Rice Maker Directions
A rice maker or rice cooker boils rice and keeps it warm until you are ready to eat it. These kitchen appliances are commonly found throughout Asia and are gaining popularity in the United States as well. Learning to make rice in a rice cooker is a straightforward process and can streamline your cooking process dramatically. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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1
Pour the desired amount of rice into the rice maker's removable bowl. Remember that the amount of dry rice will double in volume when it is cooked.
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2
Check the rice's packaging to see if it recommends rinsing the rice. Some rice, including types fortified with vitamins and minerals and delicately flavored varieties such as jasmine and basmati, should not be rinsed, but for most other types, rinsing will remove excess starch and debris from the grains of rice.
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3
Rinse the rice, if recommended, by pouring enough water to cover the rice into the bowl and swishing it around with your hand.
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4
Drain the water from the rice by tilting the bowl over the sink. Be careful not to let the rice fall out.
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5
Repeat Steps 3 and 4 until the water is almost clear. Drain the water off a final time.
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6
Add more water to the bowl; this will be the water the rice cooks in. Different types of rice need different amounts of water, but the general rule of thumb is to add 1 cup of water for every cup of dry rice. Adding more water will result in softer rice; adding less water will result in rice that is more firm.
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7
Wipe the bottom of the rice maker's bowl with a towel before setting it back into the appliance. Water or debris on the bottom of the bowl can interfere with the rice maker's functionality.
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8
Place the bowl back in the rice maker and close the lid.
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9
Plug the rice maker in and push the "cook" button. On older models of rice maker, this may be the only button.
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10
Wait for the rice to cook. The more water that is in the rice maker, the longer it will take. When the rice is done, the rice cooker will make a soft click or beep.
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11
Wait 10 to 15 minutes after the rice maker indicates that the rice is done to open the lid. This will allow the last of the steam to escape and will create the fluffiest rice.
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12
Serve the rice.
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Tips & Warnings
For rice porridge, use 4 to 6 times the amount of water that you would normally.
Use vegetable or beef broth instead of water to make rice pilaf.
References
- Photo Credit boiled rice image by Pontus Edenberg from Fotolia.com
