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This homemade Horchata recipe, made from rice, almonds, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla, is so delicious and perfectly sweet. You’ll need at least twelve hours to make this wonderful creamy Mexican inspired drink because of how long it takes for the rice and almonds to soak, but it is so worth it!

Homemade Horchata Recipe with a cinnamon stick

What is horchata:

Horchata (or-CHAH-tah) is a sweet creamy drink made from soaked and strained rice and/or nuts in water.

The most common form found in the United States, and most often served at Hispanic eateries, is made primarily from rice and cinnamon and is made even more rich with almonds and vanilla.

The addition of whole milk at the end makes this Horchata especially rich and creamy, but that can be omitted or replaced with a different non-dairy milk to keep the recipe vegan.

Why this recipe is so great:

The ingredients: This recipe not only uses real cinnamon sticks, which are absolutely superior in flavor when compared to ground cinnamon, but it also uses a real vanilla bean. This definitely sets this Horchata recipe apart from the rest.
It’s fun to make: Although it takes some planning and foresight due to the long soak time, it’s fun to soak the ingredients and watch the liquid change with every swirl. The long process makes it taste even better!
Make a big batch: This recipe can easily be doubled, tripled, etc. which makes it perfect for a party.

Horchata ingredients:

Rice: Uncooked long grain rice is what I used
Almonds: I find that raw almonds have the best flavor for any kind of nut milk, including horchata
Cinnamon sticks: I always recommend substitutions, but I highly recommend using the cinnamon sticks and not substituting with ground cinnamon
Vanilla bean: You cannot beat the flavor of a real vanilla bean, but you can substitute with vanilla extract, if needed
Sugar: I use organic granulated sugar and the amount listed in the recipe adds the perfect amount of sweetness
Milk: Whole milk is recommended but you can use any kind of milk or non-dairy beverage, as desired

How to make Horchata:

Full ingredient list and detailed step by step instructions are listed in the recipe card below, but here is a summary.

The first step is to grind the rice, almonds, and cinnamon sticks in a high powered blender or food processor.

rice and almonds in blender — add rice, almonds, cinnamon sticks to blender

ground rice with almonds and cinnamon sticks — add rice, almonds, cinnamon sticks to blender

Add water: The water can be added to the blender and then blended together. Alternatively, the grounds can be added to a large mason jar with a lid and the water added. Be sure to soak with the vanilla bean!
Soak: Allow the mixture to soak at room temperature for at least 12 hours. Every time you walk by, give it a stir or a shake to mix the solution.
Strain: After the long soak, strain out the solids. A fine mesh strainer does the trick, but you can use a nut milk bag or cheesecloth to strain out all of the solids.
Add milk: Stir in the milk to the strained liquid.
Add sugar: Stir in the sugar.

Once the sugar has dissolved, chill the mixture until ready to serve and serve the Horchata over ice.

adding water to ground rice and almonds with vanilla bean — add water and vanilla bean

rice almond cinnamon water mixture for horchata recipe — add water and vanilla bean

Recommendations for best results:

Super fine grind: The smaller the grind, the more surface area is exposed to the water. This will create the most rich and delicious Horchata you’ve ever enjoyed.
Add the sugar last: I like to add the sugar at the very end. That way you can add less than what the recipe calls for, taste, and continue to increase the amount until you find the perfect sweetness. I found the amount called for in the recipe was best.
Storage: Keep any leftover Horchata in the refrigerator and use within 3-5 days. Do not add ice until you’re ready to serve.

Recipes to enjoy with Mexican Horchata:

This creamy sweet drink is fantastic on it’s own but is also wonderful when served with other Mexican favorites. It especially goes great with spicy dishes because the milk can help tame the heat! Here are some of my favorites.

If you’ve made this or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out. I love hearing from my readers!

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Horchata

Prep5

soak time12

Total12 5

Servings servings

Author Krissy Allori

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This homemade Horchata recipe, made from rice, almonds, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla, is so delicious and perfectly sweet. You'll need at least twelve hours to make this wonderful creamy Mexican inspired drink because of how long it takes for the rice and almonds to soak, but it is so worth it!

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Equipment

Ingredients

For the long soak:

▢ 1 1/2 cups long grain white rice uncooked
▢ 1/2 cup almonds raw, whole
▢ 2 cinnamon sticks
▢ 1 vanilla bean split lengthwise, can substitute with 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
▢ 4 cups cold water

To be added later:

▢ 1/2 cup sugar
▢ 2 cups whole milk

Instructions

Using a high powered blender, pulse uncooked rice, almonds, and cinnamon sticks until ground.
Add ground rice to a 2-quart sized mason jar, cover with water, and stir or shake to combine. Alternatively, you can add water to the blender and blend for an additional minute before transferring to a large container or mason jar.
Add vanilla bean (or vanilla extract if substituting), cover, and allow to soak at room temperature for at least 12 hours. Stir or shake as often as you can to keep mixture as a solution. You'll see that as it settles, the mixture will separate, but the longer you soak, the more water the rice and almonds absorb, and the more homogeneous the mixture will remain.
Strain liquid through a fine mesh sieve or a nut milk bag, keeping the liquid and discarding the solids. Add the sugar and milk to the remaining liquid. Stir or shake well to combine. Chill until ready to serve and serve over ice with a dusting of freshly ground cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice.

Notes

Makes about 6 cups. Nutritional info based on roughly a 1 cup serving size. Also note that nutritional info considers that you consume all of the rice and almonds which were actually discarded, so actual numbers should be far lower.

Super fine grind: The smaller the grind, the more surface area is exposed to the water. This will create the most rich and delicious Horchata you’ve ever enjoyed.
Add the sugar last: I like to add the sugar at the very end. That way you can add less than what the recipe calls for, taste, and continue to increase the amount until you find the perfect sweetness. I found the amount called for in the recipe was best.
Storage: Keep any leftover Horchata in the refrigerator and use within 3-5 days. Do not add ice until you’re ready to serve.

Nutrition

Calories: 356kcal, Carbohydrates: 61g, Protein: 8g, Fat: 9g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 8mg, Sodium: 38mg, Potassium: 250mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 21g, Vitamin A: 135IU, Vitamin C: 1mg, Calcium: 148mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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