A refreshing horchata recipe that’s creamy, easy to make, and perfectly sweetened. Made from 7 simple ingredients, this authentic Mexican rice drink is perfect on hot and sunny days!
It’s officially horchata season! The sun is out and all I want right now is to sit on the porch with an ice-cold glass of horchata!
It’s one of my favorite types of Mexican aguas frescas, and I’m so excited to share the recipe with you!
What is Horchata?
Horchata is a popular Mexican drink made from soaking and blending rice and cinnamon sticks, then sweetened and served over ice.
There are many variations of the drink throughout Mexico and Latin America. Some are completely dairy free and made with only water, some contain milk or evaporated milk, some are sweetened with sugar or sweetened condensed milk, and some are nut free or made with almonds.
This particular recipe is made with a little milk for some added creaminess, it’s sweetened with a touch of granulated sugar, and is flavored with some almonds and vanilla extract.
What does horchata taste like?
The flavor of horchata is very reminiscent of arroz con leche, or Mexican rice pudding. Since it’s served over ice and only lightly sweetened, it’s the perfect Mexican summer drink!
Ingredients in Horchata
This horchata recipe is made from 7 simple ingredients you likely already have in your kitchen!
- water
- long grain white rice
- sliced almonds
- cinnamon stick
- milk
- granulated sugar
- vanilla extract
If you’re looking for a dairy free or nut free version of horchata, see below for recipe variations and substitutions.
How to make horchata
- Blend: Blend the rice, cinnamon stick, almonds, and water until they’re finely pulverized and ground as much as possible. This will likely take 1-3 minutes.
- Soak: Transfer the mixture to a large bowl or pitcher, add the remaining water, cover, and let the mixture sit and soak in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.
- Strain: Pour the soaked mixture through a fine mesh strainer or sieve 2-4 times, until the mixture is no longer gritty and is as smooth as you can get it.
- Mix: Add the milk, sugar, and vanilla extract to the strained mixture and stir until combined.
- Serve: Serve the horchata over ice with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon and enjoy on a hot day!
Tips for the best mexican horchata
- Make sure to blend the ingredients really well before soaking! It may take anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes of blending on the highest setting depending on the power of the blender.
- Straining the mixture twice or even more times is key to getting rid of any gritty or chalky texture and making horchata as silky smooth as possible. Use a fine or extra fine mesh strainer.
- Serve horchata cold! Horchata is meant to be refreshing on a hot day, so serve it over ice for the best experience possible.
- 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.
Variations and substitutions
- To make it dairy free, use a dairy milk alternative like almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, oat milk, or cashew milk.
- To make it nut free, you can simply omit the almonds. No need to replace them.
- If you don’t want to use granulated sugar, you can use a different sweetener like honey, agave, or even sweetened condensed milk to make it extra creamy.
Storage
Horchata will keep fresh in the fridge for up to 1 week. The best thing to do is to remove the lid from the pitcher or container and give it a little smell. If it’s gone bad, you’ll definitely know.
Ingredients
- 6 cups water, divided
- 1 cup uncooked white rice
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Add 3 cups of water, the rice, almonds, and cinnamon stick to a blender. Blend for 1-3 minutes until the mixture is as smooth as possible.
- Transfer the mixture to a large bowl or pitcher, add the remaining 3 cups of water, cover, and let the mixture sit and soak in the refrigerator for 8-12 hours or overnight.
- Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer or sieve 2-4 times and into another pitcher or container, until the mixture is no longer gritty and is as smooth as you can get it.
- Add the milk, sugar, and vanilla extract and stir until fully combined. Taste and sweeten with more sugar if you prefer.
- Serve the horchata over ice with a sprinkle of ground cinnamon and enjoy!
Isabel’s Tips:
- 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 milk, soy milk, coconut milk, oat milk, or cashew milk.
- To make it nut free, you can simply omit the almonds. No need to replace them.
- If you don’t want to use granulated sugar, you can use a different sweetener like honey, agave, or even sweetened condensed milk to make it extra creamy.
Nutrition Information
Your place is valueble for me. Thanks!…
I had this page tabbed for a while now, but don’t remember dairy even being listed as an ingredient. I made it multiple times with just water and no almonds. Did you change the recipe? The almonds were listed before but I really think this used to be listed without any mention of dairy because that is the kind of recipe I was searching out back then. I don’t want to add any fake dairy either, it was great how I made it in the past. Do you think I could omit the diary measurement or should I replace it with water?
Hi Dani! I think you’re referring to the notes/variations listed at the bottom of the recipe page. You can definitely make this dairy free no problem! You can use almond, oat, soy, or any other plant based milk of your choice instead of the whole milk. I would definitely use either water or a dairy free substitute instead of omitting it so that it has the right consistency.