Just a quick lesson on cooking perfect, happy* Korean rice every time, without a fancy rice cooker. Don't get me wrong, I
adore rice cookers, certainly wouldn't say no to a free one (hear that, Zojirushi?). In fact, most meals from almost every single day of my childhood started with rice from a rice cooker. Thing is, I
haven’t owned one for many years.
Nowadays, I use a simple, medium-sized, pretty deep saucepot. First, I pour in my preferred brand of Asian rice (more glutinous than American rice).
I never measure it out, just feel the
amount with my hands (2 cups is a good place to start; this will serve 2 people
for dinner, with plenty of leftovers). I then
rinse the rice at least 3 times; you'll notice the water is murky and milky at first,
but after churning the grains through your fingers in cool
water, draining, then repeating a few times, the water will become mostly clear.
Don't sweat the straining; just pour our most of the water each time.
Now you add enough water to the pot so that when the
flat bed of the nail on your pointer finger is flat on top of the grains of rice, the
water just reaches your main knuckle. Here’s
what I mean:What would Rachael Ray call this type of measurement? Finger-balling it? (For those of you who appreciate actual measurements, fill until rice is covered by a 1/2 inch of water.)
The pot now goes on the stove. Heat on high until the water is boiling – a rapid,
furious boil isn’t necessary, but you want some angry little bubbles around the edges.
Turn the heat down to medium low, place a tight
fidding lid on top, and set a timer for 20 minutes. Don’t peek during this time or you won’t
achieve the perfect, steamed effect you’re going for! After 20 minutes, your rice will be perfectly
fluffy, with just the right amount of stickiness.
*happy rice
