The Lemon Fool

A couple of days ago I burned my rice. Again. It's not usual, but it's also far from the only time. Since rice takes up the water in which it's cooked, it's easy to misjudge and leave it on too long as it goes dryer than it should. Especially when the first hint of smell from it - before it takes on "burning" - could easily be confused with the nicely-crisping bhajis that were part of the same meal.

I understand there are dedicated rice cookers that avoid that risk, even if one leaves the kitchen and forgets it for too long. One of those, if they're any good, might solve the problem. On the other hand it's a tradeoff: I'm loath to have yet another appliance cluttering up the kitchen. If it does other jobs too - e.g. steams veg - without compromising on the rice, the tradeoff looks more worthwhile.

Any suggestions?

UncleEbenezer wrote: I understand there are dedicated rice cookers....I'm loath to have yet another appliance cluttering up the kitchen.

Is this a coded way of telling us you don't have, but want, an Instant Pot? Slow cooker, steamer, pressure cooker, yoghurt maker, on-and-on. It's quite good. And it cooks rice. https://www.instantpot.co.uk/

UncleEbenezer wrote:A couple of days ago I burned my rice. Again. It's not usual, but it's also far from the only time. Since rice takes up the water in which it's cooked, it's easy to misjudge and leave it on too long as it goes dryer than it should. Especially when the first hint of smell from it - before it takes on "burning" - could easily be confused with the nicely-crisping bhajis that were part of the same meal.

I understand there are dedicated rice cookers that avoid that risk, even if one leaves the kitchen and forgets it for too long. One of those, if they're any good, might solve the problem. On the other hand it's a tradeoff: I'm loath to have yet another appliance cluttering up the kitchen. If it does other jobs too - e.g. steams veg - without compromising on the rice, the tradeoff looks more worthwhile.

Any suggestions?

Make some room and get the rice cooker/steamer. They switch from cook to standby at the right time, though you still need to keep an eye on it.

I don't think I'll ever bother to cook rice again from scratch. I'm a convert to Tilda microwave rice packets. Plenty of choice of rice varieties and cooked in 2 minutes better than I generally cook it. There's a small amount of salt and vegetable oil added but I don't find it noticeable. Not expensive either.

RC

I'm not a good cook but I don't think I've ever burnt rice. It must be a difference in how we cook the rice. I just add the cold water and rice together in a pan, put the lid on, medium heat until the water boils, then turn right down to a very low heat.

I guess the difference is whether you cook it until all the water is absorbed (which takes some timing) or whether you have excess water and drain it at the end. I usually intend the former but bottle it and do the latter.

Scott.

When our dedicated rice cooker died (originally brought back from Malaysia) we bought a microwave rice cooker as a stop gap.

One of these...
https://www.hartsofstur.com/kitchen-cra ... ecook.html

That was 6 years ago, we still have it and haven't felt the need to go back to a separate device.

genou wrote:

UncleEbenezer wrote: I understand there are dedicated rice cookers....I'm loath to have yet another appliance cluttering up the kitchen.

Is this a coded way of telling us you don't have, but want, an Instant Pot? Slow cooker, steamer, pressure cooker, yoghurt maker, on-and-on. It's quite good. And it cooks rice. https://www.instantpot.co.uk/

An £8 Sistema microwave rice cooker is a lot cheaper, takes up less room, and is just as good (as long as you own a microwave).

https://sistemaplastics.com/products/mi ... ce-steamer

Looking at responses so far, something cheap that goes in a microwave and doesn't take excessive space in the dishwasher or cupboard must be worth a try. Contemplating the options ...

1:1.5 washed rice to cold water in a pan, bring to boil then lid on, heat off, fluff in 20 minutes. I usually cook brown rice but use around 1:1.3 for basmati or long grain white rice and probably only 15 minutes after the boil.

I cup rice
2 cups water
bring to boil
once boiling, cover and turn down gas/elec to lowest level
leave for 12 mins
switch off gas/elec
cook accompaniment
rice is ready
Neve fais.
[DO NOT REMOVE LID AT ANY POINT UNTIL READY TO SERVE]

I use a dish and microwave. The water well covers the rice, boiled first in a kettle. You can partly cover with a plate or pierced cling film.

