How to cook rice to make it perfect

Home/Home Tips/Rinsing rice before and after cooking: is it necessary to do it?

To prepare a delicious side dish, it’s not enough to take the quantity and cook it, following all the rules. It is important to be able to properly prepare cereals and to know whether it is necessary to rinse rice after cooking.

How to prepare rice

If you want to cook fluffy rice, you need to rinse it under cold water before cooking.
This way you will get rid of starch, which is responsible for stickiness. Rinse the rice about five times or more until the water runs clear. It is most convenient to perform this procedure using a fine sieve. Footage: Tasty/YouTube

Some dishes, such as risotto, require sticky rice. In this case, there is no need to rinse it. Or you can limit yourself to one rinse to wash away all excess.

To make rice cook faster, you can soak it for 30–60 minutes. Then the cooking time will be reduced by almost half. However, it is better to reduce the amount of water used for cooking.

Should I wash before cooking?

The following varieties are used for most dishes:

The wild one is the healthiest, but is rarely used in the diet because it is unusual in its taste and appearance. It is not rinsed either before or after cooking. Unless it was bought by weight, and if it was purchased already packaged, then there is no need for this.
Basmati is not washed. Its long, thin grains do not stick together, and given the high quality of the product, the grains are always sold clean.
Round grain always sticks together during cooking. Therefore, you must either buy it for preparing porridges and puddings and then do not wash it, leaving the mass sticky, or wash it thoroughly after cooking so that the grains are separated from each other.
The long-grain variety rarely sticks together, but giving it an extra rinse after cooking won’t hurt.
Medium grain. It is used when cooking first courses, as well as preparing risotto. Therefore, it doesn’t hurt to wash it sometimes.
Rice packaged in bags, of course, does not need to be subjected to this procedure. Packaged grains will turn out crumbly anyway.

Rinse the rice grains by placing them in a colander with warm, pre-settled water. Never under a tap. This must be done until the liquid becomes almost transparent.

How much water to use for cooking rice

It is generally believed that this cereal requires twice as much water to cook. But this is an approximate proportion. It is better to measure the volume of liquid based on the type of rice:

for long grain - 1: 1.5–2;
for medium grain - 1: 2–2.5;
for round grain - 1: 2.5–3;
for steamed - 1: 2;
for brown - 1: 2.5–3;
for wild - 1: 3.5.

Be sure to read the instructions on the package. The manufacturer knows exactly what kind of processing the rice has undergone and suggests the optimal amount of water for the grain.

Measure rice and water with a measuring cup - it’s much more convenient. The standard serving for one is 65 ml of dry grains.

Reviews

Inna, 47 years old, Saratov

Before cooking, I rinse any rice except arborio, then its maximum stickiness is preserved. I cook for 18 minutes, stirring constantly, turn off the heat, wait 2-3 minutes, during which time it reaches readiness and is not overcooked.

Sergey, 35 years old, Rivne

Expensive rice does not require long rinsing and always turns out fluffy and tasty. Therefore, I choose basmati or, even better, white devzira (lazar). I rinse it once and leave it in warm water for 1.5-2 hours to absorb it, then wash it again and cook over low heat for 30 minutes. It always succeeds without much hassle.

Veronica, 38 years old, Tyumen

My grandmother taught me to wash the rice in salted water, which makes it whiter. To make it more crumbly, I cook it by adding a piece of butter.

Anatoly, 27 years old, Chelyabinsk

My wife saw that he had poured unwashed steamed rice into the pan and we even quarreled. It turns out that it must be washed; the quality of the finished dish largely depends on this. We decided to experiment and wash it in water of different temperatures to find our own recipe. I liked all the options.

What to add to rice

You will definitely need salt. For 1 cup of grains, ¹⁄₂ teaspoon is enough. Although it is better to adjust the quantity according to your preferences.

The good thing about rice is that you can always change its taste a little. For example, using the following seasonings:

saffron;
curry;
cardamom;
cumin;
caraway;
cinnamon;
carnation.

Spices are added to the water during cooking or to a ready-made dish.

Rice can also be supplemented with herbs, citrus zest, or cooked not in water, but in meat or chicken broth.

Classic pilaf recipe

Whether you get a classic pilaf or rice porridge with meat depends on the right grain of rice and its proper preparation. Therefore, for any pilaf recipe, it is recommended to buy durum cereals (basmati, devzira).

Ingredients:

500 g rice.
500 g lamb or veal.
100 ml olive oil.
100 g melted fat tail fat. Approximately 2 tbsp. l. with a slide.
2 onions.
400 g of juicy ripe carrots.
1 or 2 heads of garlic, dry barberries.
Seasonings: cumin, curry, hot red pepper, black, turmeric.
Salt to taste.

