Horchata Recipe: How to Make It at Home

Horchata is a sweet, creamy, plant-based drink. In Mexico it is made from rice, cinnamon and sugar, sometimes with milk or vanilla, and served cold as an agua fresca.

To make horchata at home, soak long-grain white rice and cinnamon sticks in water overnight. Blend until smooth, strain out the solids, then sweeten, add vanilla and more water or milk, and chill. In Breckenridge, you can drink it with tacos at Mi Casa, where the kids menu lists it as traditional Mexican rice milk.

This recipe covers what horchata is and where it comes from, ingredients, equipment and step-by-step method. It also covers tips for a smooth drink, variations, high-altitude notes, storage and what to serve with it.

What Is Horchata?

Horchata is a name for several sweet, mostly plant-based drinks, some made with milk. Mexican horchata is made from soaked rice, cinnamon and sugar.

It tastes like cold, liquid rice pudding: sweet, creamy and warm with cinnamon. Despite the milky look, a traditional Mexican horchata can be entirely dairy-free, because the "milk" comes from blended rice.

In Mexico, horchata is commonly served as an agua fresca, one of the light, sweet, cold drinks served with everyday meals.

Where Horchata Comes From

The word "horchata" probably comes from the Latin hordeata, from hordeum, meaning barley. The Italian orzata and English orgeat share that root, though those drinks are no longer usually made from barley.

The drink's family is old. A barley drink has been traced to ancient Egypt. Tiger nuts, small tubers called chufa in Spanish, reached the Iberian Peninsula in the 8th century, and records of a similar drink near Valencia date to the 13th century.

Spanish horchata, horchata de chufa, is still made from tiger nuts. It is especially tied to the Valencian Community, where the town of Alboraya is its main production center and a regulating council oversees its designation of origin. In Mexico, rice took the place of tiger nuts.

Types of Horchata

• Mexican horchata: Mexico (main ingredient: Rice, cinnamon, sugar; taste: Sweet, creamy, cinnamon)
• Horchata de chufa: Spain, especially Valencia (main ingredient: Tiger nuts; taste: Nutty, earthy, sweet)
• Horchata de morro: El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica (main ingredient: Morro (jícaro) seeds; taste: Nutty, spiced)
• Horchata de melón: Various (main ingredient: Ground melon seeds; taste: Light, mildly nutty)
• Horchata lojana: Ecuador (main ingredient: A red infusion of about 18 to 20 plants; taste: Herbal, floral)

This recipe makes Mexican horchata, the rice version.

Horchata Ingredients

This makes about 6 cups, enough for 6 servings over ice.

• 1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
• 2 cinnamon sticks, about 3 inches each, broken into pieces
• 4 cups water for soaking
• 2 cups cold water or milk to finish
• 1/2 to 2/3 cup sugar, to taste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• Ground cinnamon, for serving
• Ice, for serving

Long-grain white rice gives the cleanest flavor and the smoothest blend. Brown rice tastes nuttier but stays grittier. Use whole cinnamon sticks rather than ground cinnamon for the soak, since the sticks release flavor into the water and strain out cleanly. Soft, flaky cinnamon sticks blend more easily than hard, thick ones.

Equipment

• Large bowl or blender jar with a lid, for soaking
• Blender, ideally a high-powered one
• Fine-mesh strainer
• Cheesecloth or a nut milk bag, for a second strain
• Large pitcher
• Whisk or long spoon

How to Make Horchata

1. Rinse the rice. Put the rice in a strainer and rinse under cold water for about 30 seconds. This removes loose surface starch that can make the drink gluey.
2. Soak. Put the rice, broken cinnamon sticks and 4 cups of water in a bowl or blender jar. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.
3. Blend. Pour the rice, cinnamon and soaking water into the blender. Blend on high for 2 to 3 minutes, until the rice is as fine as you can get it. The mixture will look like thin, gritty milk.
4. First strain. Pour through a fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl. Press the solids with a spoon to push the liquid through.
5. Second strain. Line the strainer with cheesecloth or use a nut milk bag. Strain again and squeeze gently. This step makes the drink smooth instead of sandy.
6. Sweeten. Pour the strained liquid into a pitcher. Whisk in 1/2 cup of sugar, the vanilla and a pinch of salt until the sugar dissolves.
7. Finish. Stir in 2 cups of cold water or milk. Taste and add more sugar if you like it sweeter.
8. Chill. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, until very cold.
9. Serve. Stir well, pour over ice and dust the top with ground cinnamon.

Discard the rice solids, or stir a spoonful into oatmeal or pancake batter.

