JadziaDax

How To Cook Rice

Boiling rice is harder than it looks. Often the finished product is sticky or "gluey." Here's a sure-fire way to produce rice that's light and fluffy.

Rinse the rice in water to get rid of excess starch.

For every cup of rice, add 1 1/2 cups water.

Bring the rice to boil, uncovered, at medium heat.

When boiling, turn the heat down to medium low.

Place the lid on the pot, keeping it tilted to allow steam to escape.

When you can see holes or "craters" in the rice, put the lid on tight.

Turn the heat to low.

Simmer for another 15 minutes.

Fluff up rice and serve.



Note:
For best results, use long grain rice.

JadziaDax

Tips on cooking rice that is fluffy and won't stick to the bottom of the pan

Use long grain white rice when cooking Chinese food. Medium grain rice is also acceptable, but the Chinese use short grain rice mainly for dishes such as congee.

Don't use instant or precooked rice. Large bags of long grain white rice are available in Asian markets and most supermarkets - Dragon King is a good brand.

Opinions vary on converted rice - rice that has been parboiled with the husks on. While it is more nutritious than white rice, I find it tastes rather bland. It takes longer to cook than regular rice so if you do use it, follow the instructions on the box carefully.

For fluffier, faster cooking rice, try soaking it in cold water for about thirty to sixty minutes prior to cooking.

Before cooking, rinse the rice several times, until the water comes out clear. This removes any starch and residue - otherwise the rice may be sticky.

When cooking rice in a saucepan, be sure to use a pot with a heavy bottom - copper is best. This will give the rice a thinner crust.

Don't use salt or butter when cooking plain rice - this kills its natural sweet flavor.

Another tip if your rice is taking a long time to cook - do you know how long the bag has been sitting in the cupboard? Older rice can lose some of its moisture, requiring more water and a longer cooking time than fresh rice.

Leftover rice will keep for days, and it's perfect for making fried rice. Just be sure to wait until the rice is perfectly cold before storing it in the refrigerator. For the best results, wait a couple of days before making the fried rice - this gives the ingredients more time to blend together.

If the cold rice is a bit lumpy, try sprinkling a bit of cold water on it.

For a bit of variety, try one of the scented rices such as jasmine or basmati. Just remember that the amount of water required and the cooking time will be less than for other types of long grain white rice.

hotdogg

I have used all kinds of rice...Arborio, Basmati, Mochi, long grain, short grain, wild, brown, white, and the best all around normal rice always seems to be good old Uncle Ben's.

seizei

After I got a rice cooker, I absolutely cannot boil rice any more. it's soooo easy and makes such nice rice!

EVERYONE get a rice cooker!

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dimbulb

RICE COOKER. Don't get the useless Salton ones.
Get a rice cooker from a Japanese manufacturer. National, or Zojirushi (the elephant brand) or something. They eat rice EVERYDAY. so....

The amount of water to add is not linear. Add 0.5 standard cups MORE of water than of rice.

To prevent the rice from sticking, after the rice cooker is done, let it sit in the pot for around 10 min, cooling. It won't stick so much, and you'll have more rice and less cleaning. Better yet, if i leave the leftover rice in, n put the whole pot in the fridge, the whole thing comes out cleanly the next day.

mtsgsd

Fluffy light rice that doesn't stick together isn't natural! After much exposure to Asian friend's and their cooking I finally realized that it's an American thing to want the rice neat and tidy The rice should be sticky so that it's easier to eat (chopsticks or not) I find that it tastes better too.

Ok, sticky is a relative term unless you're cooking the true sticky rice, but still, it's not minute rice either! I second the idea of a rice cooker. I've had a Hitachi cooker for 15 years now and it's still going strong.

Cynthetiq

most american rice is enriched, rinsing those brands rids of the vitamins too.

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numberfive

Yeah, fluffy rice scares me.

I learned about the "let sit for a while" rule the hard way. Was cooking some rice, turned it off and went straight to go put it in a bowl. It was stuck to the bottom so I sighed and went to go watch some TV before throwing it out. When I came back "tada!" it was nice and unstuck. I rejoiced and ate it with some chicken. mMm :9

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dimbulb

Depends on what sort of Asian friends you have. Japanese and Koreans tend to like stickier rice, while the chinese like their rice long-grained, and hence less sticky and more fluffy.

Compare and contrast the rice you get at Korean and Jap restaurants, versus the rice you get from a Chinese restaurant.

If you like stickier rice, get the short and medium grained ones that may be labelled japanese rice. Fluffy and fragrant rice can be made from jasmine rice. It's normally from Thailand, and its long grained and "fluffy".

never did understand what was meant by fluffy. To me, any rice that is "fluffy" is rice that is NOT hard and halfcooked, like how you westerners like your rice.. =P Love risotto though, even if its a pain in the ass to make yourself.

collide

I personally prefer the fluffy texture of rice for most things unless it's sushi or chicken rice wrapped in lotus leaves (or whatever they're called), in which case sticky rice is okay.

