[Food] The "how to cook rice debate"

[RexCathedra]

Alternatively
View attachment 129697

22 quid in Argos ( as used by Wife who knows a thing or two about rice)

I've got its twin. 15 years old, still going strong. Foolproof.

 

[RexCathedra]

Watched Madhur Jaffrey cooking rice on TV and adopted her method for Basmati Rice. It is a bit of a Faff, but the results are good.

Wash the rice (so many people here either don't get rid of the starch, or forget to mention this step.
Soak in cold water for an hour.
Stick the kettle on
Fry the rice in a little oil with a few spices (black mustard seeds, Turmeric, cumin or whatever you fancy)
Pour the boiling water over the rice, until it is covered and then another inch of water.
Boil with the lid off until the rice is sticking out and the water is just bubbling in the rice.
Take the pan off the heat and put the pan lid on.
Wait 10 minutes

Essentially a pilau/pilaf -- the oil/spices step is the difference.
This is the other big school of rice preparation, from Morrocco to Afghanistan, maybe the most common one.

 

[Blue3]

Rinse the rice and into a pan with enough cold water to cover 5mm above the rice, a little salt pop the lid on and heat on, once boiling turn down so still boiling but so the starchy
water does not boil over then after a minute and without removing the lid switch off the heat leave in ten minutes you will have the most perfect rice all the water will have been absorbed never fails

 

[raymondo]

Paging Uncle Ben for his 10 minute bags

 

[raymondo]

Watched Madhur Jaffrey cooking rice on TV and adopted her method for Basmati Rice. It is a bit of a Faff, but the results are good.

Wash the rice (so many people here either don't get rid of the starch, or forget to mention this step.
Soak in cold water for an hour.
Stick the kettle on
Fry the rice in a little oil with a few spices (black mustard seeds, Turmeric, cumin or whatever you fancy)
Pour the boiling water over the rice, until it is covered and then another inch of water.
Boil with the lid off until the rice is sticking out and the water is just bubbling in the rice.
Take the pan off the heat and put the pan lid on.
Wait 10 minutes

I prefer pasta.

Ok, it's getting nasty now, time to move it to the bear pit

 

[Weststander]

Heat some oil briefly, then add the rice, coating with the oil. Add cold water at twice the volume of the rice, bring to the boil, give it one brief stir as you turn it to simmer. Cover and wait until the last water has evaporated, but not too late. Remove lid and let it stand for 5 minutes.

 

[cuthbert]

This one is easy. Courtesy of a friend who owns a highly rated Indian restaurant. I use jasmine or basmati rice normally.

Choose whatever quantity of rice you want (in cups/mugs etc - 1 full mug is normally good for 2 people) then put in double the quantity of cold water. Slightly overdo double water quantity than underdo if not exact.

1 mug rice - 2 mugs cold water (double water to rice)

Bring to boil on high/medium heat. The second water first begins to boil, turn down heat to very low heat (barely nothing) and put lid on pan. Leave it to boil dry.

You can check it, and when it looks done, by putting spoon into it to make sure no water left.

If you slightly overcook no worries, Worse that will happen is you'll get a dried rice layer on bottom of pan.

Once water boiled dry, you will have perfect cooked sticky rice. And you'll never go back!

I agree with this it is very important not to take the lid off to check, I use a pan with a glass lid.

 

[clapham_gull]

With my Asian wife consulted the correct and only answer is to use a rice cooker. Perfect every time ( but you must use the correct rice she will only use AAA Jasmin rice ). Having lived in asia for 6 years before you only see them using rice cookers they don’t boil and drain, they don’t microwave and they definitely don’t boil in the bag!!

An "instant pot" is just an old fashioned "pressure cooker" with some electronics.

But if you think about it, rice cookers, pressure and slow cookers are basically the same thing. A kitchen top pot with a heating element and a lid.

This completely replaces all three with the added bonus you can seal food in the same device before fast/slow cooking.

I would never have gone and out and bought one of these, it was a random Christmas present last year. I use it at least 3 times a week and will probably wear it out.

So my advice to anyone looking at buying a rice, pressure or slow is don't bother. Buy one one these.

 

[SeagullinExile]

Steamed - No question.

 

[portlock seagull]

With my Asian wife consulted the correct and only answer is to use a rice cooker. Perfect every time ( but you must use the correct rice she will only use AAA Jasmin rice ). Having lived in asia for 6 years before you only see them using rice cookers they don’t boil and drain, they don’t microwave and they definitely don’t boil in the bag!!

I like Chinese food but it is shit really. It’s very unhealthy. Ridiculously so. And don’t come back at me with a load of guff about real Chinese food. Real Chinese food is worse! If it flies, swims, walks or crawls the Chinese eat it. And every part of. Their diet includes some bizarre food, which, well, the world now knows. As for welfare standards, consumption of endangered species etc.

 

[Weststander]

Some of these cooking times are scary.

Being a 'right on' kind of forum, I assume we're all advocates of the healthy brown rice, not the iffy white variety.

Brown rice would still be rock solid.

Indigenous rice is more pc than that slur.