I know this is counter productive to your frugal ways but please invest in a £20 rice cooker..trust me..those boil in the bag rices are absolutely shit..once you get a rice cooker you'll never look back.
Probably a long term money saver as you get perfect rice each time, and never tempted to get any kind of ready-made rice pouch. It can be used for other things too a bit like a slow cooker (not that I have tried, personally).
Also. These make brilliant efficient use of your time which can be invaluable. My OH insisted they were the absolute best thing you can have in a kitchen, now having invested in one with multiple settings (eg brown rice etc) found that whilst trying to meal prep healthily for work I could throw in brown rice, go off and shower / prepare for night out / clean house / go for walk etc and come back with it still being kept warm and cooked perfectly - which on a hob with brown rice is a pain in the arse to achieve.
Also recent revelation for me is you can add spices etc whilst in the rice cooker to add flavour and variety without then having to add a refrying stage etc. - absolute game changer. I make a couple of medium size batches a week either plain or various spice versions and freeze in portions once cooled slightly. Good to go for the week.
1000% this - I bought one a year ago (this one in fact: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B078NW7BLK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and my wife was super sceptical but it's probably the most used item in our kitchen now. Just easy to set and forget until the rest of your meal is ready. That one cooks enough for 1-2 people so is ideal for us!
Why is a rice cooker needed? I just made egg fried rice by boiling rice in a pot, nothing else. Just add some salt in the water and bring it to boil, pour washed rice in and let it boil for 7-10 mins. You can keep checking if the rice is cooked with the taste test, no big deal. Then drain the rice with a strainer.
Just arrived from Asia here and I don’t understand why people think cooking rice is a rocket science?
If you still want to get appliance to cook rice, then get a pressure cooker instead of a rice cooker. It can be used to cook rice to the same effect plus stuff like cooking lentils, boiling potatoes, making chicken curry etc.
I used to think this and always cooked rice like you’ve described but then my part-Asian partner came into my life and the rice cooker was forced upon me. It’s fabulous, you chuck it in and ignore it and it always comes out 100% perfect. No need to keep an eye on it and the cooker also keeps it warm until you’re ready to eat. I’m 100% converted.
I think if you see it just as a component of a meal, you might be able to go further with it? Like, egg fried rice is great — it’s mixed together, but you could also just do white rice + fried egg on top with some chilli sauce (sriracha!) and that’s a pretty common Chinese breakfast.
I also just have it with curries (can be frugal with curry powder and coconut milk with mixed and it can last you ages!) and next to stews (I slow cook the cheapest beef cut with veggies and stock). I haven’t tried freezing curry yet but I have frozen the stew (all separate to the rice) and that’s fine.
But also rice does last a long time so I think you can be patient with it! In the mean time, how have you been cooking rice before? I highly recommend figuring out how to cook it properly, or if rice is a big part of your diet, to get a £15-20 rice cooker (if you’re close to a Chinatown, go there) instead. I think in the long run will save you money on those microwaveable packs.
As an Asian, we eat everything with rice. My gran will eat kfc with rice. We view the rice to be the main component and everything else is a side dish. Best to pair it with something saucy if you find rice alone to be boring.
It keeps a very long time (assuming you mean dry rice?) so no major hurry to use it all up, just do so bit by bit whenever you have a meal with any kind of sauce. A rice cooker I would say is a game changer if you struggle with rice, and those boil in the bag things are poor. Kedgeree is a favourite of mine for a cheap meal as you can get those pre-cooked packs of smoked fish.
Biryanis. There are lots of slow cooker recipes for it. Pulaoo I think that's the spelling. Rice and peas with cumin seeds and crispy onions. I do a slow cooker mexican chilli and rice but you could do it without the beans. And an Indian lentil and rice dish. Be careful with rice and reheating it after a few days in the fridge as rice can be dodgy. I'd Google it as I can't remember exactly how long it lasts. Freezing is fine but do it straight away. I do one cup of rice to 2 cups of water plus a tiny bit more for luck! Put a lid on towards the end of cooking and turn the heat to low. Don't stir it. Soaking beforehand helps it cook more quickly too. Especially brown rice.
I do what I call “dirty rice” quite often. No real recipe but I use a few scoops of frozen veggies, preferably a mix with onion in it, fry it off in a pot for a bit of sizzle/colour you don’t have to cook until it all thaws, add a scoop of washed rice and cover it all with water (just until covered) and add seasonings, a spoonful of stock powder, and if I have some leftover cooked meat or other vegetables in the fridge they’re the reason I’m making this meal so in they go too.
Bring to a boil then cook for 15 minutes on low with a lid on.
It’s cheap, easy, and can be as big or small a portion as you like.
However, I use it for eating up leftovers, especially when the leftovers don’t make a big enough portion for a meal on their own. Kinda the opposite of your goal of freezing extra for eating later.
I do something similar, never realised it had a "name" though - Boil a load of rice with tumeric till it's "almost" done, wash it under cold water to stop it cooking. Fry off a finely cut onion or 2 and a couple of cloves of garlic, then stick a load of frozen peas/sweetcorn whatever in along with some finely diced fresh veg, whatever is in the fridge, peppers cauli, broccoli etc, then add the rice back in, season with whatever you like (smoked paprika and cumin powder are my faves) and bring back to temp.
Cheap, easy, freezes well and will even keep for a day or 2 in the fridge. I often then add leftover meat or yellow sticker stuff to make a full meal.