Product preparation:

Pour in the cereal and rinse before cooking.
Cut the meat into medium pieces.
The onion easily “dissolves” in the finished dish, so you shouldn’t chop it too finely.
Chop the carrots into cubes.

Preparation:

Place oil and fat into a heated cauldron. Ignite.
Fry the meat over high heat and remove from the cauldron to a plate.
Place onion in boiling fat and fry.
Return the meat to the onions, add the carrots. Fry for 10 minutes and reduce heat. The result is zirvak - the basis of the classic pilaf recipe.
Pour in hot water to cover the zirvak by 1.5 cm.
Place the washed rice and the head of garlic in a sieve.
Add 400-500 ml. hot water to completely cover the rice and vegetables.
Add salt and turn up the heat so it boils faster.
When the rice stops crunching on your teeth, reduce the heat to low and add seasonings. Cover and wait about 25 minutes.
Serve on a flat platter with pieces of meat and garlic cloves on top.

How to cook rice in a saucepan

It is better to use dishes with a thick bottom: the temperature is distributed evenly in it.

First, bring salted water to a boil, and then pour the cereal into it. Stir the rice once to prevent the grains from sticking to the bottom. Then wait until the dish begins to boil, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan with a lid.

Footage: Downshiftology / YouTube

Do not lift the lid during cooking, otherwise the rice will take longer to cook. If you want the cereal to be crumbly, do not stir it (except for the first time). Otherwise, the grains will break and release starch.

The average cooking time after re-boiling, depending on the type of rice, is:

for white - 20 minutes;
for steamed - 30 minutes;
for brown - 40 minutes;
for wild - 40–60 minutes.

When the rice is cooked, remove it from the heat and let it sit covered for 10-15 minutes. If there is any water left in the finished porridge, drain it or cover the pan with a dry towel: it will absorb excess moisture.

Footage: Downshiftology / YouTube

Features of the steamed product

The variety of varieties of popular cereals provides different ways of preparing it. Beginning housewives often ask whether steamed rice is washed? In this case, the answer will be ambiguous.

Firstly, rice needs to be washed before cooking if you want it to not stick together later. This condition is mandatory for all varieties. In addition, such a procedure is provided for by normal hygiene rules. Indeed, in factory conditions, grains are covered with a layer of fine dust, which must be removed. Secondly, steamed rice has already undergone special heat treatment in production, which is why it is intended for use in crumbly form. This feature eliminates the need to rinse the product after cooking. There is simply no need for such a procedure. It can only do harm, making the side dish watery and its taste empty. Therefore, for steamed rice, there is a basic rule: it must be washed before cooking, but not after cooking.

How to cook rice in the microwave

Place the rice in a microwave-safe container. It is advisable that the cereal does not take up more than ¹⁄₃ of the volume of the dishes. Add water and spices.

Cook white and steamed rice for 15–20 minutes at full power. Then stir, cover and leave in a closed, turned off microwave for 5-10 minutes.

First cook brown and wild rice on full power for 5 minutes. Then stir, set the power to medium and cook for another 20-25 minutes. Leave covered in a closed microwave for 10-15 minutes.

If the grains remain firm, continue cooking, checking every 1-2 minutes and adding water if necessary.

Why is it important to steam?

Doctors are loudly trumpeting the dangers of rice for the figure - the high sugar content, prohibitive glycemic index and high calorie content have made it the main enemy of all slender girls. In addition, it is a pure source of quickly digestible carbohydrates, which tend to actively “fill up” even the thinnest. Not the best option for weight loss! But don’t rush to draw conclusions and put an end to this product: there is a way to neutralize harmful components and reduce its calorie content.

If you're unsure whether you should soak your beans, we'll give you some facts. The most harmful and calorie-rich thing in this dish is starch. Under the influence of high temperatures, it is digested into a thick sticky mass (which is why cooking crumbly porridge is a real art). If you use soaking instead of cooking, the starch is removed from the grains into the liquid, and all you need to do is drain off this water, and with it everything harmful.

As a result, you not only lose weight, but also improve the condition of your body. Judge for yourself - after a week you will notice the following changes in your body:

Losing weight by 3-5 kilograms;
Getting rid of salts, liquids, waste and toxins;
Normalization of digestion;
A surge of strength and vitality;
Acceleration of metabolism;
Reducing cravings for junk food;
Clean and glowing skin.

