With meatless dirty rice, you can have the spicy, super tasty Cajun dishes you crave. Served with a special Mardi Gras meal or party, or just as vegan comfort food, dirty rice and my other Cajun dishes will satisfy any cravings for New Orleans cuisine. Mr. Key Lime and I *love* this recipe, along with the Jambalaya Soup we also made. Both are so good!
For this recipe, I’ve used homemade Cajun Spice Mix. Thrown together in just a few minutes, it’s a great staple to keep on hand for when you need to spice things up a bit!
For ideas on making your own vegetable broth or stock, have a look at this article on The Kitchn. If you don’t make your own, the carton kind works great! I’ve used both.
When I make dishes with rice, I often precook the rice so it will hold its form and not become soggy in leftovers. Precooking also removes any “rice mysteries” and I know the rice will be perfect in the dish every time. You’ve probably heard me preach on the method for cooking rice like you cook pasta. I love it! I cook rice this way because the rice doesn’t get gooey, it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan or burn on the bottom, it’s perfect every single time, and it’s so easy!
I prefer to use this method for cooking my rice. It removes 50% to 80% of the arsenic found in rice. If you have time to soak the rice overnight, the cooking time is shortened and you will be making the healthiest rice you can.
My recipe is adapted from a recipe found on Lisa Is Cooking. Just for fun, have a look at this Wikipedia article on the holy trinity of Cajun cooking.

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- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion chopped, about 1 cup
- 2 celery stalks including leaves, finely chopped
- 1 green bell pepper finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 8 ounces fresh mushrooms finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning recipe link above, or store bought
- 1 cup cooked brown rice measure 1 cup after the rice is cooked
- 1 15-ounce can red beans about 1 1/2 cups
- 1/3 cup vegetable broth or stock see link above for making homemade
- salt and pepper to taste
Ingredients
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- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper and celery. Simmer until the onions are translucent, 5 to 10 minutes.
- Reduce heat to low. Add the garlic, mushrooms, and Cajun spice. Mix well and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, to soften the mushrooms and let them release their moisture.
- Add the beans, rice and vegetable broth to the skillet, gently mixing. Continue to cook for 2 to 3 minutes to heat the beans through.
- Add salt and black pepper to taste. Serve hot with your favorite Cajun dishes.
I hope you enjoy this recipe! Leave any feedback in comments below. Also, share your comments on Instagram: @key_lime_coconut or on Twitter: @keylime_coconut. We love seeing hashtags #keylimecoconut #keylimecoconutblog and #beachbumvegan when you try our recipes
Your recipes are tremendous! Thanks!
Thank you so much! : )