Rice Poll

Is brown basmati implicitly a whole grain?

AFAIK brown connotes unmilled rice so it is indeed whole grain, husk and all.

I've got one and a half sacks of basmati rice with best before dates of feb + mar '23. There is no way I'm throwing it out. Google says you can still safely use pantry stored white rice for 4-5 years after the best before date. And also it says you can get mycotoxin related food poisoning from expired rice, lol cheers.

I feel like since it's getting water boiled through it any nasties would be zapped? No?

you would think so, but this didn't make pleasant reading:

Mycotoxin intake is linked to symptoms that range from vomiting, nausea, and abdominal pain to convulsions, coma, an increased risk of cancer, and a weak immune system

toxins don't 'die'. they're just molecules, so boiling them does nothing to improve them.

"Though spores of C. botulinum are heat-resistant, the toxin produced by bacteria growing out of the spores under anaerobic conditions is destroyed by boiling (for example, at internal temperature greater than 85 °C for 5 minutes or longer). " (WHO)

Not that I'm going to participate in any boiled botulism eating contests.

do you live in a swamp? if not, you should be fine

The bacteria I associate with rice is bacillus cereus, that "exist" as spores and can survive cooking. But imo with your rice that passed a best buy date is on account of the bran/germ the brown rice cld get rancid. U cld stick it in the fridge I guess to retard the onset of rancid I suppose

I've since read that at the first stage of rice going bad it starts to change colour and you you should look out for mould spots then after that it goes rancid. I made some beef biriyani and it was fine but I'm erring towards tossing the lot now. Toxin brain worms.

stop wasting food

https://www.doesitgobad.com/does-rice-go-bad/

How Long Does Rice Last
Uncooked white rice, unlike brown rice, has an indefinite shelf life if stored properly. Don’t believe me? Just check Uncle Ben’s FAQs.

thanks for that link - I had read another earlier that went with 5 years for uncooked white rice rather than "indefinite" and was expecting someone on here to make nonsense of that claim. But it seems if the rice isn't exposed to any heat or moisture, then the best before date can be safely ignored. Thinking about it rationally, rice or dried goods in general are just about the least likely cause of food poisoning in any kitchen.

Brown rice is like whole wheat flour - you have to use it up within a year or so, because the oil/fat content of the bran will eventually turn rancid. It you've ever smelled rancid oil you will know what I mean. White rice and white flour last a lot longer

what is it that ppl like about brown rice over basmati? just curious because the cooking time is what put me off it previously, but do have a good pressure cooker and an instant pot now.

more fibre

I like sushi rice (short-medium grain; I use Nishiki) more than basmati or brown rice. I wash it first to remove the starch, then I make it in a rice cooker with just slightly less water than recommended, and then sprinkle seasoned rice vinegar over it and let it rest with a towel over it and the lid on for it to expand more. It is really good

I don't normally make brown rice, it's mostly for friends who are health nuts (I have many of them). It does take more cooking time. My calculation is that where white rice requires 1 1/2 cups of water for 1 cup of rice, with brown rice it's 2 cups per 1 cup, and the cooking time is twice as long

what is it that ppl like about brown rice over basmati? just curious because the cooking time is what put me off it previously, but do have a good pressure cooker and an instant pot now.

Btw calzino, if you have any aromat it is a nice addition to brown rice or any other rice when you’re adding salt to the water

I'll have to try some brown rice again, my last bag of it expired in the cupboard and was never opened. But it didn't help that I must have bought at least five 10 kg sacks of basmati during the first lockdown.

When my last rice cooker went I never replaced it because I couldn't find an affordable one that was teflon free. Then I went through a dumb phase of cooking it in an instant pot. Now my preference is using my nice German stainless steel saute pan, which is perfect for making pilau.

I'm always sad that I can't make fried rice like you get in Chinese restaurants. You can take in all the pro-tips about the best soya to use and MSG is essential of course, but on a crappy below par domestic gas cooker - you can't generate the heat intensity they have in a commercial kitchen.

Tim Rice ftw

xxxp You can cook rice in any pot, you just have to cook it covered over low heat and watch the time (20 minutes for white rice, 40 minutes for brown) and make sure it doesn't boil over.

One of my friends likes to bake it - you bring it to a boil on the stove and then place it in a 350 degree oven for 10
or 20 minutes or so, depending on the type of rice. She adds mushrooms and other things.

I like my rice cooker, it's on its last legs but I will buy another one when it dies

This poll is missing rice noodles too.

And rice cakes!

I love the medium thickness rice stick noodles (I've bought them from Asian Best), I use them for chicken or beef pho, they don't dissolve immediately upon cooking like the smaller noodles do

When making rice dishes from scratch I think it's essential to wash the rice, removing the outside starch makes it less glutinous and sticky when cooked, and that is important for all recipes

I've read that dried out take-out rice is the best rice to use for home-made fried rice recipes since it fries easily, but I don't know. I tried to make kim chi-hot dog fried rice with it recently and it was awful

I always wash and steep the rice, whether boiling or frying. For a couple of hours if I have the time. Some people steep overnight.

