10 different ways to cook rice

How to cook rice to be an expert in the field.

Today I am talking about a food that is never lacking in our kitchens, rice.

There may be someone who does not like it but in general it is a basic in our diet. Surely many of you will have had doubts or even have fallen into the most common mistakes when cooking rice.

We can prepare with it from a spectacular dish as a basic garnish to accompany meat or fish. Versatility is one of its great virtues.

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On the blog you already have endless recipes with rice , either as a main dish or simply as preparing different types of rice: bomba, basmati , wild, Arabic style , etc.

If we look a little at the history of humanity, rice is one of the foods present since the earliest times. Its cultivation is documented more than 8,000 years ago, in Asian areas of China and Thailand. And in that continent we locate its origins.

In East Asian countries we can say that it is the basis of their diet, and it is unthinkable not to include it in the daily menus of countries such as China, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, etc.

Some sources certify that it was Christopher Columbus who brought the first rice seeds to Europe. In the 16th century there were already plantations of this cereal in the Iberian peninsula.

Due to its internalization, rice is nowadays introduced anywhere on the planet. More than 2,000 varieties are known, and depending on the different climates and countries, there are different ways to prepare it in the kitchen.

I detail below a dozen of them, perhaps the best known. The first, which is a simple white rice, we do not complicate our lives and we usually prepare it with round SOS rice , which always gives us good results.

For the other recipes, we decided on the corresponding variety. These recipes will give us an idea of ​​what this universal and “off-road” food can offer us in our gastronomy.   

Boiled white rice

1. The most classic method. In a saucepan, heat 2 parts of water to 1 part of rice.
2. When it begins to boil, add the rice, salt to taste and cook over low heat for the required time.
3. If the manufacturer does not specify times, a general rule of thumb could be 15/17 minutes for long grain and 18/20 minutes for coarse grain.
4. Once the time has passed, drain with a strainer, reserve and let stand covered, so that it ends up absorbing the moisture that remains from the cooking. In this way it will remain in your point.
5. This preparation can be used as a garnish to accompany other dishes and also for salads with white rice .

Rice in casserole

1. That is, when we want to cook a soupy rice. The key is to increase the proportion of water or broth, using 3 parts of water for each part of rice. Fat grain rice or bomba type is usually used.
2. We will cook the rice for 18/20 minutes, until we check that it is done (we test it) and also there is still liquid in the casserole.
3. At that desired point, it is essential to serve it quickly at the table, since if we take the rice it will continue to absorb liquid.

Baked rice

1. A technique that is used in many restaurants, since it allows you to have the medium rice prepared and finish it with a touch of oven. It adapts to any type of rice, but is usually used with coarse grain.
2. The process consists of sautéing the rice with the chosen ingredients, we add very hot broth (2 parts of liquid for 1 of rice) and cook about 2/3 minutes.
3. With the oven preheated to 200ºC, we introduce the casserole (or similar) and bake for 18/20 minutes, until we see that the liquid has been consumed and is at the point we want.
4. It is important to know the behavior of our oven, so as not to overpower and spoil the dish.

Rice in paella

Probably the most “Spanish” and internationally known. And not only in the “paella” (that’s the correct name for the container) the typical Valencian paella is prepared, but also a host of recipes according to the different ingredients we use.

The particular thing is the use of the “paella”, made of iron or steel, very wide and of low height. The layer of rice must be thin, so that it results in its point. There are certain standardized measures:

• 40/45 cm. diameter for 4/5 people
• 55 cm. diameter for 9/10 people
• 65 cm. diameter for 14/15 people

1. We will use coarse grain, round or pump type rice. All of them have great broth absorption capacity. To prepare a dry rice in paella, we will use 1 and a half of broth for 1 of rice. The broth always has to be very hot or boiling when we add the rice.
2. When cooked in such a large container, more evaporation occurs and the resulting broth is more concentrated in flavor. Anyway, if the heat source is intense we must increase the amount of liquid to use.
3. It is common for “socarrat” to occur at the base of the rice layer, a “grip” on the surface of the paella, which originates in the final part of cooking. To achieve this, you can raise the heat for half a minute at the point where the broth is almost finished.
4. Another “trick” that you can use is that once the rice is finished cooking, during the final resting time, pour a stream of olive oil evenly throughout the paella (in a circle). The oil will pass through the layer of rice and will generate that “grabbed” or “socarrat” effect.

Risotto – Italian rice

On the blog you will find a good number of risotto recipes, since it is a preparation that we love, due to its creaminess on the plate. We will use a type of Italian rice, type arborio or carnaroli . We will need to have hot broth available before we start preparing the rice.

1. Melt butter (40 gr.) In a frying pan, add the rice (300 gr.) And toast it for a couple of minutes. We pour half a glass of white wine and let it evaporate. Now we add a ladle of broth and let it cook over low heat, until there is almost no liquid left. We repeat the process several times and respect the manufacturer’s cooking times.
2. We remove from the fire, and we are going to “mantecare”: add another 20 gr. butter and about 80/100 gr. of grated parmigiano reggiano cheese. Mix well until the rice is creamy.
3. The cooking time for rice in paella is about 20-25 minutes.

