If you want to know how to cook rice on the stove perfectly ALL the time then you came to the best place. We all love a good chicken curry or Thai massaman curry served with rice but, sometimes struggle to cook it properly.
You don't need to own or buy a rice cooker to make the fluffiest rice ever. You can cook perfect rice on the stovetop
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What you'll learn
How to cook rice on the stove? Do you end up with a pot of sticky gummy lumps of rice every time you try? Don't worry, professional chefs end up with the same results when done incorrectly.
In this tutorial, you will learn how to cook the perfect pot of rice on the stovetop every time. This recipe for cooking rice includes information on how to cook normal white rice, brown rice and also wild rice.
Did you know that wild rice is not actually rice but rather aquatic grass? Now you do. According to experts, it's also very healthy so if you haven't given it a go. Now's your chance.
Most important rule
Always wash your rice to get rid of excess starch.
Whether you are cooking white rice, basmati rice, brown rice or sushi rice, the principles stay the same and we have to start with this very important step.
Washing off the starch will make sure our rice is lovely and fluffy and not a solid lump of sticky gum.
Place the rice in a sieve or strainer and rinse under cold running water until it runs clear.
Wild rice does not have the same starchiness as white rice and will be clear much sooner.
Correct water to rice ratio
Another popular question is how much water do you need to cook rice?. The correct ratio is key to fluffy perfectly cooked rice. Many sources will tell you to use a 2 to 1 water to rice ratio.
Not correct.
The correct ratio for cooking white rice is 1 part rice to 1.5 parts water.
Meaning if you want to cook 100 grams of rice, you would need 150 grams of water.
Wild rice cooks at a ratio of 2.5 to 1 water to rice. Unlike a fairly quick cooking time with white and brown varieties, wild rice will take up to an hour to cook.
How to make rice tasty also depends on the cooking liquid used. You could use just regular salted water or something a bit more flavourful like chicken stock or coconut milk.
In this recipe, we will keep it simple and cook the rice without a rice cooker in salted water on the stovetop.
Most of us have a small pot with a lid and a kitchen towel.
That’s all we need.
How to cook white rice
- Weigh out 150 grams of white rice. Any type will do, I used Jasmine rice for this recipe, great with Asian Food). Soak and rinse the rice until the water runs clear.
- Weigh out 225 grams of water. Add this to the rice along with 2 grams salt and 10 grams coconut oil, butter or any other oil for that matter.
- Bring the rice to the boil and turn down the heat to a minimum setting.
- Cover the pot with a clean kitchen towel and a lid making sure the rice is sealed in tight. This is crucial as we will be steaming the rice and it needs to be properly sealed to keep the correct level of steam.
- Let the rice sit like this on the lowest stove setting for 15 minutes. Set an alarm. Very important. Do not lift the lid when this time is done.
- When the timer stops, remove the pot from the stove with the lid still on, and let it sit like that resting for another 3 minutes.
- Lift the lid, behold the fluffiest rice of your life and fluff it even more with a fork.
How to cook brown rice
When you cook brown rice use a ratio of 2 to 1 water to rice.
Follow the exact same steps as for cooking white rice with the following small difference.
When it comes to the boil, cover as you would with a cloth and lid. Keep it on the stove at the lowest setting for 30 minutes.
Remove from the stove and let it rest with the lid on for 5 minutes before fluffing with a fork.
How to cook wild rice
- Weigh out 166g of wild rice. Soak and rinse it once.
- Weigh out 400g water, 10g olive oil and 2g salt. Add this all into the pot.
- Bring the rice to the boil and turn down the heat to a minimum setting.
- Cover the pot with a clean kitchen towel and a lid making sure the rice is sealed in tight.
- Let the rice sit like this on the lowest stove setting for 1 hour. Set an alarm.
- Do not lift up the lid before this time is done. When the time is up the wild rice grains should have opened up and the water all absorbed.
- Fluff with a fork and serve.
Serving suggestions
Rice can be served with many different dishes as a side or you can make it the star of the show.
- Asian dishes - The base for perfect fried rice. The classic side for curries like coconut chicken curry, Filipino beef adobo or shrimp massaman.
- Meat and fish - Simple side for meats like oven-baked chicken breast, bavette steak, chicken Kiev or teriyaki glazed pork tenderloin. Or, with whole roasted fish on the barbecue, crispy salmon fillet and giant periwinkle.
