Rice is a staple of the Japanese meal, yet how confident are you when it comes to washing, measuring, and cooking rice? Iron Chef Kimio Nonaga shares with us the proper way to rinse and cook Japanese rice. The results is rice with a gorgeous sheen and each grain cooked just right.
This information is translated from the Lohas website which has given us permission to put this in English.
Washing the rice.
In a large bowl place your rice and add a good amount of cold water (about three times the amount of water to rice). With your hands mix the rice in the water and discard the cloudy water. Repeat until the water rinses clear, usually about three or four times.
POINT: Use good water, but not too expensive. Filtered or tap water is fine.
Put the rice into your rice cooker. Add water. The amount of water should be one part water to one part rice. The key point here is to measure the rice after the ten minute rest in the strainer, not the original measuring before rinsing.
(Yukari's note: When we tested this recipe at home, two cups dry rice measured to about two and a half cups after rinsing and resting for ten minutes. It made a huge difference in the rice after cooking, a big improvement. The rice was fluffy and tender. Also, it was much easier to get the rice out of our ceramic rice pot. Uusally, rice is stuck to the bottom of the pot.)
Cook your rice as you normally do, or by turning on your rice cooker.
(Yukari's note: At our home we cook our rice in a donabe or ceramic pot. I let the rice soak in the water for about an hour. Turn on the heat to high for nine or ten minutes. The key is to listen for the water boiling. Then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for twelve minutes. Then, I turn on the heat to high for one minute to try and make a nice crust on the bottom of the pot.)
You too will love this way of cooking Japanese rice, as taught to us by Iron Chef Kimio Nonaga.
You may also like this post on how to make dashi from Iron Chef Kimio Nonaga.