The microwave is set on a low setting for the recommended time.

There is a bit of trial and error working out what works for your dish/microwave combination.

You can also check occasionally that it's not running dry or use a sieve if you have too much water left.

UncleEbenezer wrote:Looking at responses so far, something cheap that goes in a microwave and doesn't take excessive space in the dishwasher or cupboard must be worth a try. Contemplating the options ...

Speaking as somebody who isn't a particularly dedicated cook, I hesitate a little before agreeing pubicly with a recommendation for microwaved rice, but heck, I'll risk it.

Pretty damn good, as well as foolproof! Tesco's and Asda's two minute rice (at around 45p a bag) is as good as Tilda's, with high marks to the pilau and the basmati. I'm not so keen on the Mexican specials, etc. But Tilda's lemon rice is worth a look. A favourite with chicken and salads.

BJ

Buy an induction hob! Use 1.5 times liquid volume to dry rice, bring to a rolling boil, cover with a tight fitting lid, turn heat down to #1, set self timer for 18 minutes and your rice will be perfect. (Never lift the lid to "have a look"). Alternately, use a timer to remind you to turn off the gas or remove the pan from the electric hob/AGA. You could also cook the tightly closed pan of rice in a hot oven for 18 mins once it has reached a rolling boil. Once the time is up, fluff it up with a cook's fork and replace the lid for a few mins.

In Saudi we once cooked 100 kilos of rice for a big function attended by the king and his 1000 security and guests, no problems.

HTH

john

johnstevens77 wrote:Buy an induction hob!

That's the intention when I get a new kitchen. Hadn't realised they offered a timer though!

UncleEbenezer wrote:

johnstevens77 wrote:Buy an induction hob!

That's the intention when I get a new kitchen. Hadn't realised they offered a timer though!

Induction hobs are truly excellent, but they're a whole nother ball game. More of a DIY and Building subject, really, but do your homework.

Some friends of ours bought a hob that plugged into a 13 amp power point, and to their annoyance they found that it wouldn't run more than two rings at a time - if you turned on a third, it would power down one ring at random. It turned out that 13 amps wasn't enough to run three induction rings - some hobs will pull 7 kw! - and it was automatically shutting rings down so as not to blow the ring main. Expensive mistake.

You want a hob that can be cabled to the electric oven, so that they can both share the big fat cooker cable with all those lovely extra amps. The two units will also haggle between themselves as to how the power is balanced between them. But that technical stuff is above my pay grade.

BJ

bungeejumper wrote:

UncleEbenezer wrote:

johnstevens77 wrote:Buy an induction hob!

That's the intention when I get a new kitchen. Hadn't realised they offered a timer though!

Induction hobs are truly excellent, but they're a whole nother ball game. More of a DIY and Building subject, really, but do your homework.

BJ

Not a DIY job. My kitchen is going to be a big job: new floor, quite extensive plumbing changes, as well as new much-improved layout (and quartz worktops). Oh, and new window, though that doesn't have to be done at the same time.

If I try to DIY that, the most likely outcome is total disaster, and at best I'll be months without a functioning kitchen. So that's one for a professional team - when I can find someone to take on the job. Both the oven and hob will be in different places to their current location.

Small portable rice cooker from Judge. I use when it's just me or I'm travelling. If at home and I want to make enough for a few days I go with the Crockpot Express.
I eat a lot of rice, but I find the cookers better.
This morning I made a mung dahl in the Crockpot Express, for a couple of days of dinning, and rice for today in the Judge Rice Cooker.
I added mung bean sprouts and chinese raddish sprouts from the BioSnacky, so very much a work top cook and grow!

This is played for laughs, but the technique is actually solid.

Uncle Roger Meet Egg Fried Rice Lady
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGtR3l_JeUo

FWIW, I cook my rice in a double boiler. I wash and drain one measure of rice to two measures of water, add a small quantity of salt to the water and add the drained raw rice to the boiling water. I allow it to come up to a second boil, stir it once, cover it and place it on the bottom section containing boiling water. I reduce the heat to a simmer and allow it to cook for 20 minutes without uncovering it. After twenty minutes, I’ll uncover it, fluff it, recover it and allow it to stand for five more minutes off the heat. It comes out perfectly every time, IMHO.