- Other vegetable dishes - With plant-based dishes like creamed spinach, baked eggplant and roasted pumpkin.
Frequently asked questions
Use a ratio of 1.5 to 1 water to rice. Switch the rice cooker on and press the cook setting. The rice cooker will tell you when it's done by automatically switching to the keep warm setting.
To get rid of extra starch rice is washed before cooking in order for it to have a fluffy but not sticky texture. Unwashed rice has a lot of starch that absorbs the water making it sticky and could result in undercooked gummy rice. Not nice.
100 grams of cooked white rice has 130 calories.
100 grams of cooked wild rice has 101 calories.
In order to make fried rice make sure the rice has cooled down completely. Rice cooked the day before works best but if you want to have fried rice and need to cook it fresh, simply cool it down in the fridge before using it.
Rice does not do well in the freezer. It's best cooked fresh for when you need it.
Cool rice down before sealing airtight and storing in the fridge for up to 3 days. Improperly stored rice or rice older than 3 days can lead to food poisoning.
Related recipes
If you would like to know how to prepare basic foods properly then you will find the following recipes helpful.
- Cooking perfect steak
- How to chop cilantro and parsley
- Simple pasta dough
- How to steam spinach
- Perfect quail eggs
- How to make croutons
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Recipe
How To Cook Rice On The Stove
Ingredients
For white rice
- 150 grams (⅘ cups) white rice
- 225 grams (1 cups) water
- 10 grams (5/7 tablespoon) coconut oil
- 2 grams (⅓ teaspoon) salt
Instructions
For white rice
- Weigh out 150 grams of white rice (Any type, I used Jasmin for this recipe, naturally stickier rice great with Thai Food). Soak and rinse the rice until the water runs clear.
- Weigh out 225 grams of water. Add this to the rice along with 2 grams salt and 10 grams coconut oil, butter or any other oil for that matter.
- Bring the rice to the boil and turn down the heat to a minimum setting.
- Quickly cover the pot with a clean kitchen towel and a lid making sure the rice is sealed in tight. This is crucial as we will be pressure cooking the rice to an extent and then letting the grains steam until done. Let the rice sit like this on the lowest stove setting for 15 minutes. Set an alarm. Very important. Then remove from the stove and let it sit still closed and steam 3 more minutes untouched. Do not lift up the lid before this time is done.
- Lift the lid, behold the fluffiest rice of your life and fluff it even more with a fork.
For wild rice
- Weigh out 166 grams of wild rice. Soak and rinse it once.
- Weigh out 400 grams water, 10 grams olive oil and 2 grams salt. Add this all into the pot.
- Bring the rice to the boil and turn down the heat to a minimum setting.
- Quickly cover the pot with a clean kitchen towel and a lid making sure the rice is sealed in tight. This is crucial as we will be pressure cooking the rice to an extent and then letting the grains steam until done. Let the rice sit like this on the lowest stove setting for 1 hour. Set an alarm. Very important. Do not lift up the lid before this time is done. When the time is up the wild rice grains should have opened up and the water all gone.
Notes
- When you cook brown rice use a ratio of 2:1 water to rice and keep it on the stove at the lowest setting for 30 minutes before opening the lid.
- When making fried rice make sure to use completely cooled down rice.
- Keep rice in the fridge for up to three days. It's best not to eat after that to avoid possible food poisoning.
- Cooked rice can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Tracey Jones
This guide is amazing. Can I use the same technique to cook buckwheat and quinoa?
Charlé
Tracey, absolutely with buckwheat the same. Quinoa takes a bit more water but also loves being steamed. I find that sometimes you need to leave it untouched and just let it sit for a few minutes longer. Also, don't forget to add the coconut oil or butter. Shout if you need help.
Ben
Thanks for explaining how to cook rice so easily. I always ended up with either crispy rice or porridge. This method is the best I've seen. Worked 100% for the sushi rice I cooked and my sushi turned out perfect! The only thing I did differently though was leaving the butter out because I made sushi.
Charlé
Hi Ben,
Thanks for the great feedback!Good thing you removed the fat for cooking sushi rice. I find though when you do poke bowls a little coconut oil is nice. When you don't need the rice to be more sticky.