Basmati FTW - it has a much lower GI than any other kind so is better for yiz sugar levels.

I'll cook jasmine if its going to be for fried rice though.

And obvs risotto is its own genre, but Ive gone off that gloop anyway.

Brown rice is the devil and is the reason I gave up trying to be vegetarian as a kid cos every recipe seemed to require it and I hated it so much.

I buy the 5kg sacks of Maharajas Choice, and honestly I never worry about usebys, I'd use it all up within 3-6 months easily.

Risotto doesn’t have to be gloop. It’s essential to wash the rice, removing the outside starch so it's less glutinous and sticky when cooked. That is especially important for risotto. You want to make a creamy mixture where the rice grains are separate. That involves a lot of attention, slowly adding stock to the mixture while you're stirring it

Oh I know all that, I think I just got burned out on risotto after the 90s. It is nice immediately out of the pan but very quickly clags.

I've been using this rice for a few years. As close as brown rice gets to being fluffy like white rice. Really versatile for a short grain
https://www.oishii.sg/wiki/413/#:~:text=Genmai%20is%20whole%20grain%20rice,bran%20layer%20and%20the%20germ.

i love brown rice so much. especially with a little gravy. just wanted to say that.

we buy the 25 lb bag of jasmine rice from costco. I buy smaller bags of basmati for indian dishes. I've stopped washing rice to conserve water. I toast the rice in some oil (~1 tsp per cup), use a bit less water (e.g. 1.4:1 instead of 1.5:1), and end with 5 minutes off heat with lid on. Always get seperate grains and no gloopiness this way.

always make too much rice and stir fry the leftovers a day or two later. Highly recommend Night Market book for stir fry recipes, but I hear you on the low power gas burner. I bought a high power propane camping burner for wok cooking outside.

The restaurant where I tend bar has very good food but falls completely flat on their rice game. I've thought about taking the co-owner/kitchen mastermind a cup of basmati and saying "try this and never look back."

I've never been a rice washer, then I read about all the toxic chemicals from polluted water that can be on your rice. Now I'm still not a rice washer. Maybe I don't believe a bit of water can get rid of those chemicals, maybe I'm trying to conserve water, maybe I'm just lazy.

washing the rice for me is about rinsing the starch off the grains, but yeah there is probably all sorts of stuff that you are better off not thinking too much about that gets into the food chain.

Ive seen some indian recipes that call for soaking the rice first as well. I wonder, is it to do with the tools at hand or altitude as well? They do a lot of cooking in those odd little whistle pressure cookers.

I always thought pressure cookers might be so popular in the subcontinent because it is so hot there that containing steam and heat and being able to release it out of a window would be a huge plus.

Better for cooking dhal

yes! and that as well

just wanted to add that to make good chana dal most Indian recipes recommend washing and soaking the split gram as essential preparation!

just a word on brown rice, if you heat a tbsp or so of ghee in your rice pot, and sautée the brown rice in that ghee for a minute or two just until it begins to emit the most positively divine fragrance -- you'll know, because you'll say, oh, my God, this smells so divine, and so will anybody else who smells it -- and then, before it over-caramelizes, you add the water or stock you're going to cook it in, bring to a boil and then cover it tightly (I line the lid with some paper towels, this trick really gets the rice to the right texture I find), then reduce the heat to very low and cook as long as your directions say -- brown rice takes a bit longer than white but not, in my experience, the full "twice as long" some cookbooks advise -- and then once the heat's off let it sit five or even ten minutes unbothered before removing the lid, well, should you do this, you will have some very lovely rice indeed.

I've done the saute method previously with basmati, for some "Mexican style" rice. Which was just basically rice sauted with onions, cumin, garlic, tomatoes, hot sauce and then cooked in chicken stock. And the result was decent enough, but no divine moments!

yes, the sautée is good with regular basmati but not unbelievable. but something in the brown basmati with this, it's really next level.

I want my rice too be sticky. Makes it easier to pick up with chopsticks.

yes, both are good in the right meal

Question: can rice cookers be trusted to get brown rice right? Mine doesnt have a specific setting for it. TBH Im considering swapping it for an instant pot or similar, cos the cooker I have has to have all the lid innards dismantled and washed and dried after every use or it gets mould in the seal which is annoying.

I get it done OK in my rice cooker but have to add much more water and sometimes put it on twice.

a zojirushi/tiger/cuckoo/other asian rice cooker with brown rice setting will get brown rice right

rice cooking is a feature that was added to the instant pot as an afterthought imo, it's not designed to cook rice