Cooking rice

It depends on the kind of rice -- have a look at the cooking time mentioned on the package.

I always use Basmati.
I don't measure how much water, I put the rice in a pan and then add water until it is about a finger width, 1cm or so, above the level of the rice. Bring to the boil, simmer for 5 minutes then turn the heat off but make sure the lid is on tight and leave it.

two quotes from another thread ~

My recipe for rice is below, and is pretty much foolproof. That said, you might think about changing the brand of rice you buy, Existentia. Since I know my rice is going to turn out perfect every time, I was shocked recently when I had a batch just like what you describe -- sort of mushy on the outside and with some crunch left within. The next time I made rice I was extra careful to check that I was doing everything right, but the same thing happened. This was an off-brand of rice I'd picked up somewhere when I was in a hurry, and I'm sure it was the culprit.

PERFECT STEAMED RICE

1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
1 1/2 cup water
pinch salt
a couple drops of olive oil or a half teaspoon butter

Bring the water to a boil in a nice heavy saucepan with a tightly fitting lid.
Add the salt & the oil.
Pour in the rice and give it a good stir.
Let the water return to a boil, then lower the heat as low as possible.
Put the lid on and do not take it off for 14 1/2 minutes.
Turn off heat.
Fluff the rice with a fork and immediately replace the lid.
Allow rice to rest for 10 minutes before serving.

This recipe can be doubled, but becomes less successful when tripled.
I do not rinse rice before cooking, but if you are buying it in bulk from an open container, you may wish to do so.
Do keep the rice covered after it's cooked to prevent it drying out. You can also put a folded dish towel over the lid to keep heat in.
Store any leftover rice in the fridge. It can be revived by adding just a little water then putting it on the flame (covered!) until you can hear the water sizzling. Turn off the heat & let it rest a few minutes to absorb the heat and steam.

I cook perfect Basmati rice.....if you don't believe me ask my daughter, my recent and perhaps the late cyber friends who stayed so long with me...perfect rice and perfect chilli prawns....

My rice recipe is 'an old Iranian one' and works every time. NO soggy rice.

Maybe we'll have to wait for the old Iranian to show up again.

Just to confirm my mathematics isn't failing - you say -
Measure rice with teacup and add twice as much water

Then you say -
I'll be using two cups of rice and two cups of water here.

Shouldn't it be one cup rice and two water or two rice and four water?
Or did I miss something?

The amount of rice must match the amount of water..... so 2 teacups of rice would require 2 teacups of water. The same amount for each.

I've corrected my mistake. thank you.

Particularly with basmati rice, you have to rinse it well before you cook it. Otherwise, you get a lot of gunk in the water.

Something that I need to experiment more with was a Pakistani friend's way of preparing rice. He would put oil in a pan and heat it until it started smoking and then throw the dry uncooked rice in to fry it until it started turning brown. He would also throw in some cardamom pods and a few other herbs. After that, he would put in some chopped onions and chilis to fry them a bit and then throw in some pots of plain yogurt. He would mix it all together with some more spices, turn the heat to a minimum and let it simmer covered until the rice was cooked. Sometime the bottom of the pot would burn, but that didn't bother him, and sometimes he would check and add a little water -- it was all very mysterious to me, but it came out good every time. He would serve it with lamb or chicken and mix in uncooked chopped tomatoes and cucumbers and cilantro.

I suppose it was some sort of version of biryani.

Do you have a flame-spreader, Existentia? They are great for rice or for anything you want to simmer very gently.

Unless you eat great quantities of rice every day, my suggestion would be to use money earmarked for a rice cooker for good heavy cookware instead, especially since you like to cook so much. It doesn't have to be expensive brand name stuff either. You can find "sandwich-bottomed" sets that perform very nicely.

Why, yes ~~ yes it is! A little tricky to use in the house, but it gets rid of household pests and also cooks food so much faster.


Okay. These are different kinds of flame spreaders. "Heat diffuser" seems to be the term of choice online. fantes.com/trivets.html

This is sort of like the one I have, except that mine has a removable handle.
kitchendance.com/heatdiffuser.html

I have never made sticky rice, but I keep planning to one of these days! Thanks for the tips.

I was invited to dinner tonight and was served boil-in-bag rice.

Diana Kennedy's recipe for Arroz a la Mexican (in her Recipes from the Regional Cooks of Mexico) gives perfect results every time. This is not the swill served as "Spanish rice" in many so-called Mexican restaurants. It's more of a light pilaf and a very typical dish. To be honest, I hardly ever go through all the steps but the rice is really better if you do.

Arroz a la Mexicana

Hot water to cover
1 12 cups long-grain white rice
1/3 cup neutral vegetable oil
1 large tomato (@1/2 lb.), roughly chopped
1/4 med. onion, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled & roughly chopped
3 1/2 cups well-salted chicken broth
1/3 carrot, peeled & thinly sliced (optional)
2 T. peas (optional) <-- I don't recommend!
1 whole sprig parsley (optional)
salt to taste

Pour the hot water over the rice & let it stand for @ 20 minutes. Drain & rinse well in cold water, then shake the sieve well and leave the rice to drain for @10 minutes.
Heat the oil, give the rice a final shake, then stir it into the oil until the grains are well covered. Fry to a light golden color, stirring & turning the rice over so that it will cook evenly and not stick.
This should take @10 minutes & should be done over high flame. [At this point she says to tip out the excess oil. I prefer simply to use less oil.]
Put the tomato, onion, & garlic into the blender & blend until smooth. Add the puree to the fried rice, then, continuing to stir & scrape over a high flame, cook until the mixture is dry.
Add the broth, carrot, peas, & parsley. Add salt if necessary, then stir well. Do not stir during the cooking time. Cook over a medium flame, uncovered, until the liquid has been absorbed and small air holes appear in the rice. Remove the pot from the flame, cover tightly, and set it aside in a warm place for @ 20 or 30 minutes so the rice can continue cooking in its own steam.
Before serving, stir the rice well from the bottom.

You can vary the vegetables -- try zucchini or chayote. Chopped cooked giblets are a nice addition. No vegetables are okay, too, although a sprig of parsley or a whole serrano pepper gives a nice subtle flavor.