Ever have trouble cooking a pot of rice for dinner or a guest and have it end up all mushy and gooey? It seems like a simple task to cook rice but it often ends up all wrong… that is if you don’t know a few simple tricks. Rice Cooking Tips Fine Cooking on Taunton.com recommends the following tips:
- Step One: Wash the rice to remove excess starch and talc. (According to Taunton.com, some imported rice contains talc powder as a milling aid). Also, make sure to thoroughly drain the rice.
- Step Two: Use the “Simple Cooking Method“. Cook the rice in water so that by the time the rice is cooked, all the water has been absorbed. As the water level drops, the trapped steam will finish cooking the rice. The trick however, is to use the correct amount of water. Taunton.com recommends using 1.5 to 1.75 (1-1/2 to 1-3/4) cups of water per one cup of long-grain rice. You may need some experimentation to get the correct amount. The correct amount also varies for those living at higher elevations.*
- Step Three: Let it rest.After ten to twelve minutes all the water should be absorbed. Now remove heat and let the rice sit with the lid still on from five minutes to as long as thirty minutes. This let’s the moisture redistribute and make the entire batch uniform in consistency.
What about a rice cooker? An automatic rice cooker is especially helpful if you cook rice often. Just measure out a few cups of rice, add water and push the start button. Be forewarned that although the rice cooker will cook all of your rice automatically, you still need to pay attention to the amount of water you use. Using a rice cooker can help make cooking easier, but is no guarantee to a perfect batch of soft, fluffy grains of rice. UPDATE (Aug 25, 08): You can also find a link to a great Youtube video I found on how to cook rice at the Learn How to Cook Rice blog post.
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