enjoyed, Delyse!
Great recipe. Had all ingredients at home except fresh spinach.
It was also perfect as I had just the amount of arborio rice to use up by the end of the month.
We’re so happy you enjoyed, Maryann!
Sorry, Jim. We are a fan of all your recipes that we’ve tried, but this one fell short. We’ll stick to the Italian ones. 🙂
Hi Susan, we’re sorry to hear that. It would be helpful if you could share with us what you didn’t like about the dish. Thanks!
Delicious! I made some changes, I only had one bag of spinach (8oz) , the recipe could have used more. I added a pound of Italian sausage. I didn’t boil the spinach , just chopped it and added it to the pan. That worked fine. Love your recipes and videos!
We’re happy you enjoyed, Carol, and thanks for sharing your additions!