Cooking Japanese rice done right
For Japanese people, a bowl of rice – white or brown- is an essential part of our meal. It complements every possible dish, whether it’s fish, meat or veggies!
When Japanese people say “rice”, we mean a short-grain sort that sticks to each other when cooked. Be careful! Long-grain sorts, such as Pandan rice (Jasmin rice) and Basmati rice, are often used in Asian cuisine, but they are not suitable for traditional Japanese food.
I cannot express enough how delicious the REAL Japanese rice is. Freshly cooked rice is a work of art itself! When the heavenly softness and natural sweetness of those shiny, plump pearls fill your mouth, you will feel glad that you’ve lived long enough to taste this masterpiece.
Here in the Netherlands, you can buy Japanese rice or sushi rice basically in any supermarket nowadays. Although they are not nearly as tasty as those consumed in Japan, they are definitely good enough. If you can’t find Japanese rice, Korean or Taiwan rice can be used as an alternative.
Cooking rice is easy if you know the right tricks. They are summarized in one phrase known to almost all Japanese people:
Hajime chorochoro, naka pappa, akago naitemo futa toruna
This magical incantation can be translated as, “start gentle, then fierce. Don’t you dare open the lid even when your baby wails.” I agree, the baby bit sounds slightly severe – knowing how difficult for moms to calm hungry kids – but the message is clear: don’t open the lid until done. And it’s so true. Just let your kids play for another 15 minutes for so and they will be rewarded with the most fluffy rice!
How to Cook Japanese White Rice
Equipment
- sieve
- pot or deep pan with lid
Materials
- 3 cups Japanese white rice (dry)
- 3 cups water (cold)
Instructions
- Rinse 3 cups of dry rice with cold water. To prevent rice from absorbing the smell of bran, do not soak the rice in water at this stage. Drain the water using a sieve and rinse the rice gently with your hand. Rinse the rice at least 2 more times or until the water will not turn milky anymore.
- (You can skip this if you don't have time) Soak the rice in a plenty of fresh water for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Put the drained rice in a deep pot. Add water. The rice-to-water ratio is 1:1, so if you have rinsed 3 cups of dry rice, add 3 cups of water.
- Put the lid on and DO NOT OPEN it again until the cooking is finished! Turn on the heat and let it boil with medium fire.
- After 10 minutes or so, you will see steam shooting out from the hole on the lid. The lid will move with boubles, but that’s OK. Once the vigorous boiling stage is reached, turn the heat down to low. Wait 5 minutes and turn off the heat completely. Simply leave the pot for 20 minutes. The remaining heat continues to cook and steam the rice, so DON’T OPEN the lid.
- After 20 minutes, you can finally open the lid. The rice is now cooked. Fluff it up gently from the bottom with a rice paddle or a large spoon and serve!
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