Are we too busy to make perfect rice?

[Michael_in_TX]

Anita Jaisinghani is a food columnist for the Houston Chronicle as well as owner of Pondecheri Café (https://www.pondicheri.com/), an upscale Indian restaurant focusing on the cuisine of Mumbai. In today's paper she published her recipe for "perfect white rice."

The recipe is quite straightforward, as you'd expect any rice recipe to be:

Perfect Rice

• 1 cup extra-long basmati rice
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions: Rinse the rice in a bowl with cold tap water three times. There’s no need for a colander, simply tilt the bowl with your hands to pour off the water. Soak the rice for 2 to 3 hours; it should absorb much of the water and nearly double in size. Drain most of the water the same way. A little remaining moisture is fine.

In a stockpot with a tight-fitting lid, combine the drained rice, 2 cups of water, salt and olive oil.

Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to medium-low, cover and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes.

Check the rice; there should still be a small amount of liquid remaining. Turn off the heat, cover and let the rice rest undisturbed for 45 minutes. Fluff gently and serve.

But what struck me is the time involved. From start-to-finish you're looking at 3-4 hours to make rice. Now, I am sure her rice is better than what I get in my 25-minute InstantPot version, but wow that is a time commitment and is the rice that much better?

Then I began to think.....I had a very instant negative reaction to the time involved. Is it me? ::insert Taylor Swift GIF of It's me. The Problem is me:: Am I so busy in my life and so rushed that I think spending hours making rice is ridiculous? (And yes, I recognize the irony in that I feel smoking brisket for a day is normal.)

I wasn't expecting a simple basmati rice recipe to make me rethink some life choices and my packed calendar, but here we are.

[Oak Smoke]

This is why I’ve lowered my standards and now use Minute Rice. I have the time just not the attention span.

[Mosca]

Minute rice and converted rice are both much better than they were when we were kids. I’d call them acceptable substitutes for applications where the rice isn’t important, like in soup.

[Oak Smoke]

There aren’t many dishes that I cook that require great rice. Whether it’s beans and rice or a nice big scoop of jambalaya over it, rice is the canvas not the art.

[LegoMySearwood]

I guess I can only make rice with this recipe on the weekend for meal prep. However, reheated rice in a microwave at work dries it out… So much work for rice to eat best same day. This would be prohibitive for me.

[Finster]

Rice is just a filler for other foods. I don’t like it anywhere near enough to spend that much time on it…

[Jerod Broussard]

No rinse. Dump my cup(s) of rice, fill water to the appropriate line on the side of the rice pot, plug in and push the tab. Done when I hear the "ding."

[Dan Deter]

That's how I do it. Except its a button...

[JCBBQ]

Zojirushi baby!! Perfect every time.

[Mosca]

Huh?

There are instructions on every single package of rice you buy. Follow the instructions and your rice comes out perfect. Every time. No special cookers, no tips, tricks, or “hacks”.

If you want sticky rice, don’t rinse it. If you want “individual grain” rice, rinse it. The more you rinse it, the less sticky it will be.

I don’t get why people think rice is hard.

[realdocBBQ]

Nah.

[Michael_in_TX]

(I nearly titled the thread this lol!)

[Michael_in_TX]

That is apparently how they make the rice at the restaurant, but it is also fairly upscale. I also just noticed they offer cooking classes and this caught my eye:



It's $125 a person, which is not unreasonable. Almost kinda want to do it for the instruction on the spices alone.

[Oak Smoke]

Go do this please then report back like Mosca does.

[Mosca]

Oh, that is a good deal, if it’s hands on and you get fed.

[CRO]

When I do make rice it's in the Instant Pot, probably 40 minutes total. I think it's better than stove top.
I just read Kenji came out with a new rice cooker.

[Duanessmokedmeats]

I get mine from the near by Chinese restaurant.

[FireMan]

I do have time fer cookin somethin good, yessir!

[jayjordan]

Yes I’m too busy for that, a 3-4 hour time for rice is ridiculous. But I’m sure Guy Fieri would be fascinated by it.
This IP recipe works great for what I need.

https://www.pressurecookrecipes.com/instant-pot-rice/

[MattTheGR8]

That is a lot of time, but very little hands on time working with the rice. Most of it is time soaking the rice or resting it at the end. An easy recipe overall, but the challenge is timing since you need to start around lunch to have rice ready by dinner. I'm sure that works great in her restaurant, they can prep the rice in the afternoon and have it ready to serve during the dinner rush.

[Jerod Broussard]

If so, the human race has been waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too busy since the first rice was cooked.