How to Cook Brown Rice
Q How do I cook brown rice? Mine never turns out nice. I cook great white rice, but brown just seems to either too hard, too soft or not very fluffy.
A I love this question and finally someone asked it! Most brown rice recipes I read always call for too much water thus creating the final product as mushy rice which usually turns a dinner guest off.
My rule of thumb for short, medium or long grain rice is one cup dried rice to one and 1/4 cup water. My second tip is bring the water and rice to a boil with a lid on the pot, then turn the flame down to a low simmer and let simmer without opening the lid for 45 minutes. Remove from flame, take off the lid and let the steam escape.
Take a wet rice paddle and run around the sides of the cooked rice loosing it from the sides of the pot. Do not take a fork or spoon and start touching the rice while hot. Often cooks seem to want to do this. This makes the rice become mushy too. My motto: don’t play with your rice. Once it has cooled down, then with a rice paddle scoop and carefully remove rice from the pot to a bowl. If you are adding something else to the rice, fold it in at this point.
