Mexican side dishes can be a one-pot job or a three-hour project, and the recipe cards don’t always say which. We read five for rice, beans and corn and lined them up. Wondering which one fits your night? Here’s what each asks for.
We haven’t cooked any of these, so every time and amount belongs to the recipe it’s credited to. The “authentic” and “best” labels are the authors’ own!
How do these Mexican side dishes compare?
These Mexican side dishes run from about half an hour to over two hours. Mama Latina Tips (February 2026) covers the rice. Savor the Best (September 2022) and Kelly Stilwell (March 2025) cover the beans. An Edible Mosaic and Carlsbad Cravings cover the corn.
| Rice: Mama Latina Tips | Beans: Savor the Best | Beans: Kelly Stilwell | Corn: An Edible Mosaic | Corn: Carlsbad Cravings | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time on the card | 40 min total, with a 10 min rest | 2 hr 15 min total | 1 hr total | 12 min prep, 12 min cook | 32 min total |
| Serves | 6 cups | 12 | 8 | 6 | 6 to 8 |
| Calories listed | 149 | 370 | 498 | 206 | Not listed |
| Main ingredients | 1 cup long-grain rice, 2 cups chicken broth, tomato, peas, carrot | 1 lb dry pinto beans or 4 cans, bacon, chorizo, chipotle | 1 lb dry pinto beans, bacon, Mexican chorizo, beef broth | 4 ears corn, cotija, jalapeño, mayo and sour cream | 5 ears or 5 cups frozen corn, cotija, bell pepper, cucumber |
| Cooking method | Toast, simmer, rest | Simmer beans, then simmer with meat | Soak, then one pot | Microwave the corn | Grill or skillet |
The beans are the time sink. Savor the Best lists 20 minutes of prep and 25 of cooking, but its total is 2 hours 15 minutes, and its steps give the dried beans 1 to 1½ hours of simmering first (2 to 3 hours if unsoaked). Kelly Stilwell calls for beans soaked at least 8 hours.
Which Mexican side dish should you make with tacos?
Which side suits taco night depends on how much time and hands-on work you’ve got. The corn is the fastest, the rice is the most hands-off, and the beans are the one to start early.
- Fastest: An Edible Mosaic’s corn, which cooks the corn in the microwave and adds a mayo and sour cream dressing.
- Most hands-off: Mama Latina Tips’ rice. Its last stir comes before the lid goes on.
- Heartiest: Either bean recipe, since both cook bacon and chorizo with the pinto beans.
One r/Cooking commenter answered a taco-night question with “The proper side dish for tacos is more tacos.” If you’d still like something beside them, our McCormick taco seasoning copycat covers the filling side.
What’s different about the two bean recipes?
Both use 1 pound of dry pinto beans, bacon and chorizo, but they split on the rest. Savor the Best calls for 8 to 10 slices of bacon, 1 pound of ground chorizo, one or two chipotles in adobo and chicken broth. Kelly Stilwell uses 12 ounces of bacon, 8 ounces of Mexican chorizo and beef broth.
Savor the Best also gives a canned shortcut: swap the dried beans for 4 cans and start with 1 cup of broth. Kelly Stilwell lists no canned option, so you’d be soaking overnight.
Calories differ too, at 370 against 498, though the first serves 12 and the second 8.
What’s different about the two corn salads?
Both are esquites-style corn with cotija and a creamy dressing, but one is a quick bowl and one is a full salad. An Edible Mosaic keeps it to corn, cotija, red onion, scallions and jalapeño. Carlsbad Cravings adds red bell pepper, cucumber and cherry tomatoes.
Carlsbad Cravings says its salad is good warm, chilled or at room temperature. The dressing is lighter on mayo, at 2 tablespoons next to 3 for An Edible Mosaic. If you want the char, our Mexican street corn recipe walks through it on the cob.
Mexican side dishes questions people ask
What’s the quickest one?
The corn. An Edible Mosaic lists 12 minutes of prep and 12 of cooking, and the corn goes in the microwave. The rice is next, at 40 minutes total.
Can you use canned beans?
Savor the Best says yes, with 4 cans in place of the dried beans, and tells you to drain and rinse them first. Kelly Stilwell’s page lists dry beans only!
Why doesn’t the rice get stirred?
Mama Latina Tips says the last stir comes before the rice is covered, and to check for liquid with a spoon at the 10-minute mark without stirring. It doesn’t explain why, so we won’t guess.