What's the trick to make white rice like Asian restaurants?

Parent Cafe
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<p>Ok…rice wasn’t sticky enough. I think all the rinsing and soaking interfered with the stickiness.</p>

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<p>More water!</p>

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<p>^^Next time you go to the Asian restaurant where you like their rice, ask them which brand/kind they use and how they cook it. I believe most Asian restaurants use rice cookers and won’t have time to soak their rice. Jasmine is a long grain rice so it won’t be sticky enough for you.</p>

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<p>This thread reminds me of how, in the last couple of years, my husband and I have really been working on trying to improve on the foods that we eat. We spend a lot of time researching and educating ourselves on how to enhance the natural flavors of food. So I thank you mom2 for making me think more about rice. </p>

<p>I remembered someone recommending upthread that the whole pot of rice be stirred and mixed thoroughly once it is done cooking. I normally don’t do that but did it tonight and my daughter mentioned that the rice was especially good. I thought so too and also noticed that the rice was stickier. Maybe that is something that you can try mom2?</p>

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<p>^^^
Yes, I’ll try that. I often do stir, but I didn’t today. </p>

<p>I agree with the sentiment of trying to improve the foods that we eat. :)</p>

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<p>In HI, Japanese style is to stir the pot as soon as the rice is done and the letting it steam for another 15 or so minutes. Chinese style is you just let it cook, then steam the extra 15 minutes, then dig in! Rarely do I or most Asians I know season the rice when it’s cooked; sometimes they will put sprinkles of diced, roasted seasoned seaweed or other toppings. Rarely, folks do cook rice with chicken broth but usually not. </p>

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<p>I do not profess to be an expert on Japanese rice. i only profess to be an expert on making rice that my mother will eat. She’s a very picky eater, and it’s been a difficult go here to get the calories into her. She’s very thin and it takes very little to make her go off what little she will eat. I don’t think she’d survive in any nursing home–a few days in a hospital for tests nearly did her in, and it took me months to get her weight back up when she lost it. So, I indulge her. Yes, I am considered a pretty good chef, though not professionally. Some of my close friends are true chefs and I have helped them when they’ve done some gigs, but I don’t even hold a candle to them. Not even close. </p>

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<p>I’m going to a larger Asian store tomorrow. I think it primarily has Chinese products, but we’ll see. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a store here that is exclusively Japanese. There are some Vietnamese stores, which son’s GF’s mom has taken me to. She only uses jasmine rice, which is very good, but not what I’m trying to get. </p>

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<p>We often use short grain calrose rice. It can be sold in 1-5 pound bags. Might be good to just buy small amounts until you find ones best matching your preferences. </p>

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<p>

I didn’t know if it was a “feature” of my particular cooker, but I found that lifting the rice (or oatmeal for that matter), mixing it almost like a mason does the instant the cooker says “done” really worked for me. I do it really quickly, preferring speed to thoroughness, and then close the cooker lid. This is all new to me; I seldom ate rice a couple of years ago.</p>

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<p>You need <a href=“http://www.uwajimaya.com”>http://www.uwajimaya.com</a></p>

<p>I get niko niko calrose rice, but what I want to learn to make is sushi rice.
Havent tried yet though.</p>

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<p>In HI, they sell instant packets you can add to a pot of freshly cooked rice to make sushi rice (or you can buy each of the ingredients and make your own sauce). It is slightly vinegary, slightly sweet. </p>

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<p>Because I’m still getting the long, med, short grain rice straight in my head, I found this on Whole Foods website:</p>

<p>“Long grain” is just a generic classification for rice whose milled grains are at least three times as long as they are wide. (Don’t worry; you don’t have to be good at math to love rice.) Common varieties are usually simply labeled “long grain,” but you might know them as basmati, Carolina, jasmine or Texmati.</p>

<p>With “medium grain” rice, the grains are less than three times as long as they are wide. Look for bomba, carnaroli, arborio, vialone, Valencia or Thai sticky rice, to name a few.</p>

<p>This is the last one that involves math, we promise. “Short grain” rice indicates grains that are less than twice as long as they are wide. To confuse things a bit, though, medium grain and short grain rice are often combined into this one category, which includes sushi and CalRose rice.</p>

<p>Rice Prep
Rinsing</p>

<p>Though modern processing techniques are effective at removing impurities and producing clean, consistent rice, many people still prefer rinsing it before cooking. Proponents say another benefit of rinsing is removing any loose starch, making it less sticky for more consistent cooking.</p>

<p>Soaking</p>

<p>Some rice (Basmati, for example), cook better after soaking in water to soften the grains for better texture or to prevent breaking of brittle varieties. Most sticky rice won’t cook properly without soaking, so if your recipe requires it, listen up.</p>

<p>3 Methods for Cooking Rice</p>

<p>Most folks think there’s just one way to cook rice, but that couldn’t be further from the truth.</p>

<p>Absorption Method</p>

<p>This is the most popular method for cooking rice, using a set amount of rice and a set amount of water for a set amount of time. By the time the water is absorbed, the rice should be done.</p>

