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For those folk who
have newly discovered there is a kitchen in their house, I thought
some basics would be a nice addition. Cooking good rice doesn't
really require a recipe, but since I manage to scorch it pretty
often, this is a 'gentle' reminder that attention to detail works
in the kitchen too.
I rarely have a handy
measuring cup when I need one, so I tend to use 'whatever will
hold water'. A teacup is a nice measurer. Rule of thumb is however
much dry rice you use, add twice that amount of water.
1/2 cup of rice to
1 cup cold water
1 cup rice to 2 cups
water, pretty 'basic' stuff!
A cup of rice will
create 2 cups of cooked rice, which is quite a lot, plan on leftovers
unless you have a big family.
Add a teaspoon of salt
to the saucepan that you've put rice and water in.Put a close-fitting
lid on the pot.
Bring everything to
a boil and turn the pot to a low simmer for about 8-10 minutes.
Turn the pot off without peeking. Go finish dinner, do something
else for 15 minutes or so. Add a pat of butter and fluff the rice.(Ok
to lift the lid and look now.) Taste a bite and check for doneness.
The butter should have coated the rice well, and it should be
tender and separate, not clumped together. If it still has a little
crunch to it, turn it back on very low heat while you finish up
the rest of dinner. At this point, it'll stick and scorch, so
watch it.
Variations:
A Pakastani friend
made delicious 'green rice' at my home once. His method was to
heat the covered pot as directed above, but he tossed in a generous
handful of fresh dill first. When it had reached a boil he took
the pot off the stove and securely wrapped it in a heavy towel
to ensure no steam could possible escape. The result was bright
green, aromatic rice.
If your rice is going
to accompany a German meal, a nice variation would be cracked
black peppercorns and cracked carroway seeds or fennel. Dark rye
bread and hearty sausages and cabbage sound good with this, don't
they?
For Breakfast:
I like to make more
than we intend to eat in one meal. Leftovers are great as a cooked
breakfast, provided you didn't add garlic, dill, or other 'dinner
seasoners' to the rice pot. For breakfast, rewarm the saucepan
with leftover rice and some milk. Sprinkle brown sugar over it
and add raisins or diced apples or pears and cook till the fruit
is softened. (Wonderful with hot buttered toast.)
Text
and images copyright 1998 Martha
Wells
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