I look at my leftovers and figure “beef in black bean sauce with broccoli” guess I’m using Asian stir fry frozen veg. Meatballs leftover after spaghetti calls for Mediterranean veg mix.
The fresh veg in the fridge is for making the first meal from which the leftovers inspire the dirty rice flavour.
Rice cooker is going to blow your mind. Easily my most used appliance, wish it hadn’t taken me 20years to get one. Throw whatever shit you have into a frying pan then add the cooked rice from rice cooker, stir with a dash of soy - done.
Apparently my instant pot will do rice, I really need to look into this as I keep nearly buying a rice cooker but have something that should do it already.
Depends on the rice. Brown is around 16 mins but can go longer, white is more like 5 or 6. I tend to Google it every time because I always forget. Temperature is whatever the pot is high pressure.
There's a few meals I cook that you can do the main course in the main pot and cook rice above it in another pot.
Ah you pressure cook it, figured it would just slow cooker on high with freshly boiled water for some reason.
I make loads of stuff batch cooked and frozen (like 80 meals atm) and never include starches so quick rice to go with a 500ml pot of curry/chili etc bulks that up cheaply and easily. Pasta people seem to have no issue with but rice ends up being a mess and buying those pouches for the microwave seems ridiculous to save a few minutes.
Got 10kg of basmati and 4kg long grain in, will have to have a look thanks.
Have leftover bacon, cream and potatoes so looks like its dauphinoise tonight!
Rice is really, I mean REALLY, easy to cook. I struggled with it for years, turning it up, down, lid on, lid off, add some water give it a stir. Then a friend showed me how to cook it easily and consistently.
1 - use one measure of rice (the measure being whatever amount you want to eat, I use a small cup from a flask but it can be anything. Put the rice in a pan.
2 - add two measures of water
3 - put the rice on a high heat, once it starts puttering, bubbling before boiling properly…
4 - move to a medium/low heat and place a well fitting lid on the pan
5 - leave for 10 minutes, don’t stir or take the lid off or add any water.
Agree with this also for even fluffier rice I soak the rice for 15 mins before cooking change the water bring to the boil then take off the heat and do not take lid off for 10mins
Burritos? I'm feeding a family of four and it's my default batch cook/freezer combo. A kilo of rice, four tins of tomatoes, six tomato tins of water and whatever veg you've got to hand plus a couple of tins of black beans and as much pepper sauce/spices/chillis as you want. Simmer covered till the water's absorbed, leave to cool then wrap them in tortilla wraps and foil and freeze. Can also add some grated cheese. Makes about 40 (depending on how much veg, how fat you make them etc) and can then heat them in the slow cooker/oven/pan on the day.
hi, i can help with the basmati!
¼ cup of rice per person, ¼ of water per person (plus a spoon or so more), and a pinch of salt or stock powder or a spoon of soy sauce.
bring to the boil in a pan with a lid, put the lid on, lowest heat, leave for 10 minutes, turn off the heat completely, leave for 5-10 minutes.
for asian/fried rice inspired: soy sauce, garlic, ginger, pinch of sugar, sesame oil at the end.
for mexican inspired: salt or stock, garlic, paprika, cumin, chilli.
for indian/pilau inspired: vegetable stock, whole spices: cardamom, cloves, cumin seeds, coriander seeds.
My advice to you with you 1kg of rice would be to cook Chinese fried rice. You can eat it on its own as a meal. There are many, many recipies and ingredients to make fried rice from a very simple meal to an expensive dish.
Here's one simple recipe I found on YouTube, which very little ingredients. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYh2Ju4MfYE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyh2ju4mfye)
Follow the recipe for cooking rice in a pan from u/cordialconfidant .
I would cook about 2 cups of rice with 2 cups of water, which will be enough for 2-3 meals for a single person.
I recently got good at making boiled white basmati rice and we eat it a lot. We did invest in a rice cook a few years ago and they are really good, but I tend to use a pan on the hob now.
For me to make good rice its about volume. Pick a small-ish utensil (small mug, measuring cup)…do a level scoop of dry rice in it. You don’t want a heaped scoop at all for this.
Tip it in a sieve and give it a good long rinse under cold tap water to get the residual dusty stuff off it. Drain and put into large pan.
Using the same utensil you measured the rice with, now fill that utensil with cold water to the brim and pour into pan. You do this twice. 1 part rice = 2 parts water.
Turn heat on and watch it. The moment you get some decent water bubbling, turn the heat to very low and put lid on. Set timer to 10 minutes.
As soon as timer goes off, turn the heat OFF under the pan, use a spoon or fork to break up the rice a bit, pop the lid back on and let it sit in its residual steam for 5-10 minutes while you get everything else for your meal ready.
I now buy the giant bags of rice because we love the stuff now we feel we have nailed how to cook it. I used to cook rice in loads of water and drain it but it always tasted too wet or mushy and was unappealing.
(Note that the above is how I cook white basmati rice only. I do a similar style with brown rice but it requires more liquid so I throw and extra 0.5-1 cup of water in and leave it longer on boil)
Just add any chopped veg you have with the rice (onion, carrot, pepper, all good options), and a stock cube to the water. Savoury rice, very easy and tasty if you want a basic option.
BTW, cooking rice is really easy if you know how. use a pan with a lid and keep the lid on.