On the blog you can find many types of risottos, mushrooms , octopus , saffron , artichokes and lamb , Parmesan , boletus and prawns (sea and mountain), pear and gorgonzola or  with pumpkin and goat cheese . Thousands of options for you to be expert cooks in this type of Italian preparation.

How to make pilaf or pilaw rice

1. This long grain rice needs to be washed to remove the outer starch. In a frying pan, pour a little olive oil (or butter) and sauté it.
2. Once it is fried, we add very hot broth, with a ratio of 2 parts of broth to 1 of rice.
3. We start by cooking it uncovered, about 10 minutes and then cover it to continue cooking over low heat, another 8/10 minutes. We salt to taste after the first 10 min.
4. The grains of the rice must be loose, they separate well from each other.
5. This method of making pilaf rice is typical in the Middle East and Central Asia. A technique that we must attribute to the Arab peoples.

Persian rice or basmati

This type of rice is a variation of pilaf rice . Its main difference is that here it is about getting a crispy sheet (called “ tahdig ”) to be made in the bottom of the pot or casserole.

1. We will use basmati rice, which we previously washed and soaked. At least 1 hour will remain, but it is recommended to leave it longer, for example for a whole night.
2. Drain the rice. Pour water into a saucepan, salt and add the rice as soon as it starts to boil. We cook about 5 minutes and remove. We drain it with a strainer and pass it slightly through cold water.
3. We continue with the process. In a frying pan, we can melt a couple of tablespoons of butter (for half a kilo), add the rice, stir and cook covered for about 30 minutes, with the fire at a minimum. It will gradually dry and the crunchy part will form at the base.

Rice for sushi

This is quite a special preparation, which requires your technique. We will use a short-grain and glutinous rice.  

Firstly we will wash it well in a strainer under the tap with cold water, until the water comes out clean, and we let it drain for at least an hour.

1. In a saucepan, pour 3 parts of water for 2 and a half of rice. Cover and let cook for about 10 minutes. After time, remove from the fire and uncover.
2. Let it rest for another 10 minutes, covered with a clean cloth. The next thing will be to apply the vinegar for sushi, which you can find in any supermarket or specialized store.
3. The proportion will be 75 ml. vinegar for half a kilo of rice. In a wooden bowl, or in another material (not metal), place the warm rice and add the vinegar little by little, while stirring.
4. Rice can never be wet. To speed up the cooling process, we will fan the rice. 
5. Once cold, we can use it to prepare sushi. If you are not going to use it at that time, or it is left over, cover it with a cloth and keep it at room temperature (never in the fridge).

Thai white rice

Here we will use a long grain or jasmine type rice . You may already find it for sale as “ Thai rice ”. As in other previous elaborations, we also wash the rice in cold water to remove the starch.

1. We heat 1 part of water to 1 of rice, salt to taste and bring to a boil.
2. We remove from time to time so that it does not stick to us. When it comes to a boil, lower the heat to low, cover and cook for 15 minutes.
3. Now remove from the heat and let rest for another 15/20 min, well covered.
4. Before consuming, we separate the beans well with the help of a fork.

Chinese steamed rice

To prepare it this way, we will need a basket to cook rice, which you can buy in an oriental bazaar or in a specialized kitchenware store.

1. With a short grain rice, we wash it well under the tap to remove the starch. We will use 4 and a half parts of water for 1 and a half parts of rice.
2. In a large saucepan, bring the rice to a boil for 10 minutes. Drain and place it on a clean and damp cloth, inside the bamboo basket, to steam.
3. We cover it and place it in another saucepan, over boiling water. This will cook for 30 minutes.

Most frequent mistakes when you make rice

• When the rice is prepared correctly, it is loose and with a good texture, except in Japanese cuisine. To make it look good I have explained the different types of rice and how to cook it, but following these little tips you will reach an almost professional level in this world.
• Use the appropriate variety for each preparation. Making a mistake when choosing the variety of rice can ruin your dish, you should not use the same type of rice to make a risotto as to make a Thai rice. Each dish requires the correct type of rice to be used.
• The proportion of water must be correct. Some varieties of rice need more water and others less, controlling the ratio of water to the amount of rice used is crucial to achieve a good result. In general, for simple white rice, 3 parts of liquid are used for every 1 of rice, always with warm water or hot water.
• It is better not to stir during cooking. When you add the broth to the pot, you can stir it to distribute all the ingredients well, but then you should not touch it at any time.
• Over cooking and very high heat. Nobody likes soft rice almost mashed, it is better to be a little hard than to melt. You can always fix the second option, the first one, no joke. The principle of cooking should be at a high temperature but if the fire is too high throughout the process, the liquid (broth or water) will evaporate and the rice will not cook properly and will be hard.