Of rice and rice cookers...

Poststructural Pub
1

About a month ago, we spent about $25 and got a rice cooker, which has quickly more than paid for itself.

I love rice, but am not overly fond of “minute rice,” and never had much luck trying to cook the regular kind. The rice cooker automates it, and makes it so simple that even I can’t mess it up.

In reading about rice cookers, I’ve found some folks saying you should not wash the rice first, and others say you should. I’ve tried it both ways, and now am firmly with the “should wash” folks, as it improves the taste pretty dramatically. I wash the rice in the cooker; I add about twice as much water as I would actually add to cook it, swirl the rice around with my fingers till the water turns milky, and then pour the water off. Repeat until the water stays pretty clear, which is usually three or four times.

Favorite rices so far: basmati is very nice, has a nice aroma and a little stronger flavor than some other rices. When I eat rice for lunch, sometimes I use “texmadi royal blend,” which is brown, wild, red, and white rice together. Cook this with several sprinkles of shaved almond slices, and you’ve got a pretty hearty lunch, chewy and nutty and good stuff.

Absolute favorite though is jasmine rice. It smells wonderful when cooking, and has a light, clean flavor. It’s similar to basmati but lighter; basmati tastes almost meaty by comparison, more savory. Both are excellent, but I think jasmine has the edge for me.

From experimentation–if you like the “crust” on the bottom of the rice, cook the rice with whipped margarine, and you won’t have to wait 15 minutes after the rice cooker “pops” to have the crust form. If you don’t like the crust, use a bit of real butter. If you like real butter anyway but want the crust, wait fifteen to twenty minutes after the cooker pops up. Either way, use a small amount, maybe a teaspoon or so, along with just a light sprinkle of salt in the water before you cook the rice.

I’ve replaced one meal a day with rice, both for health and also for financial reasons (rice is one of the least expensive meals you can eat). The other meals of the day, I eat like I always have.

If you have any thoughts on rice cookers or rice in general, and would like to share them, please do!

–James

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Interesting. I’ve never encountered this before.
What are you removing when you wash the rice?

3

Mainly extra starch. Other possibilities are insecticides, ground dirt, or other contaminates.

I have also read this, which bears on the discussion: fortified rice sold in the United States must be “wash-proof;” i.e. washing the rice in clear water like I do must not remove the added nutrients. Laws vary by country and this is not true everywhere.

–James

4

We eat a lot of rice. Almost all of our rice is grown by Lundberg farms. We use Black Japonica, Brown Basmati, and White Arborio. I usually just sift my rice in a fine mesh colander before cooking, and use two cups and a bit of water per cup of rice. The white arborio is only used for risottos and paellas which we have at least once a week. With the asparagus coming in we have had asparagus risotto a few times here recently. A seafood paella is usually a Friday meal, a habit my wife and I have not been able to break. I have several cups of the other rices cooked and frozen at any given moment to use in any way we wish. The brown basmati is also great to fix just before guests show up for dinner, the whole house smells so great people hardly notice the wet dogs. I also use broths for cooking rice for specific recipes, vegetable broths for when the boys are home, chicken or fish broths for the missus and me.

5

We eat a lot of rice too. Generally we eat American Long Grain Brown rice. Sometimes Basmati.

We have a pot. My wife knows that (where we live) to put two and a quarter measures of water to a measure of rice. It boils for half an hour, and there is no crust, and no need to drain the rice. The water proportions vary with the rice and the humidity where you live.

My sister used to have terrible trouble with rice. It puzzled my wife and me. We asked her what the problem was.
“how often should you stir it?” she asked. I think she got the answer in our exchange of glances. “Never!” :astonished:

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I don’t generally have any trouble cooking rice on the stove, but I do use a particular tried and true pot which has a small vent hole in its lid
which seems to avert the boiling over problem.
I like white basmati best, but am more likely to spend the extra time cooking whole grain when daughter #1 is home because she prefers it.

I know other people who swear by rice cookers, but I haven’t had a problem with rice, so it hasn’t intrigued me.

As for bread making, otoh…I have a dismal touch with yeast, and am happy that–when I make bread, which is not THAT often–I can do it in the bread machine.

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I have a bread making machine, it’s called a Dimpflmeier. I put money in it and a few days later bread shows up at my door step. Yeast and I get along fine as long as I keep it in a solution.

8

Those rice cookers makes a world of difference for me. Some rices are so hard to cook for me. I always end up doing something wrong; I am more of a meat guy anyway. But, the rice cooker is great. Thanks for the tip about washing the rice.

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I’m a rice fan too. Mainly basmati and jasmine and of course arborio for anything that looks like paëlla or risotto.

For basmati and jasmine I use this method. Use a tablespoon of olive oil, pour in a cup of rice and let the rice become ‘glassy’ ( almost transparent) at a fairly high temperature, add some salt, pour in 2 cups of hot water, and turn the heat as low as you can. Rice will be ready in 20 minutes. Don’t stir!
For risotto and paëlla use the same method but use a large shallow pan and add the liquid ( preferably some kind of stock ) bit by bit. Add the liquid when the rice becomes ‘dry’ in the pan. I like my risotto rather moist, but for paëllas the rice is better when it is a bit drier. Of course you have to keep watch next to pan adding liquid every 3 minutes or so.

I always cook the ingredients for a risotto seperately and mix them in just before serving. That way it is much easier to get all textures right as cooking times of the different ingredients may vary from the cooking time of the rice.