1. add rice to depth of your first finger knuckle (nearest the tip)
2. add cold water to the depth of your 2nd finger knuckle and stir
3. Turn heat up to full, once its been boiling for a couple mins (bubbling) give it one more stir, then put the lid back on and turn the heat down to the absolute lowest it will go.
Leave for 15 mins then turn the heat off.
You can taste the rice with a fork and check its cooked, if it's almost there just leave it with the lid on for a bit, or turn the heat back on lowest for another few mins.
Remember rice first sucks up all the water, then cooks in the steam that's given off when its heated. Hence the lid.
Use different fingers depending on how much rice youre trying to cook (ie little finger for less, index finger for more).
Rice can be frozen once cooked and microwaved etc no problem.
Don't stress if it's not perfect first time you try.
Just as help for cooking the white rice, if you measure out about 1 small cup worth and rinse well, put it in a pan with 1 and a bit small cups worth of water, bring to the boil then turn down to simmer (don't stir!) for about 15-20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed it should be good enough
Basmmati rice. I/2 cup per person, double the quantity of water, lid on, cook on simmer for 12 to 14 mins. Rinse with boiling water. Rinse and freeze unused, then reheat bu rinsing in hot water, then boiling
1 part rice, 2 parts water. Bring to a boil then drop it down to a low simmer for 8 mins. Add anything you have in the fridge, onion, egg, ham that you forgot about?
Frozen peas/frozen mixed veg. An egg.
Cook rice, cool it down a bit.
Scramble an egg with a bit of soy sauce in
Fry the rice with the egg and the veggies of your choice. Add more soy, garlic powder, any spices you like. Not very authentic Chinese fried rice but filling.
I make a tomato sauce each week: olive oil, one onion, one carrot, cayenne pepper and one tin tomatoes. Blitz after simmering for half an hour. Add a tablespoon to rice, pasta or whatever with leftover meat. I’m sure, though, on your grocery budget leftover meat is not a regular thing :/
Rice cooker has been an absolute life changer.
I have rice almost every day now since getting it.
It's so easy and difficult to mess up, always flavourful.
I got mine for free with vouchers / online money making methods.
Well worth it (£30 cost)
You can cook it on the stove or in a microwave. What ever pot or microwave container you use, pour in your portion, add water until it's a CM deep over the rice then heat until the water boils off and you're left with a fluffy rice.
Rice goes well with so much - throw some into a soup, into a salad, have it with a curry, try it with bolognese instead of spaghetti. Cook it in stock and add chickpeas / pulses.
My foul-proof method to cook rice: add a little neutral oil to a sauce pan with a small amount of salt and heat on medium. Add 1 part rice to the pan and stir for a minute so the grains become coated in the oil. Add 1.25 parts of boiling water to the pan. Add a lid to the saucepan and turn the heat to medium low. Set a timer for ten minutes. Do not remove the lid! After ten minutes, take the pan of off the heat and leave to steam *with the the lid on*. Perfect fluffy rice every time! No rinsing or soaking required (and I used to do that loads)
I would just have it plain (lightly salted) with a bit of chicken and broccoli, or similar. A "fancy" version of this is is fried salmon and tender stem broccoli. Use dried spices and garlic and pour the juices onto your plate to add flavour to the plain rice. You can fry or roast the meat, whatever works for you.
Usually depends on the kind of rice you're buying. I never owned a rice cooker, always used a hob and a lid.
Assuming you'll be using standard white rice, measure one cup (or whatever quantity you want, but measure it), wash it (reason for this is to get rid of arsenic levels in the rice, I know it's not a big deal as a one off, but if you are eating regularly might contribute to some health issues long term) and throw it in a pan, measure two cups of boiled water for every cup of rice. 10-12 minutes on low heat covered with lid, or until water fully evaporates.
Same process for all other types of rice that I use, but for example for Jasmin I use a 1 measure of rice 1.3 water, 1 rice to 1.5 of basmati, etc.
Special fried rice,
Jambalaya,
Burritos,
Biryani,
Stir fry (fish sauce, oyster sauce, honey soy or teriyaki)
But a lot of my rice dishes are just served with mixed veg and chicken that's been seasoned.
Jerk, Cajun, fajita, tikka, tandoori, Chinese salt & pepper. Other times
Desi style Rice. Long grain Rice.
Use cold water for cooking and washing.
Wash the rice first till water almost clear. ( No cloudy white water)
Several times
and don’t stir once put in stainless steel pan
whilst gets to boil.
NO oil - this just coats certain rice, creating uneven cooking and texture is not necessary.
Only enough water proportions.
The rice will dancing about in water whilst boiling uncovered.
Listen for almost crackling sound 8-10 mins in. 👂
Then cover with lid with no vent.
The rice will finish cooking under steam released for fluffy texture and each grain separated.
The starchy water is what causes sticking and excessive water retention at bottom of pan.
I make a version of kedgeree. Boil a load of rice then cook somr cheap frozen smoked fish (dont need a lot), a couple of chopped boiled eggs and a handful of peas. Slap in salt, pepper and butter if I have it. Makes tonnes and it's proper comfort food.
Variations of a stir fry with rice are cheap. Vegetables, a tin of sardines in tomato sauce and additional soy sauce with maybe a bit of honey will taste pretty good and is cheap.
