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The one true rice

- 2 minutes read - 338 words

Notes

  • 1 cup of dry rice is probably 4 person-meals, give or take a person-meal.

Ingredients

  • X cups dry rice
  • 2X cups water
  • X/2 diced onions (potentially down to X/4 if it’s a really large onion) (medium-small dice)
  • Oil (either olive oil or something flavorless, like canola)
  • Salt, to taste
  • (optional) Grated carrots, frozen peas, frozen corn, or other small vegetables. The amount doesn’t matter too much but maybe X/2 cups.

Instructions

  1. (optional) Set the amount of water called for to boil, e.g. in an electric water heater.
  2. Saute the diced onions until first translucent, then golden. This can be on high or medium heat, depending how impatient/how much attention you want to pay to them.
  3. Add the rice, and saute for a few more minutes. It’s good if the rice toasts a bit, but you don’t want the rice to burn.
  4. Add the water, and salt to taste. You can check the salt content by trying a spoonful of the water.
  5. (optional) Add the optional vegetables.
  6. Cover the pot with a lid. Once the water boils, turn the heat to low.
    • If you pre-boiled the water, this will happen almost immediately.
    • If you’re using a stove that’s slow to change temperature, you might need to change to a different/smaller burner.
  7. For white rice, set a 20 minute timer; for brown rice, a 50 minute timer.
  8. There are two things to check for when seeing if the rice is done. Either of these steps can be repeated.
    1. Water at the bottom of the pot: Check by using a wooden spoon to make a well in the rice. Do not stir. If there’s still water, set a five minute timer and replace the lid.
    2. Hardness of the rice: Check by tasting. If it’s still too hard, but there’s no water at the bottom of the pot, make a well in the rice and pour in a quarter cup of water, then gently push the rice back into place and check again in five minutes. Do not stir the rice.