If you love the delicious Mediterranean inspired bowls from Cava, you’ll love this Copycat Cava Saffron Rice recipe. It tastes just like the real deal and it’s perfect for making homemade Cava style bowls at home!
Cava is one of my favorite places to go to lunch at. The fresh ingredients are perfect when a craving for something Mediterranean style hits. While I love going to restaurants, I love to stay home and stay on budget even more by making Copycat Recipes at home! This copycat Cava Saffron Rice tastes just like the real deal and is perfect for making bowls at home.
If you need even more copycat recipe ideas be sure to also check out this Copycat Cava Hummus, Copycat ChopShop Oatmeal Cookies, and Copycat Salata Ranch Dressing.
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❤️ Why you’ll love this recipe
- Homemade bowls: This rice is a great way to make Mediterranean style bowls at home. Add your favorite fillings and toppings like cucumber, tomato, falafel, lamb meatballs, or honey harissa chicken.
- Lunch or dinner: This is a great recipe to make for lunch or dinner. It’s also a great one for meal prepping.
- Simple ingredients: You only need a few ingredients to recreate this recipe at home.
🥣 Ingredients needed
The complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the printable recipe card further below in the post.
For this recipe, you will need:
- Saffron: I used about 10 saffron strands.
- Lemon juice: I recommend using fresh lemon juice.
- Salt
- Basmati rice
🔪 Equipment needed
You will need a mortar and pestle, spice grinder, or something similar to grind the strands. You will also need a large pot.
⏲️ Recipe instructions (step by step guide)
Begin by soaking your rice (for at least 30 minutes) and then rinsing it until the water runs clear (image 1).
Grind the saffron threads with a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Add them to 3 tablespoons of water (image 2).
In a large pot, combine all of the ingredients together and then bring to a boil (image 3). Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or until all of the water has been absorbed.
👩🏻🍳 Tips
- Don’t skip rinsing your rice. The rinsing will help remove extra starch from the rice and make it nice and fluffy.
🥡 How to store leftovers
Store any leftover rice in an airtight container and keep refrigerated. It will be good for up to four days after making.
More great copycat recipes:
- Copycat Texas Roadhouse Green Beans
- Copycat Texas Roadhouse Mashed Potatoes
- Copycat Texas Roadhouse White Gravy
- Copycat Texas Roadhouse Croutons
- Copycat Brio’s Creamy Parmesan Salad Dressing
- Copycat Boston Market Creamed Spinach
- Copycat Boston Market Cinnamon Apples
- Copycat Jimmy John’s Tuna
If you tried this Copycat Cava Saffron Rice Recipe or any other recipe on my site, please leave a ⭐ rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. I would love to hear from you and I’m always happy to try to answer any questions you may have!
Copycat Cava Saffron Rice
Ingredients
- 10 saffron strands or about ⅛ teaspoon ground saffron
- 3 tablespoons water
- 1 cup basmati rice
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Begin by soaking your rice (for at least 30 minutes) and then rinsing it until the water runs clear.
- Grind the saffron threads with a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. Add them to 3 tablespoons of water.10 saffron strands, 3 tablespoons water
- In a large pot, combine all of the ingredients together and then bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low and cover the pot. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or until all of the water has been absorbed.1 cup basmati rice, 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice, 3 cups water, 1 teaspoon salt
Reilly says
This was so flavorful and made homemade Cava style bowls really easy to put together. I loved the warm saffron flavor with all the Mediterranean toppings.
Eve says
Beautiful way zhuzh up your oridinati rice side dish into something a lot more interesting. I loved the color from saffron and the dish is just as versatile as plain rice! Great recipe.
Ellie says
I’ve been craving this even since we moved! This tastes just like the real thing.