To think rice manufacturers should tell the truth

That's the high arsenic method

Everything takes longer than it says on the pack.

With basmati rice my grandma used to bring to the boil, then drain immediately, then repeat 2/3x and then it was cooked… and fluffy…

this method you don’t need to wash the rice.

im sure there’s easier ways but it does for me make perfect rice every time…

But when do you add the arsenic?😄😄😄

Rice cookers just cook rice via the absorption message. They just keep going til all liquid absorbed and then switch to keep warm til you ate ready for it. So handy if you are busy juggling cooking, picking up kids, work etc.

One quarter of a cup (white rice) per person (not American - that's just how the quantities work). Heat a bit of oil in a pan. Coat the rice in the oil til it goes translucent (seconds). As twice the volume of boiling water. Reduce heat to minimum. Cover with a lid on top of a folded dishcloth. Cook for twelve and a half minutes. Perfect.

From Katherine Whitehorn's Cooking in a Bedsitter, first published in the late 1950s I think. Probably the most useful thing my mother taught me.

Every rice eating culture that knows anything at all about rice has switched to rice or pressure cookers. At one point I had 5 rice cookers and 2 pressure cookers at home. Now I am down to two of each. I can cook perfect rice in a clay pot, on an aga, on the hob, open fire etc but I prefer a rice cooker. Cooking rice in a microwave is the absolute last resort.

PS I wanted a rice cooker really badly but that's a lot of countertop/cupboard space unless you have it at least once a day. I use the IP for all sorts of other things too - basically an extra hob - so it's justified.

as other PPs have just stated, cook=bring to boil, lower heat (move to a cooler part of stove top), simmer for about 10mins, leave to cool for at least 5mins, do not remove lid.

When it works, it really, really works.

What's a rice cooker?

The problem with soaking for a few hours or overnight is that unless I'm feeling extra specially organised I'm going to want my rice at shorter notice than that!

I could never get the hang of rice on the hob. It's always either burnt or still sloppy. I know this is a very straightforward kitchen task but I've never mastered it. My favourite rice is brown basmati and I do it in the Instant Pot. No idea how it compares to a rice cooker but it was a game changer for me:

• rinse 200g brown basmati rice in a sieve
• put it in the Instant Pot with 250ml cup of water (or stock if you want) - make sure it's submerged
• pressure cook on High for 18 minutes, natural release 10 mins, then vent, remove from pot and fluff up with fork (it overcooks if you leave it in the pot)

Perfect every time, so far. I found the ratio here and I think they do one for white rice too (brown takes longer to cook).

Rice, water, bring to boil, turn heat right down, place tea towel on lid on.

Leave for 5 mins.
Take off heat and set aside until required

Microwave basmati
double the amount of boiling water to rice.
Cover
10 mins on low.
leave to stand for 5-10 mins.

But doesn’t it reabsorb the arsenic that way?

If you rinse rice and then put it in cold water, bring to the boil and then take off the heat it’ll cook through if you leave the lid on. Super handy when you are trying to cook on a single hob.

rice shouldn't be boiled anyway. it should steam
and absorb all the water

We’ve had a microwave rice cooker since 1999 (well, we bought a new one a couple of years ago when our old one had it) but they’re brilliant!

Portion of basmati for 2 people takes 11/12 mins
perfect!
Lakeland sell fab ones.

Honestly @Partypoppers its not difficult

Google how to cook rice and follow the recipe.

you don’t boil rice, you steam it.

This is what I do too!

Rice is easy (assuming white basmati rice).

x weight of rice
2x of water.
bring to boil, turn down to the lowest setting on the hob
boil for 12 mins
turn heat off but leave for 5 mins

do not take the lid off at any time other than the start or very end of the process.

God, no…a large roast chicken would feed us two for a single evening meal, only! Small one wouldn’t touch the sides. Tomorrow, we’ll chomp our way through 4lb of rolled boneless lamb leg with four large beetroots, a large parsnip, two large carrots, a red onion, a courgette and a whole packet of Morrisons green beans. We’ll eat all that and have room for dessert and at least one Easter egg 😁. Still, struggle to finish a pack of rice between us…especially those Merchant Gourmet monsters!

😂

I lived with a guy back in the early 90s who could cook perfect rice on the top of a woodburning stove - rice, cold water to cover a flat hand on top of the rice, lid on pan and cook. He was a Vietnam Vet, so learned the hard way.

They come with a zip and you store it in the pantry.

Hot pan, slightly toast rice, add double the volume of water, bring to the boil put the lid on, then gas hob down as low as it goes. Ten minutes, lid off, fluff with a fork. I often chuck in peas, green beans etc just before putting the lid on and turning down the temp.