How to Cook Rice

I know, I know -- this is a food blog, and I should be some sort of expert in a thing seemingly so basic, right? But, hey – we can’t all be perfect at everything 😉, and even professionals and connoisseurs can be learning new things all the time.

The truth is that as handy-dandy as I can be in and around kitchens, making rice that wasn’t sticky, mushy, and/or clumpy (when one doesn’t want it sticky, that is, because sometimes – read: sushi – we do) has sort of always eluded me. I really don’t know why.

Well, at the beginning of this month while revising a rice-based recipe that I’ll soon be using to feed over 150 people, it dawned on me to Google better ways to cook it, and lo and behold -- duh! -- of course there are multiple options! Here’s what I’ve quite successfully settled on after only a couple of tests . . . .

Simply cook your rice in WAY too much water -- as if you were making pasta. No more measuring; no more worrying about getting the perfect ratio of liquid to dry rice; no more altitude adjustments; no more endlessly rinsing rice over and over again wondering if you rinsed it *enough* before even starting to cook it; etc. Forget about all that.

For WHITE RICE:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil (you want at least twice as much water as the rice bag instructions say for your desired amount of rice).
2. Dump the dry rice in (plus some salt if desired).
3. Simmer it on medium-low for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Drain it (like pasta in a colander strainer) and rinse it with hot water (you don't want the rice to cool down).
5. Put it back in the pot, but not over any heat, covered, and let it sit for 10 more minutes.

For BROWN RICE:

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil (you want at least twice as much water as the rice bag instructions say for your desired amount of rice).
2. Dump the dry rice in (plus some salt if desired).
3. Simmer it on medium-low for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Drain it (like pasta in a colander strainer).
5. Put it back in the pot, but not over any heat, covered, and let it sit for 10 more minutes.

You'll have perfectly fluffy, separate grains of cooked rice – every time.

The reason this all works is the simple fact that having more water than the exact amount listed on the bag, allows those pesky starches that come out of all rice to get washed away with the extra water down the sink. (We don't need to rinse the brown rice after the initial cooking the way we do the white rice, because with its husk still on not as much starch is able to seep out, but it certainly won’t hurt if you feel like rinsing your brown rice....just make sure to use hot water so it doesn't cool off.)  And the set cooking times -- as opposed to cooking until all water is absorbed -- prevent the rice from taking on more water than it actually needs or otherwise overcooking (whereas the old way would require that you cook it until all the water in the pot is gone, even if it was too much to begin with).

The end. ✌

Around the World in Foodventures (Venezuela: PABELLÓN CRIOLLO)

Hubby was getting a little worn out on the lamb dishes, so I told him to be the picker of the next country....and here we are in Venezuela.  When I first tasted this beef dish (while shredding it and before putting it back into the broth to cook a little more) it reminded me of corned beef despite there not being much salt in the recipe.  But after it simmered in the broth with the onion, pepper, garlic, and tomatoes -- it changed into something definitely not corned-beefy.  It has a lot of flavor for containing minimal ingredients and spices, and frankly, is just yummy.

I used this recipe: https://www.whats4eats.com/meats/pabellon-criollo-recipe, and as suggested served the meat with plain white rice, black beans flavored with a bit of cumin, and fried plantains that I admittedly forgot to put salt on. 😉

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain

Around the World in Foodventures (Albania: TAVË KOSI)

I believe this is the 3rd lamb dish in the series, but this one is definitely richer than the prior two.  It's kind of like a cheesy omelette over braised lamb (somehow the yogurt became more cheesy than yogurt-y in the oven) with a little bit of rice.  It's suggested that it be served with a simple green salad, and we conveniently happened to have fresh picked lettuce courtesy of our neighbor who shares his bounty with the whole street every year.  So, here it is:

Recipe @ https://www.bbc.com/food/recipes/albanian_baked_lamb_with_92485.

This post is part of my project: "Around the World in Foodventures" (I decided I want to expand my culinary horizons even further by making the national dish or a popular recipe, or some signature food or traditional meal from every country in the world. Maybe it'll happen alphabetically, or by region, in random order, or something else. I figure if we can't (yet?) travel everywhere, we at least have the luxury of being able to taste it. It’ll be fun and interesting, but obviously, will take a long time to get through -- as we'll only be doing it once a week or so at most. I am chronicling the journey here.)

“If I’m an advocate of anything, it’s to move…Walk in someone else’s shoes or at least eat their food.” --Tony Bourdain