10

Thanks for the advice about washing rice. I’m going to give that a go.

I have always cooked my rice in a ceramic corning ware casserole with a clear glass lid. Usually in the oven, there is no burning. 350 for 1/2 hour give or take depending on the quantity and how hot the water was when I started. If i’m in a rush, I’ll cooked it on the stove. I use a heat diffuser under the casserole once it comes to a boil. The glass top lets me see what is going on. I like the lacey pattern the rice and the bubbles makes. I only stir maybe once or twice.

I have no clue why people would even make minute rice. Other than to gross me out.

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Judging by display space, Vancouver stores must sell twice as many rice cookers as toasters; I assume to the huge asian population base. I know households in which there is rice in the cooker all day long, in case anyone’s hungry.

I can cook rice, but last year I bought a plastic microwave rice cooker, which works as well as the stovetop method and does so a bit faster.

12

For me it depends on what kind of rice I’m using for what. If I were using long-grain rice for paella, pilaf, or Indian-style cooking, I’d wash the grains. With paella in particular, you want the grains “relaxed”; that is, not sticking together. Washing helps with that, so I understand.

Now, if it’s your Japanese-breed medium-grain rice (my personal at-home favorite), that rice is meant to stick together a fair bit, so I don’t bother to wash it. Haven’t tried washing it to see if it makes any difference that way, though.

My rice cooker is a Korean make. Humble, nothing special, but it gets the job done very nicely. I like the Japanese ones that intentionally leave a lightly toasted crust on the bottom - a nice, tasty treat - but they’re too pricey for me yet.

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I understand there are many ways to fix paella, but doing so other than this way is heresy and sacrilege. First off use an Arborio rice. Secondly saute onion and garlic in a good olive oil, then add DRY rice and lightly saute for a few minutes. What you do after that is up to you. Heathens!

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Hey, I just know from what I saw on TV from someone I thought was supposed to be a reliable expert, and long-grain was specified. Tell you what: I’ll dry the rice after I wash it first. (And everyone knows that Arborio is for risotto. Heathen, yourself.) :smiley:

15

I realized this may seem cereal but technically you would want either a Bomba or a Calasparra rice, an Arborio is almost as absorbent as either of those and much more available. They are all short grain rices no long grains are allowed in paella. The standards were internationally set by the IRRI, just ask Condi if ya don’t believe me. I get both Bomba and Calasparra when I go up the road to this place http://www.tienda.com/index.html?id=96 to get my whole Jamon Serrano which I then slice into very thin pieces and use to trade for gold bullion. TV? Oy vey iz mir!

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Great website dwest. Drool!!!

1,400 bucks!

I’ve seen those things just hanging from walls dripping grease everywhere.

I’ll eat my “real” jamon in Madrid thank you… and I do too.

http://www.museodeljamon.es/

I can find it now in Los Angeles and its just as pricey.

Honestly I don’t have much problem with the cheapy Serrano and that you can find everwhere.



Oh for rice cookers its easy enough just to cook it in a pot or a big pan but I have a big Zojirushi cooker.

My wife is Japanese and she swears by the baby elephant.

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Basmati rice (the ordinary white stuff: all brown rice is, in my opinion, fit only for ageing ex-hippies and earth mothers) is my favourite and I use it for curries and chili con carne and for throwing handfuls of the cooked article into hearty chicken broth (made with real stock from boiling up the carcase), which makes it even heartier. Cooking Basmati is simplicity itself. Don’t bother to measure anything (not even the rice: just cook too much and eat the excess for breakfast, fried in butter with a couple of eggs thrown in :smiley:). Boil a lot of water in the kettle and turn on the cooker ring. Put rice into a good-sized pan and rinse with cold water. No need to be too fussy about draining. Put pan on ring and add excess boiling water and a goodish dose of salt (you’re going to throw a lot of it away, but hey, how cheap is salt). As soon as the water comes back to the boil, start to time the rice. It wants exactly twelve minutes. You need to stir it around once or twice near the beginning (gently) to keep the grains from sticking to the pan and to each other. Drain in a sieve for a couple of minutes while you give the final stir to your chili or curry. It will be perfect. Easy on the salt, mind, 'til you find your way. :wink:

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White basmati rice is for little old ladies and little old men in the home whose proctologist tells them to eat a bland diet. I give it to my dog who has inflamatory bowel disease. Whole grain rice tastes the way rice should taste, white rice is the glue that holds sushi together. If I wanted paper mache I’d use flour, water and the morning news.

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Hey, whaddya doin’ adding a wink to me quote!

Clearly, you do not understand rice (the harsher verdict) or, alternatively, you cannot obtain genuine Basmati your end (the kindlier conclusion) - there are scandals surrounding the purity of Basmati. Brown rice is purely for people worried about their bowel health. No true gourmand would contemplate eating this horse-food willingly. Good Basmati (white) has an elusively-delicate aroma and flavour which is far removed from the humid, worthy boiled-bran whiff of the brown rice kitchen. There is nothing bland about it, old boy. Age appears to have withered the finer attributes of your palate. You’ll be telling me next that there’s nothing finer than jellied eels and mash. Just eat good grub and get yer bloody fibre from somewhere else. Is life too short or what!

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I do like my eels, smoked. I’m eating Brown Basmati as I write, the aroma you describe is even better in the Brown Basmati. I suppose you eat white bread too? The kind that is soft and mushy, sticks to the roof of your mouth. Leave a slice on the counter and nothing will touch it, not even bacteria.