Tips and Recipes on How to Cook Brown Rice?

How to cook brown rice? Interesting question; Rice is a popular food and main crop grown all over the world. There are many different types of rice — including long-grain basmati, brown rice, white rice, and sticky rice.
Brown rice is a nutritious food. It is a whole grain that is low in calories, high in fiber, gluten-free. Moreover, brown rice is rich in minerals and vitamins, and you can incorporate it into a variety of dishes.
Whereas, white rice is actually brown rice which lost bran and seed; white rice is poor in some antioxidants, vitamin B, minerals, fats and fibers, and a small amount of protein.

In today’s article, we are going to know how to cook rice, in particular, how to cook brown rice, keep reading to find out some tips and recipes for cooking brown rice.

Brown rice is more nutritious than white rice, and it takes part in a healthy and nutritious meal. Cooking brown rice is as easy and simple; however, it takes a little more water and time than regular white rice.

The key to success cooking brown rice is that you’ll need double the amount of water than white rice. Brown rice also needs enough time to absorb the water. Most of the brown rice will boil for longer than white rice, so for around 30-35 minutes. The secret is to simmer it for most of that, then for the last 5-10 minutes, leave it covered, to absorb the water off the heat – resulting in light perfectly tender grains every time.

Here below some tips and methods to how to cook brown rice

1. Prepare the rice before cooking

Before cooking whole grain rice or brown rice, preferably organic, we advise to rinse it to remove the starch (which makes the rice stick) and all the impurities which can be on the grain of brown rice. Put the rice in a bowl and rinse it several times by rubbing it until the water is no longer cloudy.

2. Cooking time for brown rice

Brown grain rice cook in about 30 minutes. Allow 45 minutes to 1 hour for other types of whole-grain rice, in particular Camargue rice or Italian rice. You can eat brown rice, a little firm, taste it to adjust the cooking time according to your taste.

3. The different cooking methods

There are many ways to cook rice. To rehydrate the rice grain and heat it, you are free for choice according to your equipment at home and the desired result.

a- Cooking with water

In a large cooking pot of salted and boiling water, cook brown rice for 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on the type of rice over medium heat. At the end of cooking, drain the rice using a colander. This method of cooking with steam cooking is the most healthy, provided you do not put too much butter or oil after cooking.

b- Cooking brown rice in a pressure cooker

For this steam cooking under pressure, pour water at the bottom of the casserole dish and put the rice in the basket. Close the pressure cooker and cook for 25 to 40 minutes. The cooking is a little faster because of the pressure inside the casserole. It is useless to salt before cooking because it will end up at the bottom of the water. Spice and salt after cooking.

c- Cooking steamed brown rice

Yum steamed rice, the favorite of dieticians. Put the water in the steamer, then in the container provided with the steamer as much rice as water if you want a firm, non-sticky rice, or twice as much water as rice if you want soft or overcooked rice. Cook 40 to 50 minutes, depending on the desired texture.

There are many foods prepared with rice, Brown rice or white rice; you can find many recipes to have a delicious and healthy meal, here is a basic recipe of brown rice:

Ingredients

- 1 cup or 2 cups of brown rice
- water
- salt

Method

1. Take a cooking pan

2. Measure the rice. 1 cup of raw rice makes about 3 cups of cooked rice. Thoroughly rinse the rice in a colander or sieve until the water runs clear. Put it in the pan.

3. Measure the water. Add 2 and a half cups of water for each cup of brown rice. Lightly salt the water with a teaspoon of salt. Stir.
- Other cooking juices, such as vegetable or chicken broths are also good for cooking rice and adding flavor.
- It is essential to accurately measure the amount of water or broth for the amount of rice you are cooking; otherwise, the final result could be burnt or pasty.

4. Bring the water to boil. Then reduce the heat to low and simmer, after that cover the pan with a lid until the rice absorbs the water and becomes tender. The cooking time will vary depending on the stove used.
- Brown rice usually requires between 40 and 50 minutes to cook. However, you should check it after 30 minutes of cooking to prevent it from burning.
- Simmer the rice on the stove on the lowest heat or on a heat diffuser. The water should bubble very slightly or at the "lowest level."

5. Let it rest. After the water boils and the rice finishes cooking, let it stand with the lid on for at least five minutes. The rice will firm up as it cools slightly, allowing you to serve long, fluffy and intact grains of rice.
- After the rest period, remove the lid and mix the rice with a fork. It should be light and fragrant!
- Serve immediately or let the rice cool for half an hour and refrigerate for future meals.

There are many other recipes of cooking rice; either brown rice, white rice, basmati, or other types of rice, rice has many benefits for the body, so it's good to have it in our meals.