Making white rice is easy!
Avoid crunchy, mushy, or burned rice with these simple steps for cooking on the stovetop.
Ready in under 30 minutes.
Alison Bickel
If you are reading this, Im guessing your household is the latter.
And we’re here to help!
There is no magic when it comes to cooking white rice.
Alison Bickel
Just a few helpful hints.
This recipe gives you the total scoop on how to cook long-grain white rice, that lovely pantry staple.
Lets cook rice together!
Alison Bickel
What Is White Rice?
This is a practical question, not an existential one.
According to theUK-based Rice Association, there are possibly 40,000 types of cultivated rice.
Alison Bickel
White rice is a generic term.
To make it simple, white rice has had its brown hull removed, exposing the white kernel.
There are three basic categories of white rice:
Do you gotta Rinse Rice?
Alison Bickel
Rinsing the dry rice before cooking can lead to fluffier cooked rice with more distinct grains.
But if you rinse it first, you should decrease the liquid to 1-3/4 cups.
This keeps your cooked rice from being too gluey.
Alison Bickel
Too big and the rice may not steam right.
Too small and it will boil over and make a sticky mess.
Andyou want a lid that fits welland does not let tons of steam escape.
Alison Bickel
This lid thing is no small deal.
I had issues with rice for yearsit burned; it was too hard; it wasnt fluffy.
Turns out the problem was my saucepan!
Alison Bickel
Once I got a new saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, my rice woes were over.
Once again, its a prevention-of-steam-escaping thing.
Whats the Right Temp for Cooking Rice?
Alison Bickel
Start the rice at a hard boil over medium-high heat with the lid on.
Rice likes it nice and easy.
Lower heat ensures tender, evenly cooked grains.And it discourages the liquid from boiling over and making a mess.
Alison Bickel
How Do I Know When Rice Is Cooked?
Look for the holes!
Rice Is Best After a Rest
Patience makes rice fluffy.
Alison Bickel
Just like you, it does not like to be rushed!
The difference between okay rice and perfectly cooked riceis letting it sit 10 minutes and passively steamafterits done simmering.
This is something 95% of package instructions neglect to tell you, but its really important.
Think of these 10 minutes as part of the cooking time.
Now you know the big secret!
Yes, it is!
Can dry (uncooked) white rice go bad?
If the rice has a stale smell, pitch it.
What about brown rice?
Is cooking that any different?
Brown rice takes longer to cook and requires more liquid.
For the full scoop, plus a recipe, lookhere.
Can I pressure cook rice?
The process is easy, but a little different.
We tell you howhere.
How long will leftover cooked rice stay good in the refrigerator?
A week or less.
Once again, use your noseif it smells off, pitch it.
To keep the cooked rice grains from turning to hard pellets, keep it in an airtight container.
Can I freeze cooked white rice?
Yes, you’ve got the option to!
see to it your rice is completely cooled before bagging it up in zip-top freezer storage bags.
Press out any extra air, label and date it, and freeze it for up to 6 months.
Its best to thaw it overnight in the fridge.
Youre still a good person.
Or you could just get a rice cooker.
If you dont want to rinse the rice, increase the amount of liquid to 2 cups.
you’ve got the option to safely double this recipe in the same size saucepan.
Swish it around to get the excess water off.
In a medium saucepan (about 2 quarts), combine the rice and water.
Add the salt, if using.
Put on the lid.
Turn the heat to medium-high and bring the rice to a boil.
Once the rice comes to a boil, set a timer for 10 minutes.
Turn off the heat.
Let the rice sit with the lid on for 10 minutes so it can steam.
Even though the pot is not on the heat, this is part of your cooking time.
Its what makes the rice nice and fluffy, like restaurant rice.
Use a fork or spoon to fluff the rice before serving it.