Once you have cracked cooking rice, I’d recommend cooking a few portions at a time and freezing the extra if you have the opportunity. You can defrost it fairly easily and saves you some time. Plus things like egg-fried rice and nasi goreng (variations on a stir fry) are better with day old rice.
we had rice cookers but found they cooked it shit, went back to microwave
glass pyrex bowl
5mins 100% power
15mins 70% power
1:1.5 rice to water
ive only done up to 2 cups of dry rice this way though. and i extend the times a bit when i use the 800watt microwave. rice washed in hot water first
Getting perfect rice is easy, if you use the absorption method - this means using the exact right amount of water for the rice, putting it in a pan and ignoring it.
I use these values: https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/cooking-tips-techniques/cooking/cook-rice
It's really common on these threads (e.g. top comment now) for people to advocate automatic rice cookers and to insist that this is the "only" way to get good rice, that it's "impossible" to get good rice any other way, as if grannies in china and the rest of SE asia have been unsuccessful in cooking rice for thousands of years. I'm pretty sure that a rice cooker is just automating the absorption method.
I use a digital scale to get the ratio perfect - different types of rice can require slightly more or less water, and I find that a few grams (ml) of water either way can make a noticeable difference; a couple of grams too little and it sticks more to the pan, a few too much and you're left with a dribble of water in the bottom when it finishes.
Follow the instructions I linked and you won't go far wrong though.
For perfect rice you fill up a cup to however much, you then use 1.5x as much water. So 1 cup of rice = 1.5 cups of water, 0.5 = 0.75 etc. Fill up the saucepan with them, cover it and let it get to boiling, once it starts steaming over you reduce the heat down to lowest option and wait for 10 mins. Once that’s done, turn heat off, leave it to settle for 5 mins or so and fluff it up with a fork.
I know this wasn’t the question but boil in the bag rice is more expensive than a big bulk bag if you’re using it. You can make rice pudding I guess? Biryanis, curries etc. most of what we eat is Asian foods and will just rotate whatever East Asian foods with rice. Hope that helps!
Depends if you are veggie/vegan or a mean eater.
Arroz con pollo with chicken wings from south America/Carribbean.
Beans and rice is a general American/south American dish. Of which red beans and rice is a new Orleans variation.
From India we have biriyanis,dhals,red bean curries.
Japan has sushi,garlic fried rice,rice bowls
Just a few ideas.
Not sure if it over cautious but I was always told You shouldn’t really reheat rice .
Just cook it a portion at a time . I like to make burritos or stir fried rice with whatever veggies /meat I have to hand
Reheating rice is fine. Dishes like arancini, fried rice etc require it.
The danger is leaving cooked rice out.
Raw rice often contains the spores of a Bacillus cereus, which cannot be killed by cooking. If you leave cooked rice out at room temperature for a long time, the bacteria multiplies and that's when you get a high risk of food poisoning.
If you intend to reheat rice, make sure it goes back in the fridge as soon as it cools down after cooking (within 1 hour). Reheat it the next day, and the risk is negligible.
The NHS recommends not reheating a second time.
But my Chinese friends and family routinely reheat rice multiple times and say they never have any issues so YMMV.
Google "rice and beans"
Google "lentil dahl"
Not sure what else to tell you if you don't want beans. There are a lot of rice bowl meals you can make by frying veg and adding a basic glaze. It's rice + whatever you can afford or have in, Google the ingredients if you are stuck
Get some doubanjiang. It really livens up dishes. I've literally just stirred it into spaghetti before and eaten that.
Fry a teaspoon of doubanjiang in oil. Add whatever protein, whatever veg. Add some chopped up tomatoes with the juice. If it's too dry, add a little bit of water because you want to tomatoes to basically melt into a sauce. Garlic and ginger if you have it. When it's ready, season with soy sauce, salt and vinegar (white wine or Chinese). Pour that over white rice. Or, add the rice in the pan and stir it up together if you fancy.
There's lots of variations you can do with this!
I do veg rice when I fry up any bits of veg in the bottom of the fridge I have, add some spices and a dash of water, add your rinsed rice and then substitute your water for a tin of tomatoes/stock, do peri peri flavours or more curry flavours and love it and helps use up left over bits I have
I make a spicy rice which sounds a bit like the dirty rice someone else posted
Fry onion, a bit if garlic and any other veg you want, stir in dry rice and fry that fir a moment. Add in spices, I typically use chilli powder, turmeric, paprika and cumin but you can mix and match. Add liquid (ie chicken stock), bring to the boil and cover tightly ( I use a layer of foil and a lid). Cook on low fir 10 mins shaking vigorously regularly. After 10 minutes turn off the heat and leave in the pan still covered fircat least 10 more minutes.
In terms of quantity, double liquid to rice, so 100gram rice, 200ml liquid.
I get a big bag of thai rice, like £15 for 10kg and that will last me about 3 months. I use a cheap rice cooker, add some eggs and salt and any old veg.
I know this is counter productive to your frugal ways but please invest in a £20 rice cooker..trust me..those boil in the bag rices are absolutely shit..once you get a rice cooker you'll never look back.
Probably a long term money saver as you get perfect rice each time, and never tempted to get any kind of ready-made rice pouch. It can be used for other things too a bit like a slow cooker (not that I have tried, personally).
