Published Apr 27, 2004
I love to cook. I know all sorts of tricks. But I just can’t cook rice, at least not the usual way.
Everybody puts their rice in with some measured water in a pot and sets it to a boil for 20 minutes, then they fluff it with a fork and it comes out light and tasty. I do that, I end up with crunchy burnt rice that is welded to the sides of the pot. No good.
Now, I like to serve rice with Asian food, so I can’t just give up. So I cheat. Somewhere I once read that the Italians make rice just like pasta — they boil some water, drop in the rice and cook it ‘til it’s al dente. I don’t know if that’s a true story, but it sure works. My rice comes out fluffy and with separate, tasty grains.
I am a teensy bit embarrassed I can’t make rice the normal way. But it seems odd to me, to put the two ingredients in the pot and trust that they turn out right. I think this is why I don’t like baking, either.
Someday I’ll break down and buy a rice cooker. Until then, my rice is just fine, so long as nobody sees me make it.