Poll: Are you good at cooking rice on the stove top?

[Anonymous]

Yes. I think where most people mess up is the ratio of rice to water. Typically, the ratio is 1 cup of rice to 1.5 cups of water (the water up to the knuckle test). But the trick is that the 0.5 cup of water is for evaporation. So if you make 2 cups of rice, you put in 2.5 cups of water -- NOT 3 cups of water.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rice cooker has always been a mystery to me, and the most useless waste of space in the kitchen. I mean, it is a pot, you add water and rice and cook it, right? How is that any better than doing the same thing in...wait for it...a pot!?! Easy and perfect every time.

I plug it in. I walk away. It turns itself off. It keeps the rice warm. Does your stove do that?

I don't have a rice cooker, but I do have a toaster even though I could make toast under the broiler. If I ate more rice and less toast, I'd skip the toaster and buy a rice cooker.

As it is, I have a favorite pan for rice -- it has a glass lid so I can see the water simmering.

Also, in the early months of the pandemic, the only rice I could find was a big bag of Royal at Costco. That stuff cooks up perfect every time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. I think where most people mess up is the ratio of rice to water. Typically, the ratio is 1 cup of rice to 1.5 cups of water (the water up to the knuckle test). But the trick is that the 0.5 cup of water is for evaporation. So if you make 2 cups of rice, you put in 2.5 cups of water -- NOT 3 cups of water.

Hmm, I haven’t tried 1/1.5 - I’ve stuck with 1/1.75 for eons with great results. I’ll try it!

[Anonymous]

I guess I’m fine at it, as I’ve never moved to a rice cooker, as much as I want one on a bigger scale.

We eat a lot of rice, too.

[Anonymous]

I cook all kinds of rice on a stove top - regular long grain, jasmine, basmati, arborio, and paella. They're all different. No complaints here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I make rice on the stovetop, but recently started cooking it like pasta - an excess of water than is drained at the end. I started this to cut down on the naturally occurring arsenic in rice, but it eliminates the need to fussily measure the amount of water, get the correct temp, keep it covered, etc. It also means that you can cook rice anywhere. It is obviously only good for plain rice - anything with seasoning needs to be cooked in the traditional way.

Ew. Rice should not be cooking with excess water and drained like pasta.

Why not?

No one has an answer for this?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I make rice on the stovetop, but recently started cooking it like pasta - an excess of water than is drained at the end. I started this to cut down on the naturally occurring arsenic in rice, but it eliminates the need to fussily measure the amount of water, get the correct temp, keep it covered, etc. It also means that you can cook rice anywhere. It is obviously only good for plain rice - anything with seasoning needs to be cooked in the traditional way.

Ew. Rice should not be cooking with excess water and drained like pasta.

Why not?

No one has an answer for this?

Because it shouldn't have extra liquid when it is done or it will never be fluffy.

I am a stovetop rice expert! I don't even measure. I run water in the pan, pour in rice until it mounds a little above the water, add salt and butter. Bring to a hard boil, put a lid on it, let it build steam until the lid is hissing. turn off the stove eye and don't touch it for 15 minutes. Perfect every time!

[Anonymous]

Yes, absolutely. I make it daily. Toast rice in olive oil, add salt, add 1-2 cloves of garlic and toast for 40 secs, then add liquid. Cook for 20 minutes. It's fool proof.

[Anonymous]

Rice cookers are awesome. Perfect rice every time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Rice cooker has always been a mystery to me, and the most useless waste of space in the kitchen. I mean, it is a pot, you add water and rice and cook it, right? How is that any better than doing the same thing in...wait for it...a pot!?! Easy and perfect every time.

I plug it in. I walk away. It turns itself off. It keeps the rice warm. Does your stove do that?

Yep. Love it.

[Anonymous]

White rice on stove is a piece of cake - 1.5 - 1.75 cups of water to each cup of rice, depending on variety. Bring to boil, cover, turn to low simmer, 20 minutes. Let stand another 5-10. Done. But brown rice... I have never had good luck with it on the stove! I use the Alton Brown method for brown rice and it always turns out perfect - 1.5 cups of brown rice to 2.5 cups of water. Boil water and add to rice in oven proof dish. Cover tightly and bake at 375 for 60 minutes. Fluffy, chewy, brown rice.

[Anonymous]

Using too much water yields sticky rice. The best proportion is 3/4 cups of water to 1/2 cup of rice. Simmer 20 minutes. Then cover with towel and lid and let it sit off heat another 10 minutes. Towel will absorb extra moisture. You can use a bay leaf while simmering.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rice cookers are awesome. Perfect rice every time.

I can totally do more complicated cooking, but have always sucked at rice. Add the fact that I can prep steel-cut oatmeal the night before, and the rice cooker is one of my favorite things!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Nope - and I am good at other complicated things in the kitchen so it bothers me. I use the microwave and it is perfect for all rice types and no extra appliances. PLus it leaves more room on the stove.

Yup, same. And even when I don't actually eff up the rice on a stove top, it's never actually "good," just "not so bad"...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes. I think where most people mess up is the ratio of rice to water. Typically, the ratio is 1 cup of rice to 1.5 cups of water (the water up to the knuckle test). But the trick is that the 0.5 cup of water is for evaporation. So if you make 2 cups of rice, you put in 2.5 cups of water -- NOT 3 cups of water.

Hmm, I haven’t tried 1/1.5 - I’ve stuck with 1/1.75 for eons with great results. I’ll try it!

If you like 1/1.75, then stick with that. Some people like mushier rice, some like drier rice.