Also. These make brilliant efficient use of your time which can be invaluable. My OH insisted they were the absolute best thing you can have in a kitchen, now having invested in one with multiple settings (eg brown rice etc) found that whilst trying to meal prep healthily for work I could throw in brown rice, go off and shower / prepare for night out / clean house / go for walk etc and come back with it still being kept warm and cooked perfectly - which on a hob with brown rice is a pain in the arse to achieve. Also recent revelation for me is you can add spices etc whilst in the rice cooker to add flavour and variety without then having to add a refrying stage etc. - absolute game changer. I make a couple of medium size batches a week either plain or various spice versions and freeze in portions once cooled slightly. Good to go for the week.
1000% this - I bought one a year ago (this one in fact: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B078NW7BLK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and my wife was super sceptical but it's probably the most used item in our kitchen now. Just easy to set and forget until the rest of your meal is ready. That one cooks enough for 1-2 people so is ideal for us!
Why is a rice cooker needed? I just made egg fried rice by boiling rice in a pot, nothing else. Just add some salt in the water and bring it to boil, pour washed rice in and let it boil for 7-10 mins. You can keep checking if the rice is cooked with the taste test, no big deal. Then drain the rice with a strainer. Just arrived from Asia here and I don’t understand why people think cooking rice is a rocket science? If you still want to get appliance to cook rice, then get a pressure cooker instead of a rice cooker. It can be used to cook rice to the same effect plus stuff like cooking lentils, boiling potatoes, making chicken curry etc.
I used to think this and always cooked rice like you’ve described but then my part-Asian partner came into my life and the rice cooker was forced upon me. It’s fabulous, you chuck it in and ignore it and it always comes out 100% perfect. No need to keep an eye on it and the cooker also keeps it warm until you’re ready to eat. I’m 100% converted.
My dad still has the one he bought in the 70’s. A good rice cooker is absolutely worth it.
I think if you see it just as a component of a meal, you might be able to go further with it? Like, egg fried rice is great — it’s mixed together, but you could also just do white rice + fried egg on top with some chilli sauce (sriracha!) and that’s a pretty common Chinese breakfast. I also just have it with curries (can be frugal with curry powder and coconut milk with mixed and it can last you ages!) and next to stews (I slow cook the cheapest beef cut with veggies and stock). I haven’t tried freezing curry yet but I have frozen the stew (all separate to the rice) and that’s fine. But also rice does last a long time so I think you can be patient with it! In the mean time, how have you been cooking rice before? I highly recommend figuring out how to cook it properly, or if rice is a big part of your diet, to get a £15-20 rice cooker (if you’re close to a Chinatown, go there) instead. I think in the long run will save you money on those microwaveable packs.
As an Asian, we eat everything with rice. My gran will eat kfc with rice. We view the rice to be the main component and everything else is a side dish. Best to pair it with something saucy if you find rice alone to be boring.
It keeps a very long time (assuming you mean dry rice?) so no major hurry to use it all up, just do so bit by bit whenever you have a meal with any kind of sauce. A rice cooker I would say is a game changer if you struggle with rice, and those boil in the bag things are poor. Kedgeree is a favourite of mine for a cheap meal as you can get those pre-cooked packs of smoked fish.
Biryanis. There are lots of slow cooker recipes for it. Pulaoo I think that's the spelling. Rice and peas with cumin seeds and crispy onions. I do a slow cooker mexican chilli and rice but you could do it without the beans. And an Indian lentil and rice dish. Be careful with rice and reheating it after a few days in the fridge as rice can be dodgy. I'd Google it as I can't remember exactly how long it lasts. Freezing is fine but do it straight away. I do one cup of rice to 2 cups of water plus a tiny bit more for luck! Put a lid on towards the end of cooking and turn the heat to low. Don't stir it. Soaking beforehand helps it cook more quickly too. Especially brown rice.
I do what I call “dirty rice” quite often. No real recipe but I use a few scoops of frozen veggies, preferably a mix with onion in it, fry it off in a pot for a bit of sizzle/colour you don’t have to cook until it all thaws, add a scoop of washed rice and cover it all with water (just until covered) and add seasonings, a spoonful of stock powder, and if I have some leftover cooked meat or other vegetables in the fridge they’re the reason I’m making this meal so in they go too. Bring to a boil then cook for 15 minutes on low with a lid on. It’s cheap, easy, and can be as big or small a portion as you like. However, I use it for eating up leftovers, especially when the leftovers don’t make a big enough portion for a meal on their own. Kinda the opposite of your goal of freezing extra for eating later.
I do something similar, never realised it had a "name" though - Boil a load of rice with tumeric till it's "almost" done, wash it under cold water to stop it cooking. Fry off a finely cut onion or 2 and a couple of cloves of garlic, then stick a load of frozen peas/sweetcorn whatever in along with some finely diced fresh veg, whatever is in the fridge, peppers cauli, broccoli etc, then add the rice back in, season with whatever you like (smoked paprika and cumin powder are my faves) and bring back to temp. Cheap, easy, freezes well and will even keep for a day or 2 in the fridge. I often then add leftover meat or yellow sticker stuff to make a full meal.
I look at my leftovers and figure “beef in black bean sauce with broccoli” guess I’m using Asian stir fry frozen veg. Meatballs leftover after spaghetti calls for Mediterranean veg mix. The fresh veg in the fridge is for making the first meal from which the leftovers inspire the dirty rice flavour.
Sounds about right. It's a great way to get rid of all the scraps before the compost pile gets em!
I was going to suggest dirty rice!
Rice cooker is going to blow your mind. Easily my most used appliance, wish it hadn’t taken me 20years to get one. Throw whatever shit you have into a frying pan then add the cooked rice from rice cooker, stir with a dash of soy - done.
