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Cooking rice - Any tips?

Have got my chicken curry to a decent level served with Naan bread, but the only thing truly letting it down is that my rice is not perfect.

Can you lot give me any tips so it doesnt come out too sticky?

The last attempt I tried this method but it still had many rice grains clumped together.

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All help is appreciated!
 
For Indian food, use long grain Basmati rice.....and use a rice cooker with the fuzzy logic that takes twice as long as normal. I have an Aroma, it's about $30, and it's great.
 
For Indian food, use long grain Basmati rice.....and use a rice cooker with the fuzzy logic that takes twice as long as normal. I have an Aroma, it's about $30, and it's great.
+1 on both points.

Ever since I discovered Basmati rice about 7 years ago, that's all I buy. Its not just for Indian food, it goes well with every type of cuisine.

Today, I scored 3 x 12 pound bags of Basmati for $5 each. I figure each bag is good for about 6 months worth of meals. I might go back for 3 more ... most of these will be given away as gifts.

I just recently got a Fuzzy Logic rice cooker ... I started another thread that covers the specialized techniques of using this particular piece of kitchen gear. http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?t=177691
 
Basmati rice is my favorite too. Never gets sticky and smells great. It's classified as an aromatic rice. The only other aromatic rice I know of is Jasmine rice. Ever try it? Like it?

btw...you can use the FL rice cooker to make sushi rice too and it comes out great.
 
Use a rice cooker with a drop of oil and some salt. Cover rice after cooking and let sit off the heat for 5-10 minutes. Fluff with fork and serve.
 
If you don't want to get a rice cooker here is how to do it in the pan.

Rinse the rice with cold water. This removes any starchy residue from the surface of the rice before cooking.
bring 2 cups of water for every one cup of rice used to a boil.


  1. 1 cup rice 2 cups water
  2. 2 cups rice 4 cups water
  3. 3 cups rice 6 cups water
After the water comes to a boil add the desired amount of rice, about 1 tablespoon of oil, (you can use any oil you prefer) stir to break up any rice that is clumping together and cover. reduce heat to the lowest you can get and set the timer for 20 minutes.

DO NOT REMOVE THE LID when the 20 minutes is up, remove the rice from the heat and let stand with the lid on the pot for about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove the lid and stir the rice with a fork.

Hope this helps, Enjoy :thumbup:
 
If you are not going to purchase a rice cooker...this has been my method for over 15 years and it works for me. It's similar to above recipes but the pre soak reduces the overall cooking time.

For plain rice I use Basmati. I do pre-soak it for at least 20 - 30 +mins and then wash it to remove starch. No big deal, just start to soak while preparing the rest of the meal.

Here's the critical bit, after soaking drain the wash water as best you can (sieve not required) and then replace with boiling water from kettle. 1.5 by volume of boiling water is my basic rule of thumb. If I have an inch of rice in bottom of pan I cover it with an extra 1/2 inch of water.

Season or use stock, lid on and cook for 6 1/2 minutes only.

Medium high heat, just be careful not to over cook dry the rice so it catches and burns.

After 6 1/2 mins, heat off , rice should be moist but with water full absorbed. With lid still on, leave to steam for at least 4 minutes or so.

One pan, no sieving or draining required, should be hot, fluffy, perfectly cooked. It might take you a few try's to get it right but it becomes second nature once you have.
 
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If you don't want to get a rice cooker here is how to do it in the pan.

Rinse the rice with cold water. This removes any starchy residue from the surface of the rice before cooking.
bring 2 cups of water for every one cup of rice used to a boil.


  1. 1 cup rice 2 cups water
  2. 2 cups rice 4 cups water
  3. 3 cups rice 6 cups water
After the water comes to a boil add the desired amount of rice, about 1 tablespoon of oil, (you can use any oil you prefer) stir to break up any rice that is clumping together and cover. reduce heat to the lowest you can get and set the timer for 20 minutes.

DO NOT REMOVE THE LID when the 20 minutes is up, remove the rice from the heat and let stand with the lid on the pot for about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove the lid and stir the rice with a fork.

Hope this helps, Enjoy :thumbup:

This is pretty much the same way I do it, although I don't use oil. You can also use a pinch of salt if you wish. I stir for exactly a minute after adding the rice to the boiling water.

I think that the two key elements here are that you must not remove the lid and you need to let the cooked rice stand for five or ten minutes. Once you learn to trust the method, it's a piece of cake.

All that having been said, rice cookers are a great investment. Mine has a porridge setting that I use to cook up batches of steel-cut oatmeal too.
 
Get a Zojirushi rice cooker. This is what I have used for a long time. Always perfect rice.
+1 for the Zourshi. My wife is half Korean and all of her mother's full Korean barely english speaking friends have any model of Zourshi. We have that sucker plugged in 24hr a day. Of course a small batch lasts only a day so it gets restarted every day.
 
If you don't have a rice cooker, use a very high quality, heavy sauce pan. I use an All Clad Ltd Windsor pan, some distilled water and a hearty pinch of truffled salt. Simmer at as low as the gas will go while still remaining steady, and you'll be golden. Golden, Jerry.
 
The best way I've found to cook rice, c/o some asian former coworkers:
Add the rice to a pot. Add water from a tap until the water covers 3/4 of your fingernail, with the tip of your finger on top of the rice. This goes against the measure everything idea, but works great once you get consistent.
Cover your pot of rice, then place it on the lowest setting (for gas) or Low for electric.
Cook the rice about 20-25 minutes. When it's done to perfection, you will be able to tilt the pot, and no water will pour out.
For indian food, you may want to decrease the water a little bit. I always use Royal Basmati from the burlap bag for indian food. Traditionally, the rice for Indian food is a little less wet because dishes are served with sauces.
Once the rice has absorbed most of the water, nothing you can do will make it less or more moist without ruining the rice. You can only vary the initial amount of water.
Jasmine rice is also good, and I use it more than basmati.

Happy Cooking :D
 
Steel cut oats. Where does one find these?

Depends on where you live - I know Henry's in the San Diego area has it. You can most likely find it in any natural foods store. Check the loose grains section, as you can usually purchase it by weight.

Steel cut oats take longer to cook, but have a much higher amount of fiber than rolled oats, and I prefer the consistency. I usually make a large batch at the beginning of a week and can quickly microwave some in the morning before work.

Hope this helps.
 
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