how (the fuck) do you cook rice?!?!

[154]

It's pretty good for about 24 hours, then only useful for pudding..

Or glue.

It doesn't cook for days, it dries out.

Anyone grossed out by this idea may want to avoid Chinese take-out..

[japmn]

I usually just put 1 part rice, 2 parts water in a pot and bring it to a boil, as soon as the water is boiling hard, I turn the heat down to lo and cover it. Takes about 20 minutes. Sometimes I'll add a little salt or soy sauce and some spices.

Rice is easy. Why would someone need a rice cooker?

[barndog]

I have a Zojirushi rice cooker as well - a Japanese friend of mine recommended it as the "Rolls Royce" of rice cookers.

http://www.amazon.com/Zojirushi-NS-ZCC1 ... 41&sr=8-13

I've had it for about 15 years and it works great. The only issue I have is that the battery is soldered in - so you have to take it someplace that services these things to get it replaced. I don't really use any of the timer functions so I haven't taken mine in - works fine without it.

I can see the argument against rice cookers, but at the same time - there really doesn't seem like a whole lot of room for self expression in cooking rice. So I guess I use a rice cooker for the same reason I use a toaster rather than grilling my bread.

[MWilke]

I'm astonished this thread went to 7 pages. It should have been over after the second post.

My mom is Filipino. When I was a kid we went through a 40 pound bag of rice in about a month. My mom would get home from work at 4 and start on dinner around 4:45. My pre-dinner chore 2-3 a week was going to the basement pantry to get 3 cups of rice for the rice cooker while she worked on the stir fry she was making. A big dinner for 5 was pretty much always ready while Brokaw finished reading the top headlines at 5:30.

I didn't realize until I was in high school that most American homes don't do this. I was amazed. Rice cookers, in my mind, are as essential to a kitchen as a microwave. They allow you to multi-task with the meal and you can still be creative with rice recipes. I've seen people spend valuable time and energy watching over rice the same way one needs to with pasta. It just seems like such a massive waste of human capital.

[zom-zom]

Horrible microwave "ovens" are essential? I don't have one of those either.

I made a lot of rice in restaurants too.. never used a cooker. Not much time or energy is spent cooking rice or pasta, and a machine is not ever necessary.

[madmanmunt]

Rice cookers, in my mind, are as essential to a kitchen as a microwave.

What is wrong with you man? A microwave! What is that useful for? Surely not preparing food.

[MWilke]

Rice cookers, in my mind, are as essential to a kitchen as a microwave.

What is wrong with you man? A microwave! What is that useful for? Surely not preparing food.

Are you too good for leftovers?

[kerble]

I can make three other very delicious things to go with the rice in the time that a bunch of obstinate people end up with.....wait for it.....a fucking pot of white rice.

All the "well, I have a pot and a stove" luddites....what exactly are you making with this rice? usually, when I have the rice cooker going, I'm using the four stove burners for something else. channas, butter chicken, tomato khat, dahi ki kadi, stir fry, beans, etc.....

rice is a staple, people. it's not a meal in and of itself.
free your stove, and good food can follow.

I made a lot of rice in restaurants too.. never used a cooker. Not much time or energy is spent cooking rice or pasta, and a machine is not ever necessary.

then you've learned something that apparently every Asian/middle eastern restaurant in the world has not. congratulations.

no one's gotten back to me about some stovetop toast recipes?
I thought you people knew everything.

[madmanmunt]

Rice cookers, in my mind, are as essential to a kitchen as a microwave.

What is wrong with you man? A microwave! What is that useful for? Surely not preparing food.

Are you too good for leftovers?

No I'm not, but my delicious leftovers are to good to be condemned to a microwave.

[Tommy]

seriously, just buy a rice cooker:

add two parts water for every one part rice, a little salt and then turn it on. spend the forty minutes you saved not sitting over the stove stirring rice doing something else, such as making food to go with the rice.

there are no other correct answers.

I agree with this, though I use less water unless it's brown rice. I also prefer models that click closed and have a thumb release.

[Sourmilk]

I have four burners at home. One for the rice...for all of 20-30 minutes or so. Never once have I felt overwhelmed by this pot of rice on one of four burners.

And why do we keep bringing up restaurants? I'm not cooking for 200 covers, or anything.

[zom-zom]

My"stove" is 6 George Foreman Grills on a card table, a rice cooker and two microwaves on the floor below it.

Ha ha ha.. look at you cave-people cooking with "fire".

[kerble]

I can cook rice without a rice cooker. not the point.

because 4 billion Asians have figured it out in both the restaurant and the home, we thought it'd be nice to let the rest of you in on the secret. but please, sahib, teach me and every Asian I know about making rice. go on. we're all ears. we clearly don't know what we're talking about when it comes to rice.

[154]

I can make three other very delicious things to go with the rice in the time that a bunch of obstinate people end up with.....wait for it.....a fucking pot of white rice.

All the "well, I have a pot and a stove" luddites....what exactly are you making with this rice? usually, when I have the rice cooker going, I'm using the four stove burners for something else. channas, butter chicken, tomato khat, dahi ki kadi, stir fry, beans, etc.....

Seriously, doing things like a pilgrim isn't always rewarding.

Haha! A toaster! What a useless piece of shit! I fire up the clay oven every time I want a piece of toast!

[kerble]

I threw out my stove and put a fire pit in my kitchen.

[EmpireStateTroopers]

our stovetop has one rack that flips over to hold a real (round bottom) wok. how awesome is that?
Can anyone recommend a small (like 3 cup or less) food processor thats super easy to clean? It would basically be just for making ginger/garlic pastes and occasionally crushing some nuts.

[154]

our stovetop has one rack that flips over to hold a real (round bottom) wok. how awesome is that?
Can anyone recommend a small (like 3 cup or less) food processor thats super easy to clean? It would basically be just for making ginger/garlic pastes and occasionally crushing some nuts.

Those little $10 dollar things you find at Target are perfect for that. I've had one for ages.

..or you get a mortar and pestle and grind it like a fuckin' man!

[Tommy]

our stovetop has one rack that flips over to hold a real (round bottom) wok. how awesome is that?
Can anyone recommend a small (like 3 cup or less) food processor thats super easy to clean? It would basically be just for making ginger/garlic pastes and occasionally crushing some nuts.

There's the fucking rub. I love food processors and blenders but they are ALL a total pain in the ass to clean. I too am all ears if someone knows the answer to this question.

Actually if all you want to do is what you've said, the Magic Bullet isn't bad, believe it or not.

[kerble]

...or you get a mortar and pestle and grind it like a fuckin' man!

I just hit the spices on the stone floor with a stick and sweep it into my food.

[jimmy two hands]

then you've learned something that apparently every Asian/middle eastern restaurant in the world has not. congratulations.

Most middle eastern rice I've had is some form of rice pilaf or lebanese rice with vermicelli and pine nuts that requires frying the rice in oil prior to adding the water. You need to do that over a stovetop as far as I know. Isn't that done with saffron rice too? I got no beef with the rice cooker, but there are some things it cannot accomplish.

no one's gotten back to me about some stovetop toast recipes?
I thought you people knew everything.

cut a round hole in a piece of bread, put in a greased pan over medium high heat. crack an egg into the hole, cook for a minute or so, flip, repeat, remove from heat, eat. I got no beef with the toaster, but there are some things it cannot accomplish.