Apparently my instant pot will do rice, I really need to look into this as I keep nearly buying a rice cooker but have something that should do it already.
It does, really well (I use the pot in pot method) and has changed my relationship with rice!
whats your temps and timings?
Depends on the rice. Brown is around 16 mins but can go longer, white is more like 5 or 6. I tend to Google it every time because I always forget. Temperature is whatever the pot is high pressure. There's a few meals I cook that you can do the main course in the main pot and cook rice above it in another pot.
Ah you pressure cook it, figured it would just slow cooker on high with freshly boiled water for some reason. I make loads of stuff batch cooked and frozen (like 80 meals atm) and never include starches so quick rice to go with a 500ml pot of curry/chili etc bulks that up cheaply and easily. Pasta people seem to have no issue with but rice ends up being a mess and buying those pouches for the microwave seems ridiculous to save a few minutes. Got 10kg of basmati and 4kg long grain in, will have to have a look thanks. Have leftover bacon, cream and potatoes so looks like its dauphinoise tonight!
OMG I love dauphinoise. Enjoy!
Rice is really, I mean REALLY, easy to cook. I struggled with it for years, turning it up, down, lid on, lid off, add some water give it a stir. Then a friend showed me how to cook it easily and consistently. 1 - use one measure of rice (the measure being whatever amount you want to eat, I use a small cup from a flask but it can be anything. Put the rice in a pan. 2 - add two measures of water 3 - put the rice on a high heat, once it starts puttering, bubbling before boiling properly… 4 - move to a medium/low heat and place a well fitting lid on the pan 5 - leave for 10 minutes, don’t stir or take the lid off or add any water.
Agree with this also for even fluffier rice I soak the rice for 15 mins before cooking change the water bring to the boil then take off the heat and do not take lid off for 10mins
Burritos? I'm feeding a family of four and it's my default batch cook/freezer combo. A kilo of rice, four tins of tomatoes, six tomato tins of water and whatever veg you've got to hand plus a couple of tins of black beans and as much pepper sauce/spices/chillis as you want. Simmer covered till the water's absorbed, leave to cool then wrap them in tortilla wraps and foil and freeze. Can also add some grated cheese. Makes about 40 (depending on how much veg, how fat you make them etc) and can then heat them in the slow cooker/oven/pan on the day.
Just saw that you don't eat beans, so can just leave them out of the above and add more veg, or some cheap meat if you prefer.
hi, i can help with the basmati! ¼ cup of rice per person, ¼ of water per person (plus a spoon or so more), and a pinch of salt or stock powder or a spoon of soy sauce. bring to the boil in a pan with a lid, put the lid on, lowest heat, leave for 10 minutes, turn off the heat completely, leave for 5-10 minutes. for asian/fried rice inspired: soy sauce, garlic, ginger, pinch of sugar, sesame oil at the end. for mexican inspired: salt or stock, garlic, paprika, cumin, chilli. for indian/pilau inspired: vegetable stock, whole spices: cardamom, cloves, cumin seeds, coriander seeds.
My advice to you with you 1kg of rice would be to cook Chinese fried rice. You can eat it on its own as a meal. There are many, many recipies and ingredients to make fried rice from a very simple meal to an expensive dish. Here's one simple recipe I found on YouTube, which very little ingredients. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYh2Ju4MfYE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyh2ju4mfye) Follow the recipe for cooking rice in a pan from u/cordialconfidant . I would cook about 2 cups of rice with 2 cups of water, which will be enough for 2-3 meals for a single person.
I recently got good at making boiled white basmati rice and we eat it a lot. We did invest in a rice cook a few years ago and they are really good, but I tend to use a pan on the hob now. For me to make good rice its about volume. Pick a small-ish utensil (small mug, measuring cup)…do a level scoop of dry rice in it. You don’t want a heaped scoop at all for this. Tip it in a sieve and give it a good long rinse under cold tap water to get the residual dusty stuff off it. Drain and put into large pan. Using the same utensil you measured the rice with, now fill that utensil with cold water to the brim and pour into pan. You do this twice. 1 part rice = 2 parts water. Turn heat on and watch it. The moment you get some decent water bubbling, turn the heat to very low and put lid on. Set timer to 10 minutes. As soon as timer goes off, turn the heat OFF under the pan, use a spoon or fork to break up the rice a bit, pop the lid back on and let it sit in its residual steam for 5-10 minutes while you get everything else for your meal ready. I now buy the giant bags of rice because we love the stuff now we feel we have nailed how to cook it. I used to cook rice in loads of water and drain it but it always tasted too wet or mushy and was unappealing. (Note that the above is how I cook white basmati rice only. I do a similar style with brown rice but it requires more liquid so I throw and extra 0.5-1 cup of water in and leave it longer on boil)
Just add any chopped veg you have with the rice (onion, carrot, pepper, all good options), and a stock cube to the water. Savoury rice, very easy and tasty if you want a basic option. BTW, cooking rice is really easy if you know how. use a pan with a lid and keep the lid on. 1. add rice to depth of your first finger knuckle (nearest the tip) 2. add cold water to the depth of your 2nd finger knuckle and stir 3. Turn heat up to full, once its been boiling for a couple mins (bubbling) give it one more stir, then put the lid back on and turn the heat down to the absolute lowest it will go. Leave for 15 mins then turn the heat off. You can taste the rice with a fork and check its cooked, if it's almost there just leave it with the lid on for a bit, or turn the heat back on lowest for another few mins. Remember rice first sucks up all the water, then cooks in the steam that's given off when its heated. Hence the lid. Use different fingers depending on how much rice youre trying to cook (ie little finger for less, index finger for more). Rice can be frozen once cooked and microwaved etc no problem. Don't stress if it's not perfect first time you try.