<p>Steaming Method</p>

<p>To avoid sticking to the bottom of the pot, this is usually the preferred method for cooking sticky rice. Soaked and drained rice is put in a special steaming basket or pan over a pot or wok of boiling water and cooked with steam alone.</p>

<p>Boiling Method</p>

<p>In this method, the rice is cooked much like pasta. The rice is sprinkled into a large pot of boiling salted water then stirred often to prevent sticking or burning. After cooking, be sure to drain it immediately and thoroughly, then rinse quickly in cold water to halt the cooking. (Note: don’t try this method with sticky rice.)</p>

<p>A Few General Cooking Tips
If the uncooked rice in the pot is more than two inches deep, choose a larger pot.</p>

<p>Use a tight-fitting lid so the steam will stay in the pot while the rice cooks.</p>

<p>When preparing large quantities of rice, consider cooking it in two or three smaller batches.</p>

<p>Oddly enough, microwaving rice takes no less time than cooking on the stovetop.</p>

<p><a href=“Guide to Rice | Whole Foods Market”>http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/food-guides/rice&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Thanks for the info mom2collegekids. </p>

<p>Here I go again…</p>

<p>I didn’t put much thought into my cooker when I bought it 6 years ago. I just got the most affordable version of the same brand that my friend had. This thread has prompted me to do a bit more research on the subject.</p>

<p>It appears that Cuckoo, a South Korean company, was the first to manufacture this type of induction heating, pressure rice cooker. Online information was a little scarce on the Cuckoo. Most likely because their entry into the international market is fairly recent, so I think most of their literature is in Korean. It is very telling that it is the number one brand in Korea, where rice is eaten almost 3 times a day. It is only recently that companies like Zojirushi, a more widely known brand, started making this high quality cooker.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.rice-cooker-guide.com/asian-rice-cooker.html”>http://www.rice-cooker-guide.com/asian-rice-cooker.html&lt;/a&gt;

</p>

<p>As you can see from here, not all rice cookers are the same:
<a href=“http://www.zojirushi.com/user/scripts/user/prod_category.php?prod_category_id=1”>http://www.zojirushi.com/user/scripts/user/prod_category.php?prod_category_id=1&lt;/a&gt;
<a href=“http://www.cuckooworld.com/usa/product/productList.aspx?Category=tab1&MidCat=140&MidCatNm=Rice%20Cookers”>http://www.cuckooworld.com/usa/product/productList.aspx?Category=tab1&MidCat=140&MidCatNm=Rice%20Cookers&lt;/a&gt;
There appears to be about 4 different levels of cookers; the ultimate cooker has induction heating, pressure and artificial intelligence (“fuzzy logic”). My cooker only has the pressure and logic features so I imagine the advances with the induction heating make the rice even better.</p>

<p>For those who only need 2-3 servings, there are smaller cookers. Plus, you can make extra rice and know that you can eat it for the next 2-3 days with a similar level of freshness. Also, some amazon reviewers claim that even freezing the rice retains all the flavors.</p>

<p>I am starting to get on my nerves with all my yammering, but my point is, why eat ground beef quality meat when you can eat wagyu kobe beef quality (I have never eaten kobe beef but assume that it is quite delicious considering that it costs $30+/lb) with a small investment upfront? Another comparison is why use a hand held mixer when the Kitchenaid gives you far better results, especially if you bake a lot? </p>

<p>And no, I do not own any shares of these companies. Just think that everyone deserves to eat high quality food if they can.</p>

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<p>I’m just popping in to talk about rice again. I have a good rice steamer, but was always getting it stuck on the bottom and a little burned.</p>

<p>The technique I learned here works perfectly. I buy Calrose rice, I rinse it usually about 4 or 5 times using my hand to rub together in super cold water, I use 1 1/2 cups rice and 2 cups water, I let it soak in the steamer for 20 - 30 minutes before I turn it on, set it to sticky rice, when it beeps I unplug it and put a paper towel on top for 10 minutes. </p>

<p>I really don’t care for the taste of basmati rice, but are there other brands out there I should try?</p>

<p>I swear I now think mine tastes better than the local asian places. </p>

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<p>Growing up I LOVED the slightly burnt/browned rice on the bottom. I was sad to see rice cookers get better, eliminating that “feature”. What rice steamer do you have?</p>

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<p>^^^
Lol…some people do like the slightly burned bottom!</p>

<p>But, no one in my family does, so I also turn off my cooker as soon as it’s done to minimize.</p>

<p>I was in a different grocery store last week and they had some med-grain rice called Water Maid. It cooked really well, nice and sticky, which is what I wanted. (I just looked it up. In the Midwest it’s called River Rice)</p>

<p>:)</p>

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<p>Just dont buy rice from areas used to grow cotton.
<a href=“High Levels Of Arsenic Found In Some Rice; California Rice Safe - CBS Sacramento”>http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/2012/09/19/reported-arsenic-levels-in-some-rice-prompt-concern-california-rice-safe/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;