4.8 from 168 votes
Horchata Recipe
This sweet and creamy horchata recipe is an authentic and traditional Mexican rice drink made from rice, milk, cinnamon, and water!
Prep Time
10 mins
Additional Time
8 hrs
Total Time
8 hrs 10 mins
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 287 kcal
Course:
Drinks
Cuisine:
Mexican
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
- ½ cup blanched slivered almonds
- 1 Mexican cinnamon stick, broken in half (also known as Ceylon cinnamon)
- 6 cups water, divided
- 3 cups whole milk
- 12 ounces evaporated milk
- ½ - ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ground cinnamon, for topping
Instructions
- Rinse the rice under running water until the water runs clear.
- Add the rinsed rice, almonds, cinnamon stick, and 3 cups of water to a large bowl or pitcher. Cover and let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours, up to 24 hours.
- Pour the bowl of ingredients into a large blender and add in the 3 cups of remaining water. Blend on high until completely smooth, about 2 to 5 minutes depending on the power of your blender. You may need to work in batches depending on the size of your blender.
- Strain the blended mixture through a fine mesh strainer or nut milk bag to remove any solids. This may require straining 2 to 4 times to remove all the grittiness.
- When completely smooth, pour it into a large pitcher and mix in the milk, evaporated milk, granulated sugar, and vanilla extract. Stir until all the ingredients are well combined.
- Serve over ice and top with ground cinnamon.
Cup of Yum
Notes
- Ceylon cinnamon: Also referred to as "Mexican cinnamon." Ceylon cinnamon is light brown, fragile, and has a lot of layers that are easily broken, as opposed to Cassia cinnamon which is very hard and is not easily broken in half. Ceylon cinnamon can be easily found in Hispanic grocery stores or online. If you’re not using Mexican cinnamon, remove the cinnamon stick from the mixture before blending.
- Separation of the water and the rice mixture is completely normal, especially if it's been sitting in the fridge for a day or two. Just mix it together with a large spoon and serve as you normally would.
- To make it dairy-free, use a dairy milk alternative like almond, soy, coconut, oat, or cashew milk.
- To make it nut-free, you can simply omit the almonds. No need to replace them.
- To make this using sweetened condensed milk, replace the granulated sugar with 6-12 ounces of sweetened condensed milk for an extra creamy treat.
Nutrition Information
Serving
1cup
Calories
287kcal
(14%)
Carbohydrates
41g
(14%)
Protein
9g
(18%)
Fat
10g
(15%)
Saturated Fat
4g
(20%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
1g
Monounsaturated Fat
4g
Trans Fat
0.001g
Cholesterol
23mg
(8%)
Sodium
91mg
(4%)
Potassium
340mg
(10%)
Fiber
1g
(4%)
Sugar
22g
(44%)
Vitamin A
252IU
(5%)
Vitamin C
1mg
(1%)
Calcium
256mg
(26%)
Iron
1mg
(6%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 8servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 287
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1cup | |
| Calories | 287kcal | 14% |
| Carbohydrates | 41g | 14% |
| Protein | 9g | 18% |
| Fat | 10g | 15% |
| Saturated Fat | 4g | 20% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 1g | 6% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 4g | 20% |
| Trans Fat | 0.001g | 0% |
| Cholesterol | 23mg | 8% |
| Sodium | 91mg | 4% |
| Potassium | 340mg | 7% |
| Fiber | 1g | 4% |
| Sugar | 22g | 44% |
| Vitamin A | 252IU | 5% |
| Vitamin C | 1mg | 1% |
| Calcium | 256mg | 26% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.