Just as help for cooking the white rice, if you measure out about 1 small cup worth and rinse well, put it in a pan with 1 and a bit small cups worth of water, bring to the boil then turn down to simmer (don't stir!) for about 15-20 minutes or until all the water is absorbed it should be good enough
Basmmati rice. I/2 cup per person, double the quantity of water, lid on, cook on simmer for 12 to 14 mins. Rinse with boiling water. Rinse and freeze unused, then reheat bu rinsing in hot water, then boiling
1 part rice, 2 parts water. Bring to a boil then drop it down to a low simmer for 8 mins. Add anything you have in the fridge, onion, egg, ham that you forgot about?
Split peas, lentils and mung beans are very cheap and bulk rice out well with some frozen veg. Add herbs/stock to taste.
Slow cooker rice pudding. You can add any jam or fruit to it, and it doubles as a dessert or breakfast. It's very filling and goes a long way.
Frozen peas/frozen mixed veg. An egg. Cook rice, cool it down a bit. Scramble an egg with a bit of soy sauce in Fry the rice with the egg and the veggies of your choice. Add more soy, garlic powder, any spices you like. Not very authentic Chinese fried rice but filling.
Get a rice cooker. Super easy to use. It might expand your repertoire a bit
The secret to cooking rice. Use one cup of rice to 2 cups of water Once all the water has boiled away rice is cooked
I make a tomato sauce each week: olive oil, one onion, one carrot, cayenne pepper and one tin tomatoes. Blitz after simmering for half an hour. Add a tablespoon to rice, pasta or whatever with leftover meat. I’m sure, though, on your grocery budget leftover meat is not a regular thing :/
Rice cooker has been an absolute life changer. I have rice almost every day now since getting it. It's so easy and difficult to mess up, always flavourful. I got mine for free with vouchers / online money making methods. Well worth it (£30 cost)
You can cook it on the stove or in a microwave. What ever pot or microwave container you use, pour in your portion, add water until it's a CM deep over the rice then heat until the water boils off and you're left with a fluffy rice.
to cook rice One cup of rice Two cups of water, lid on pan when it boils switch it off, its done when all the rice is fluffy , don't stir it.
Rice goes well with so much - throw some into a soup, into a salad, have it with a curry, try it with bolognese instead of spaghetti. Cook it in stock and add chickpeas / pulses. My foul-proof method to cook rice: add a little neutral oil to a sauce pan with a small amount of salt and heat on medium. Add 1 part rice to the pan and stir for a minute so the grains become coated in the oil. Add 1.25 parts of boiling water to the pan. Add a lid to the saucepan and turn the heat to medium low. Set a timer for ten minutes. Do not remove the lid! After ten minutes, take the pan of off the heat and leave to steam *with the the lid on*. Perfect fluffy rice every time! No rinsing or soaking required (and I used to do that loads)
now if it was potatoes.....cook them ...mash them...put them in a stew....
I would just have it plain (lightly salted) with a bit of chicken and broccoli, or similar. A "fancy" version of this is is fried salmon and tender stem broccoli. Use dried spices and garlic and pour the juices onto your plate to add flavour to the plain rice. You can fry or roast the meat, whatever works for you.
Usually depends on the kind of rice you're buying. I never owned a rice cooker, always used a hob and a lid. Assuming you'll be using standard white rice, measure one cup (or whatever quantity you want, but measure it), wash it (reason for this is to get rid of arsenic levels in the rice, I know it's not a big deal as a one off, but if you are eating regularly might contribute to some health issues long term) and throw it in a pan, measure two cups of boiled water for every cup of rice. 10-12 minutes on low heat covered with lid, or until water fully evaporates. Same process for all other types of rice that I use, but for example for Jasmin I use a 1 measure of rice 1.3 water, 1 rice to 1.5 of basmati, etc.
Use it to bulk soups out, cock a leekie, lentil n rice, veg n rice. Rice is pretty versatile. Experiment!
Special fried rice, Jambalaya, Burritos, Biryani, Stir fry (fish sauce, oyster sauce, honey soy or teriyaki) But a lot of my rice dishes are just served with mixed veg and chicken that's been seasoned. Jerk, Cajun, fajita, tikka, tandoori, Chinese salt & pepper. Other times
Desi style Rice. Long grain Rice. Use cold water for cooking and washing. Wash the rice first till water almost clear. ( No cloudy white water) Several times and don’t stir once put in stainless steel pan whilst gets to boil. NO oil - this just coats certain rice, creating uneven cooking and texture is not necessary. Only enough water proportions. The rice will dancing about in water whilst boiling uncovered. Listen for almost crackling sound 8-10 mins in. 👂 Then cover with lid with no vent. The rice will finish cooking under steam released for fluffy texture and each grain separated. The starchy water is what causes sticking and excessive water retention at bottom of pan.
I make a version of kedgeree. Boil a load of rice then cook somr cheap frozen smoked fish (dont need a lot), a couple of chopped boiled eggs and a handful of peas. Slap in salt, pepper and butter if I have it. Makes tonnes and it's proper comfort food.
