Cooking Basics: Getting Perfect Rice

Rice has to be the all round perfect cheap, easy, healthy food. It's really easy to make and can store in the freezer for ages. However, as my Indian boss use to alway say cooking good rice is an art. I have come to believe him. Rice, often overlook, can be made into a powerful base to create a range of fantastic dishes. All we have to do is respect the process.

Most people think that you just throw rice into a pot or rice cooker and bam its done. However, this is not the case. Rice requires prep.


Step One 

Using cold water you have to rinse your rice. This is best done by putting your rice into a pot and running your fingers through it then emptying the water and rinsing again until the water is clear. Make sure to drain your rice well.

If you know that your rice is old then you may need to soak it for about 30 min before hand. Especially if your rice is Oryza type or basmati (although I never really soak basmati just give it a good wash).


Step Two 

The best way to get nice rice is through the absorption method. Simple put you measure the amount of rice to water so that all the water is absorbed when the rice is cooked.  Place the washed rice into a heavy pot or rice cooker. You will then need to use 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 cups of water per cup. The more water you use the more soft the rice will be.

Now here is the real secret to add flavour to rice. Get a tablespoon of oil and add it to the rice and also add a pinch of salt. This will help the flavors of the rice come out.

Step three

If you have a rice cook let it do its magic. However, when its done leave on the rice cooker on warm for at least ten minutes, 30 minutes is better.

For the rest of us. Bring rice to the boil add a tight fitting lid. If your lid is not tight you can put a cloth over the pot and place the lid on time to stop the steam from getting out. Then turn down the heat and let it simmer for 20 mins. After 20 mins take off the heat and let it sit for a minimum of 10 mins. Longer is better but 30 minis is idea.

Then simply fluff the rice and serve.

Storage  

Dry
For dry rice you want to keep it away from the air and heat as this will destroy the flavours of the rice. You could use a Mylar bag with an oxygen absorber to prevent spoilage and store the rice in food grade buckets with a gamma seal lid or even store the bags in a freezer.  With this type of method rice can last years but given the cheap cost of rice this method is a little unnecessary. However if you feel the need I might write up a long way to store rice in the future. For most people rice can be bought when it is needed.

Mylar Bag

Cooked 
Warning: Consuming cooked rice that had not been reheated correctly is very dangerous as cooking rice does not destroy all of the bacteria. That being said if you do it right there is nothing harmful about reheating cooked rice.

After you cooked the rice and it is ready. Separate the rice into bags or wrap in glad wrap.  Make each poration one serving as this will ensure efficiency. Don't let the rice sit for more than 24 hours before putting in the freezer and don't put in in the fridge unless you plan it eat it the next day after microwaving. I suggest putting the cool rice into the freezer straight away as this will ensure that it does not sit in the danger zone.

Me and my boyfriend usually take a portion of rice with us for lunch. We take it to work and put in the fridge to eat later. Because it is frozen and we are microwaving before it even defrosts the rice comes out perfectly.

Rice is a great meal bulker and cooked right can be flavorsome on its own.  Sometimes nothing is better than plan cooked fluffy rice.



Links to things you will need for good rice:

10-5 Gallon Mylar Bags and 10-2000cc Oxyfree Oxygen Absorbers for Dried Dehydrated and Long Term Food Storage

Japanese Rice Washing Bowl with Side and Bottom Drainers

The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook: 250 No-Fail Recipes for Pilafs, Risottos, Polenta, Chilis, Soups, Porridges, Puddings, and More, fro (Non)

The Mexican Mix

So me and the boyfriend have this Mexican mix. It delicious and really good to pair with some meat, fish or even just bread, but you can also leave it on its own. It stores up too a week and a half in the fridge.

What you will need 

500g Black Beans
1 Spanish onion diced
250g of canned corn
1 bunch of coriander (cilantro) roughly chopped
100g tasty grated cheese
3 teaspoon chilli powder
2 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon  oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
Salt and pepper

What you need to do 

1. Cook the Black Beans and leave to cool (see here for how to cook black beans)
2. Add the spanish onion, coriander, cheese into a large bowl
3. Add the black beans and corn
4. Add the paprika, oregano, cumin, and salt and pepper to taste.

Thats it. An easy Mexican side that you can have with almost anything.

Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

So I thought you guys would like to see our Homemade Tortilla Bases

So we had this polenta sitting in the pantry for months and had no idea what to do with it. Then the boyfriend suggests that we make tortillas with them and then BAM we had tortillas.

What's great about these is that they practically last forever. We are going to make quesadilla (recipe to come later) in bulk, store then in the freezer and take them out each day to cook in the sandwich press at work.

So Enjoy

Our Homemade Tortilla Bases (makes 4)

Da Ingredients

100g fine polenta (cornmeal)
100g plain flour
1 teaspoon of salt
150ml water
Some oil

Da tools 
Backing parchment
Rolling pin
Kitchen scissors
Pan

Da Method 

Step 1

1. Before hand if the polenta is too coarse, try making it finer with a food processor before use.

2. The first step is to make the dough. You will need a mixing bowl. Put 100g of flour and a teaspoon of salt in the mixing bowl. Add 150ml water, and stir it in. Next, add 100g of polenta and mix well with your hands. Note, if it is too sticky you may want to add extra flour and make sure there is some flour on your hands before you start. After you have mixed it gather the dough into one ball.

Have baking parchment, a rolling pin and kitchen scissors ready.

Step 2

3. Divide the big dough ball into quarters and roll each piece of dough into a ball. Put one ball of dough between two sheets of baking parchment and gently press it with your hands. Using the rolling pin, roll out the dough through the baking parchment until it has a diameter of about 18cm. Use the kitchen scissors to cut along the dough along with the baking parchment into a circular pancake shape. Do the same with the others. Note: Don't worry if the paper is sticking too much it will be easy to pull off in the cooking process.

Step 4

4. Now it's time to fry the tortillas. Get your frying pan ready by putting a light coat of oil.  Place the frying pan over a moderate heat. Peel off the baking parchment from only ONE side and fry that side.

5. At this point, peel off the other layer of baking parchment, and add a little oil to this side (If your are using a spray oil be careful). Once the bottom side is golden brown, turn the dough over. Remove from the pan, and do the same with the other tortilla bases.

Step 4 part 2

Step 5

6.Once all four tortilla bases are golden brown and taken off the pan, they are ready to eat :D

And BAM! Tortillas

Tip
Adjust the size of the tortillas depending on the size of your frying pan. You can make more or fewer tortillas by adjusting the amount of ingredients needed. However, this will take more or less time depending on the number of tortillas you wish to make.

Cooking basics: Black beans

Black beans are a great food to to have in the house. Not only do they keep for a long time dry they last for a while even after they have been cooked. Not only are they durable they are healthy too. Black beans have the highest source of phytonutrients out on any plant, they help the digestive track stay healthy, and are low GI. The boyfriend and I use black beans regularity in our food to bulk it out and enjoy the health benifits. 

How to select good Black beans? 

Try to find a place that has a regular turnover of black beans. This will ensure that the beans are fresh and help with long term storage. Fresh beans will store up to 12 months in a dark cool area but the longer you leave the beans the longer they will take to cook. Another idea is to buy canned beans. Because black beans require a long time to cook they don't lose nutiurents in the canning process. As an added advantage canned beans don't need soaking or cooking. 

Fast Vs slow soaking 

It's best to soak the beans before you cook them as it lowers flatulence-related substances like raffinose and stachyose. However, there are two ways to soak beans, one fast way and one slow way. 

For the slow way.

1. Remove any twigs or small rocks from the beans as sometimes the manufacturing process misses these things 

2. Put the beans into a metal pot or bowl

3. Fill with water till an inch above the beans. 

4. Cover and leave overnight 

For the fast way. 

1. Again, remove any twigs or small rocks from the beans.

2. Cover with an inch of water and bring to the boil. Add extra water if need. 

3. Boil for about 2-3 mins. 

4. Remove from heat and leave for two hours. 

What method you use is based in how well organized you are and how much time you have. 

The cooking. 

With the soaking done the hardest part is finished. Cooking is really easy. 

1. Place in to metal pot and bring to the boil

2. Once it's reached boiling point lower the heat to simmer. Add water as needed. 

3. Cook for around 20 min. Note that older beans will need longer. 

For storage.

Place in plastic contaner or ziplock bags. Black beans will last 3-4 in the fridge and around 2 months in the freezer. This includes opened black beans cans.   

And that's it. An easy and healthy food that can be stored up too 2 months.