Tips for Smooth, Creamy Horchata

• Soak long enough. At least 8 hours softens the grains so they blend into a creamy liquid. Short soaks give a thin, gritty drink.
• Blend in batches if needed. A crowded blender leaves whole grains. If your blender is small, blend half at a time.
• Strain twice. The second strain through cloth is the difference between restaurant-smooth and sandy.
• Sweeten after straining. Sugar dissolves better in the finished liquid, and you can taste as you go.
• Stir before every pour. Starch settles to the bottom as horchata sits. That is normal.
• Add salt. A pinch makes the cinnamon and vanilla taste fuller without tasting salty.

Horchata Variations

• Dairy-free horchata: finish with water, or use almond or oat milk. The base is already plant-based.
• Extra-creamy horchata: replace 1 cup of the finishing liquid with evaporated milk, or use 1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk in place of most of the sugar.
• Almond horchata: add 1/2 cup blanched almonds to the soak. They add body and a nutty flavor.
• Toasted rice horchata: toast the dry rice in a skillet over medium heat until lightly golden before soaking, for a deeper, nutty taste.
• Strawberry horchata: blend 1 cup of fresh strawberries into the finished horchata.
• Coconut horchata: replace the finishing milk with coconut milk.
• Horchata coffee: pour horchata over cold brew or a shot of espresso and ice.
• Horchata with rum: horchata flavors also appear in alcoholic drinks such as RumChata. For adults, add 1 1/2 ounces of rum or a reposado tequila to a glass of horchata over ice. Drink responsibly, and keep the spiked pitcher away from the kids' table.

If you want something tart instead of creamy for an adult table, our guide to frozen and fruit margaritas covers the other side of the Mexican drink menu.

High-Altitude Notes

Horchata needs no cooking, so altitude changes this recipe very little. Breckenridge sits at about 9,600 feet, and the soak and blend work the same as at sea level.

Altitude matters only if you heat anything. At high elevation, water boils at lower temperatures: about 193 °F at 10,000 feet, compared with 212 °F at sea level. If you use a hot-water shortcut for the soak, your just-boiled water will be cooler than at sea level, so give the rice the full soak time instead of cutting it short. Liquids also evaporate faster at altitude, so if you make a cinnamon syrup for sweetening, keep the heat low and the time short.

Storage and Food Safety

Horchata is a perishable drink, so treat it like milk.

• Soak in the refrigerator. Keep the rice soak covered and cold. Do not leave it on the counter overnight.
• Refrigerate at 40 °F or below. Keep finished horchata covered in the refrigerator.
• Follow the 2-hour rule. Do not leave horchata out at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or more than 1 hour above 90 °F. Bacteria grow fastest between 40 °F and 140 °F.
• Drink within 3 days. Homemade horchata tastes best within 2 to 3 days. Discard it if it smells sour or turns thick and slimy.
• Freeze for later. Freeze horchata in ice cube trays and use the cubes to chill fresh horchata or iced coffee without watering it down.

What to Serve with Horchata

Horchata's sweetness and cinnamon cool down chile heat, which makes it a natural partner for spicy food.

• Tacos: it calms the heat of spicy tacos al pastor and stands up to rich birria tacos dipped in consommé.
• Rice and beans: horchata and Mexican red rice use the same grain in two very different ways.
• Dessert: serve it with a slice of tres leches cake or a silky caramel flan for a cinnamon-and-vanilla finish.
• Breakfast: pair a glass with pan dulce or churros.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is horchata made of?

Mexican horchata is made of rice, water, cinnamon and sugar, often with vanilla and sometimes milk. Spanish horchata is made from tiger nuts instead of rice.

Does horchata have dairy?

Traditional Mexican horchata does not need dairy, because blended rice gives it a milky look and body. Many recipes add milk, evaporated milk or condensed milk for extra creaminess, so ask or check the recipe if you avoid dairy.

Is horchata alcoholic?

No. Horchata is a non-alcoholic drink. Some brands make spiked versions, such as RumChata, but regular horchata contains no alcohol.

How long does homemade horchata last?

Homemade horchata keeps for about 3 days in a covered container in the refrigerator. Stir or shake it before serving, since the starch settles to the bottom.

Why is my horchata gritty?

Gritty horchata usually means the rice did not soak long enough, the blender was too full, or the drink was strained only once. Soak for at least 8 hours, blend for 2 to 3 minutes and strain a second time through cheesecloth.

Can you make horchata with cooked rice?

You can, but the result is thicker and starchier, closer to a rice pudding drink. Uncooked rice soaked overnight gives the classic light, smooth texture.

Horchata at Mi Casa in Breckenridge

At Mi Casa Mexican Restaurant & Cantina, horchata, traditional Mexican rice milk, is on our kids menu, next to Shirley Temples and Roy Rogers. It goes well with our scratch-made tacos and with desserts like our tres leches cake, a vanilla cream cake soaked in three milks with cajeta caramel. Browse the full Mi Casa menu before you visit. We have served Breckenridge since 1981 from 600 South Park Ave, steps from the Peak 9 base, and we are open daily from 11:30 am to 9 pm.