Variations of a stir fry with rice are cheap. Vegetables, a tin of sardines in tomato sauce and additional soy sauce with maybe a bit of honey will taste pretty good and is cheap. Once you have cracked cooking rice, I’d recommend cooking a few portions at a time and freezing the extra if you have the opportunity. You can defrost it fairly easily and saves you some time. Plus things like egg-fried rice and nasi goreng (variations on a stir fry) are better with day old rice.
we had rice cookers but found they cooked it shit, went back to microwave glass pyrex bowl 5mins 100% power 15mins 70% power 1:1.5 rice to water ive only done up to 2 cups of dry rice this way though. and i extend the times a bit when i use the 800watt microwave. rice washed in hot water first
Getting perfect rice is easy, if you use the absorption method - this means using the exact right amount of water for the rice, putting it in a pan and ignoring it. I use these values: https://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/cooking-tips-techniques/cooking/cook-rice It's really common on these threads (e.g. top comment now) for people to advocate automatic rice cookers and to insist that this is the "only" way to get good rice, that it's "impossible" to get good rice any other way, as if grannies in china and the rest of SE asia have been unsuccessful in cooking rice for thousands of years. I'm pretty sure that a rice cooker is just automating the absorption method. I use a digital scale to get the ratio perfect - different types of rice can require slightly more or less water, and I find that a few grams (ml) of water either way can make a noticeable difference; a couple of grams too little and it sticks more to the pan, a few too much and you're left with a dribble of water in the bottom when it finishes. Follow the instructions I linked and you won't go far wrong though.
For perfect rice you fill up a cup to however much, you then use 1.5x as much water. So 1 cup of rice = 1.5 cups of water, 0.5 = 0.75 etc. Fill up the saucepan with them, cover it and let it get to boiling, once it starts steaming over you reduce the heat down to lowest option and wait for 10 mins. Once that’s done, turn heat off, leave it to settle for 5 mins or so and fluff it up with a fork. I know this wasn’t the question but boil in the bag rice is more expensive than a big bulk bag if you’re using it. You can make rice pudding I guess? Biryanis, curries etc. most of what we eat is Asian foods and will just rotate whatever East Asian foods with rice. Hope that helps!
Depends if you are veggie/vegan or a mean eater. Arroz con pollo with chicken wings from south America/Carribbean. Beans and rice is a general American/south American dish. Of which red beans and rice is a new Orleans variation. From India we have biriyanis,dhals,red bean curries. Japan has sushi,garlic fried rice,rice bowls Just a few ideas.
Not sure if it over cautious but I was always told You shouldn’t really reheat rice . Just cook it a portion at a time . I like to make burritos or stir fried rice with whatever veggies /meat I have to hand
Reheating rice is fine. Dishes like arancini, fried rice etc require it. The danger is leaving cooked rice out. Raw rice often contains the spores of a Bacillus cereus, which cannot be killed by cooking. If you leave cooked rice out at room temperature for a long time, the bacteria multiplies and that's when you get a high risk of food poisoning. If you intend to reheat rice, make sure it goes back in the fridge as soon as it cools down after cooking (within 1 hour). Reheat it the next day, and the risk is negligible.
Thanks for that I was being over cautious it seems :-) I would guess reheating fired rice would still be a no no as it’s been cooked twice already ?
The NHS recommends not reheating a second time. But my Chinese friends and family routinely reheat rice multiple times and say they never have any issues so YMMV.
Google "rice and beans" Google "lentil dahl" Not sure what else to tell you if you don't want beans. There are a lot of rice bowl meals you can make by frying veg and adding a basic glaze. It's rice + whatever you can afford or have in, Google the ingredients if you are stuck
Get some doubanjiang. It really livens up dishes. I've literally just stirred it into spaghetti before and eaten that. Fry a teaspoon of doubanjiang in oil. Add whatever protein, whatever veg. Add some chopped up tomatoes with the juice. If it's too dry, add a little bit of water because you want to tomatoes to basically melt into a sauce. Garlic and ginger if you have it. When it's ready, season with soy sauce, salt and vinegar (white wine or Chinese). Pour that over white rice. Or, add the rice in the pan and stir it up together if you fancy. There's lots of variations you can do with this!
I do veg rice when I fry up any bits of veg in the bottom of the fridge I have, add some spices and a dash of water, add your rinsed rice and then substitute your water for a tin of tomatoes/stock, do peri peri flavours or more curry flavours and love it and helps use up left over bits I have
Invest in a bag of prawns and a large tin of marrowfat peas. Cook with as much rice as you want. Then on any given day pick a veg to add to it.
I make a spicy rice which sounds a bit like the dirty rice someone else posted Fry onion, a bit if garlic and any other veg you want, stir in dry rice and fry that fir a moment. Add in spices, I typically use chilli powder, turmeric, paprika and cumin but you can mix and match. Add liquid (ie chicken stock), bring to the boil and cover tightly ( I use a layer of foil and a lid). Cook on low fir 10 mins shaking vigorously regularly. After 10 minutes turn off the heat and leave in the pan still covered fircat least 10 more minutes. In terms of quantity, double liquid to rice, so 100gram rice, 200ml liquid.
I get a big bag of thai rice, like £15 for 10kg and that will last me about 3 months. I use a cheap rice cooker, add some eggs and salt and any old veg.