Authentic Horchata Recipe (2024)

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Agua de Horchata

Horchata is Mexico’s famous cinnamon-infused rice water drink.Is it worth it to make homemade? Absolutely! Of course, you can buy horchata concentrate and it’s super easy to use but it doesn’t compare to the real stuff.

We’ll show you how to make traditional horchata from scratch using rice, not rice flour. Sweetened condensed milk gives it its refreshing sweet taste.

How to Make

You will need the following to make horchata. When you prepare it with soaked rice the texture is smooth, not chalky.

Ingredients

1.5 cups rice
1 can (14oz.) sweetened condensed milk (reduce by half for a mildly sweet drink)
1 cup whole milk
5 cups hot water
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp.ground cinnamon (add to taste)

Process

In a mixing bowl, add the rice, whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, cinnamon sticks.

Pour hot water into the mixture and stir until the sweetened condensed milk dissolves.

Allow mixture to come to room temperature. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap then refrigerate the mixture for a minimum of 2 hours.

We recommend refrigerating overnight for a more concentrated flavor.

After refrigerating, uncover the mixture. Remove the cinnamon sticks and discard.

Strain the mixture to separate the rice. Reserve the liquid.

Add the rice and 1.5 cups of the strained liquid to your blender. Blend for 3 minutes until the rice is liquefied.

Strain the blended rice back into the reserved liquid.

Check to make sure that the rice has been completely liquified. There shouldn’t be any bits of rice remaining in the strainer. If there is blend the horchata mixture again.

Serving

Serve over ice with a sprinkle of cinnamon. You can garnish each glass with a cinnamon stick if you like for a posher presentation.

Variations

Boozy Horchata

Turn horchata into a grownup alcoholic beverage by adding half a shot of your favorite rum or vodka to each glass. It’s great with a splash of Kahlua too.

Fruity Horchata

Horchata Recipe

How to make authentic Horchata, Mexico's famous cinnamon-infused rice water drink. It's mild slightly sweet cinnamon infused flavor complements spicy Mexican food. It's one of many delicious aguas frescas prepared in Mexican homes.

Course Beverage

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword Horchata Drink, Horchata Recipe, How to Make Horchata

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6 10 oz. cups

Calories 461kcal

Author Andrés Carnalla

Ingredients

1.5 cups rice
1 can 14oz. sweetened condensed milk
1 cup whole milk
5 cups hot water
2 cinnamon sticks
1 tsp.ground cinnamon add to taste

Instructions

In a mixing bowl, add the rice, whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, cinnamon sticks.
Pour hot water into the mixture and stir until the sweetened condensed milk dissolves.
Allow mixture to come to room temperature. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap then refrigerate the mixture for a minimum of 2 hours. Refrigerate up to 12 hours for a more concentrated flavor.
Uncover the mixture. Remove the cinnamon sticks and discard.
Strain the mixture to separate the rice. Reserve the liquid.
Add the rice and 1.5 cups of the strained liquid to your blender. Blend for 3 minutes until the rice is liquefied.
Strain the blended rice back into the reserved liquid. Blend the horchata mixture again if the mixture is gritty.
Serve over ice with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
See Also
How To Make Truly Authentic Mexican Horchata At Home

Notes

Substitutions

For a less sweet drink, reduce the sweetened condensed milk by half.
For a dairy-free horchata, substitute 1 cup of unsweetened, unflavored almond milk for the whole milk.
If it is too thick, add 1 cup cold water and stir well.

Storage

Horchata will keep for 2 days in the refrigerator.

Nutrition

More Aguas Frescas

Some more of our favorite Mexican drinks.

Chia Lime Water
Pineapple Water
Guayaba Water
Jamaica
Cucumber Water

More Beverages

Champurrado (Chocolate Atole)
Classic Mexican Margarita
Agua de Melon
Mangonada

Reader Interactions

Comments

Chris says

July 05, 2021 at 1:06 pm

So, question…

Am I using cooked or uncooked rice?

I tried this recipe yesterday, let it (uncooked rice) soak overnight. The rice was still quite firm and a bit chalky. I think I screwed up the blending of the rice as I forgot the part about adding liquid to the strained rice so I ended up with something akin to cream of wheat after the blending. It didn’t mix with the liquid and I ended up straining it back out which left me with a liquid that was very close to what I know to be horchata (American, only know horchata from local “taco stands”). However, I would add – be absolutely sure to use “fresh” whole milk if you are going that route; I think ours was not quite fresh as it had a bit of a sour taste which really came through in the end product.

Reply
- MARK says
  
  September 28, 2021 at 11:12 am
  
  You are supposed to use uncooked rice. Your error was that you did not add liquid to the rice in the blender. I bought some horchata recently already made at a local hispanic grocery store and it was wonderful. Since then I have been researching how to make it.
  
  Reply
Andrea Stephens says

May 26, 2022 at 7:29 am

Favorite recipe for horchata!

Reply
Taylor says

July 07, 2022 at 10:30 pm

To make it dairy free, you note the almond milk can be used in place of whole milk. However there are no substitutions given for the sweetened condensed milk. What can be used? I might just use cream of coconut but that will likely change the flavor drastically.

Reply
- chelsoon says
  
  August 23, 2022 at 5:04 pm
  
  I recommended doubling the milk with almond milk and then adding sugar – experiment with your sweetness level and tasting as you go. 3/4 cup is usually good but start with 1/2 cup and add quarter cups until reaching your desired sweetness
  
  Reply
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