Bonus: How to Prepare Sushi Rice

Special Japanese rice is used to prepare sushi. You can replace it with regular round grain.
Before cooking, the cereal must be washed 5–7 times. It is better to discard the floating grains.
Pour washed rice with cold water in a ratio of 1: 1.5. You can add a piece of nori seaweed to the pan for flavor, but you need to remove it before boiling.
Cook the rice covered: before boiling - over medium heat, after - on low for about 15 minutes. Afterwards, you need to remove the cereal from the stove and let it stand for another 15 minutes.
Ready rice must be seasoned with a special dressing. To prepare it, pour 2 tablespoons of rice vinegar into a separate pan, add 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of salt and heat the mixture over medium heat until the bulk ingredients are completely dissolved.
Place the rice in a wide bowl, pour over the sauce and stir gently with a wooden spatula. After this, cool and start preparing sushi.

This material was first published in January 2022. In September 2020, we updated the text.

To avoid rinsing

If you need to get a crumbly porridge, you can prepare it in such a way that you don’t have to wash it out. There are the following methods for this:

Heat the rice grains in a thick-bottomed pan greased with vegetable oil, stirring until translucent. Then pour boiling water or broth. As a result, the side dish will be aromatic and crumbly.
Cook the porridge until half cooked in a heat-resistant pan, add oil, transfer to the oven, heated to 180 degrees and bake until done.
Pour two volumes of water over the cereal and cook over low heat until the liquid has completely evaporated. Place a little oil in a pan and leave the rice covered until done.

Whether to rinse rice or not depends on how you want it to end up. Just do not do this under any circumstances under an open tap, so that microbes from the water do not get into the prepared food.

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To prepare a tasty side dish, you not only need to take the ingredients in the correct proportions and cook them at the temperature specified in the recipe, it is important to skillfully prepare the grains and know whether you need to rinse the rice after cooking.

Pros and cons - indications, recommendations, disadvantages, opinions and reviews of experienced

This diet is contraindicated for pregnant and breastfeeding women, and those suffering from cardiovascular diseases may be at risk (porridge leaches potassium, which can cause malaise and heart pain).

The following points should also be taken into account:

Causes constipation and bloating. To avoid being bothered by such “surprises”, use flaxseed oil or bran, which gives a mild laxative effect;
If you have a high degree of obesity, it is better to avoid this dish;
Extensive physical activity is contraindicated - there simply won’t be enough energy for it, and you will experience fatigue.

Do not worry about contraindications - if you follow the recommendations correctly, you will not have any problems with your health and well-being. An examination by a doctor the day before and during cleansing will insure you against poor health and exacerbation of chronic diseases.

The best confirmation of our words are reviews from readers who, using this method, managed to achieve amazing results:

Osksana, 23 years old

Hi all! Despite my dislike for fast diets, losing weight on rice turned out to be easy and enjoyable for me. I spend fasting days several times a month. Then I gradually break out of their regime: I eat small portions of no more than 1200 kcal per day. As a result, the lost kilograms do not return, and I continue to lose weight without strict diets and constant restrictions.

Valentina, 38 years old

Hello! I decided to resort to cleansing with rice not to lose weight, but to cleanse the intestines and liver of toxins. In addition to the healing effect, after a few weeks of eating it for breakfast, I noticed that I managed to lose a fair amount of weight. The old things fit me more freely, and I felt younger and lighter.

That's all for us! If you are looking for a simple and safe way to lose weight, a rice cleanse is perfect for you. You will lose excess weight, improve your body health and go through a real shake-up, which will make it easy to lose weight in the future.

Cooking the perfect porridge

First you need to choose the right variety. Buy brown or unpolished, as they are much healthier for the body. The steamed or round variety will not work.

Since such grains cannot be steamed overnight, we will cook it for several days. To make this process more convenient, and for you to always have a ready-made portion at hand, use a special cooking system according to Malakhov:

Take glass jars of the same size, marked 1, 2, 3 and 4;
On the first day, pour four tablespoons of grains into jar No. 1 and fill with water;
On the second day, change the liquid in the first jar and pour a portion into the second;
On the third day we change it in two jars and make the preparation in the third in the same way;
Fill the last jar with cereal and change the water in the first three again;
On the fifth day you can start drinking the first portion. As soon as you empty it, fill it again and let it sit until ready, not forgetting to change the water every day.

This way, you will have prepared porridge on hand to eat on an empty stomach, and you won’t have to cook it until it’s ready. 3-4 tablespoons of grains is a conventional value, and you have the right to change this amount depending on your appetites and needs.

It doesn’t matter what kind of water you steam in – either cold or hot will do.

Video: Cleansing the body with rice

To cleanse the body, you should consume the product in the morning in this order:

After waking up early in the morning, drink a glass of herbal or green tea. It will start metabolic processes and “awaken” the stomach from sleep;
After half an hour, you can move on to your meal. It is prohibited to add butter, sugar or salt to the dish;
Then you cannot eat or drink anything for 3-4 hours.

For lunch and dinner you can afford whatever you want. The exception is fried and fatty foods, as well as alcohol and milk.