What do you add to rice?

I don't usually add anything other than a little salt and fat (butter or olive oil) to the cooking water, although I might use stock if I have some on hand. I just let the protein and veg and any sauce on those (e.g., from a stir-fry) that I'm eating with it flavor it.

As small children, we used to sprinkle cinnamon and sugar on our rice.

You could do a pilaf: saute some alliums (onions, garlic, shallots, etc.), other veggies if you like (e.g., bell pepper, diced carrot or celery), add the rice and stir until it starts to brown slightly, add the water or stock (preferable already hot) with any herbs you might want to use (e.g., thyme, oregano) and chopped tomatoes if you like (canned would be good here), and cook as usual.


You don't need a special rice cooker (unless you want to be able to completely forget about it after you start cooking it). This is how I've been cooking rice for about 40 years (since I was old enough to be allowed to use the stove), and the only times it has failed (burning a little) was when I got completely distracted and let it continue cooking for substantially too long. (This is for "real" rice, not instant, pre-cooked, or converted.)

1) Use a non-metal pot (e.g., Corningware, ceramic, enameled, earthenware), preferably one with a glass lid so you don't have to remove it to see if the water is absorbed.
2) Use the water-to-rice (or stock-to-rice) ratio recommended on the package (varies for different types of rice, especially white vs. brown). (You can rinse the rice if you want, until the water is clear, but I don't. My mother never did, because she didn't believe in washing vitamins and minerals down the drain, and now I'm used to it that way. But if you're used to rinsing, go ahead.)
3) Bring water (and optional salt and fat, if using) to a boil.
4) Add rice, stir briefly, replace lid, and as soon as boiling resumes, immediately reduce heat (generally low rather than warm on an electric stove and as low as you can without the flame going out on a gas stove, but stoves do vary, so you may have to play with this the first few times you try it; you want it to go down to a bare simmer or not even even simmering; don't be afraid that it's too low; if the water boils over, the burner is too hot).
5) Cook until water is absorbed, about 15-20 minutes for white rice (check after 15) and 35 to 45 minutes for brown rice (check after 35). When water is absorbed, turn off heat. If you leave the pot on the burner, it will easily stay hot for 10 minutes or more if you need to finish with other dishes that you're serving. Fluff with fork before serving.

If this doesn't work for you, you can also cook rice like pasta (i.e., in lots of water, at least four times the amount called for in the directions on the package) and drain it in a colander when you're done. You will lose lots of the starch when you drain it (so you probably don't need to rinse it, even if you normally rinse when you're only using as much water as the rice will absorb). You'll want to keep the water at a boil, just like you would for pasta. It will generally cook a little more quickly this way. It's been a while since I've done it this way, but I think it was about 12 minutes for white rice and 30 minutes for brown rice. Just spoon out a few grains to test.

I add soy sauce, or cook it in vegetable stock and its always yummy that way Sweet Chili sauce is also a winner but a few more calories

Francl27 wrote: »

Yeah I've been looking at rice cookers, just need to check them out in the store because I have no idea what size to get for 4 people.

Growing up, we had five in the family and ate rice every day. Our rice cooker made up to eight cups of rice, though we usually made five cups at a time. We ate a ton of rice though, so I'd recommend going with something smaller than what we had unless you, too, buy rice by the 25 or 50 lb bags

... and apparently brown rice has a high amount of fibre which is great at cleansing
the colon.

Salsa - every time.

Tonight I cooked it in chicken stock, added some thyme and onion.

Dinner is actually a lazy meal tonight. I took a baking pan, put in a cup of rice and a cup and half of chicken stock, then added onions and thyme, and a couple of chicken breasts. Cover it in foil and bake it on 375 for about 45 mins. Not a lot of prep involved and moderately healthy. That and a side of broccoli and you have a great meal.

Usually Furikake,low sodium soy sauce,or Sriracha.

Bumping to try some of these. I usually just put butter and some herb and garlic spice mix on it if my main dish isn't "saucy".

light shredded cheese or peanut sauce, mainly. looking for a good healthy peanut sauce recipe to replace the store bought stuff.

chilli oil, salt and black roasted sesame seeds. When I'm cooking it, sometimes I also throw a green tea bag in the water.

I also put my meat, veggies and a tiny bit of the juices from the pan the meat was cooked. I guess I need to remember to log that as "chicken drippings."

A glass of water..

Raisins, peas and toasted pine nuts