Jasmine rice is definitely the best for fluffy rice.

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crackpot

Helpful info you guys. I appreciate it.

anti fishstick

eh.. just use a rice cooker :-D

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mtsgsd

Hmm? They were from Taiwan.

Well thinking about it more, I think the problem is just the definition of "sticky" as compared to "fluffy".
I think of "fluffy" as rice that does not stick together and has every grain distinct and separated from the others. Minute Rice comes to mind.

I use grocery store long grain most of the time, and cooked right, it will stick together some, but not to the degree of the stuff used for sushi and such.

Cynthetiq

oh yeah... I'm all about the rice cooker. I hate watching pots of rice...toss in a cup o' rice, cup o' water... press the button... go watch some TV.. and it's ready in 15 minutes...

or you could buy the fancy ones... set the time with everything inside and when you come home...smells like fresh rice yum!!!

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Lunchbox7

I have a rice cooker so boiling rice is Ok. I love fried rice but dont know how to make it well. Whenever I try it it turns out really dodgy. How do you cook really good fried rice?

Rodney

RICECOOKER RICECOOKER RICE COOKER, yay!

Even cheap Chinese-made ones are all right. It was a relief to never burn rice again. And you can vary the texture of the rice by how much water you put in; more=softer, less=drier and grains that separate more easily, though a lot of that really depends on the type of rice.

collide

I love the slightly burned/crispy rice you get at the bottom of a rice cooker. You can make something that roughly translates to "Rice Banana" by scraping off the very bottom of the rice cooker and rolling it up into a banana shape. Yes, this is something you eat, not play with.

Anyway, it's a nice crunchy treat if you like your rice kind of crispy.

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dimbulb

Oh, Western style rice =P Kinda like the rice you get when it comes as a side in western restaurants.heh...

When i'm thinking fluffy, i'm thinking not sushi-like.

Do you boil your rice before you fry it? you also want enough oil so that it doesn't stick together. A beaten egg thrown in is crucial. oh, and the heat, High heat please. My current rented apartment only comes with electric heater elements. Terrible for Asian cooking. Gas is much superior for stir-frying things.

My fried rice isn't so good.. so i won't go much further into this..heh...

Cynthetiq

Fried rice needs to be made with yesterday's rice... make rice night before... refrigerate and then separate before frying.

also use a little less liquid initially so that it's a bit dryer and less fluffy.

that crunchy part is the best part about the paella... everyone fights over that...

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Lunchbox7

Thanks everyone. Ill give that stuff a try

split lickety

i don't have a rice cooker but i do eat rice frequently so i should probably get one. i always make it sticky because i lived in Hawaii for a while and i got used to eating plain sticky rice on the side of all my meals. my trick is to turn one burner on high and one on low. boil the rice for a min or 2, not much more and then transfer the pot to the burner on low. solves the problem dimbulb was having with the element not being easy enough to control.

dimbulb

Forgot to mention this, this is probably the KEY to good fried rice, and the main reason why I end up making fried rice in the first place. Leftover, refrigerated rice..... mmmmmm.......

greyeyes

I've been wanting to get a rice cooker for a long time, does anyone know of a good cheap brand that makes sticky rice??

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davik

I've gotta go with the rice cooker for making rice; since I eat as much rice as most asians (probably half my caloric intake every day), it's definitely nice to be able to just throw the rice and the water in the rice cooker and let it cook while i'm preparing the food to put on it. Personally I'm a fan of sticky rice so I use the japanese nishiki, but that really only applies for chinese and japanese food. For Indian or thai food get a good bismati or jasmine rice. The great thing about rice is that even the good rice is less than a dollar a pound As far as rice cooker brands, I've had a zojirushi for years, and it's always made perfect rice.

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Hedgehog

Gotta also go with the rice cooker. If you eat rice, the $30 is the best investment you can ever make.

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carnivore

I'm a dork, so when I was in college, I shelled out the big bucks ($200) for a really, really nice National brand rice cooker. It's great. I love it. I never burn rice, I never have to tend to it while it's cooking, and it keeps the rice warm, fresh, and edible for about 24 hours. If I'm going to keep it that long, I usually add some extra water.

Mine has a bunch of different modes to cook different typs of rice--brown, sushi, fluffy, porridge, etc. It does a fantastic job.

It's really nice to walk into the house and smell cooked Nishiki rice. Yum.

I would ask anyone who is eating converted rice to at least try making some good rice, even if you don't eat it enough to buy a rice cooker. The difference in quality is striking.

You can also buy rice seasoning at Asian markets for rice balls. yum. Great for a warm quick snack on a cold day...