# Brown Rice Help? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 26, 2006, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112 "2006-07-26T17:17:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Rachael\_Rage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Rachael\_Rage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachael_Rage)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2006, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/21 "2006-07-29T20:57:18Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Ah…jasmine. Are you rinsing it first? I rinse jasmine first and it holds onto enough water that it then needs less added in the pot. Plain ol’ cheap “long grain white rice” I don’t rinse first, and that gets the 2:1 treatment. > > Sorry, didn’t mean to insult. Takes all kinds to make up a message board. Glad you’re not \*that \*kind! 😃 It’s all good WhyNot. I won’t cast aspersions on our converted rice-using brethren (well, maybe when they’re not around). But yes, I do rather thoroughly rinse the Jasmine rice before I cook it so: mystery solved! I’m going to try some brown rice tonight, so I will stick to the 2:1 ratio and see how it goes. I will report any tips, tricks or pitfalls of note. ---
**Author:** ![bare](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bare/32/471_2.png) [@bare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bare)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2006, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/22 "2006-07-30T22:25:06Z")
Rice lover checking in and I cook all rice the same way. Two parts water to one part rice. Add tight lid. Bring to a hard boil for a minute or two (when you start to see copious amounts of steam come out). Turn off the burner. Don’t peek. Seriously, don’t touch that lid for thirty minutes. Works for wild rice or blends too. You can’t possibly burn it this way and it will come out perfectly…trust me. ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2006, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/23 "2006-07-31T01:13:33Z")
When it comes to cooking rice, I admit defeat. I used [this thingy](http://www.blackanddeckerappliances.com/product-83.html) for years to make rice. More versatile than a regular rice cooker. Embrace the technology! ---
**Author:** ![Rachael\_Rage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Rachael\_Rage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachael_Rage)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2006, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/24 "2006-07-31T02:36:09Z")
> [@bare](#): > > Rice lover checking in and I cook all rice the same way. Two parts water to one part rice. Add tight lid. Bring to a hard boil for a minute or two (when you start to see copious amounts of steam come out). Turn off the burner. Don’t peek. Seriously, don’t touch that lid for thirty minutes. > > Works for wild rice or blends too. > > You can’t possibly burn it this way and it will come out perfectly…trust me. Well, that sounds pretty close. I used 1/3c. brown basmati rice and 2/3c. water, plus a smidge more water due to all those here who said it should be 1 to 2.5 😃 I make small quantities since it’s (usually) just for me. It turned out it was too much water. When the rice was done (tender but not sticky) after about 30 minutes, it was still very wet. I took the lid off and boiled off the excess water. It turned out pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![bare](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bare/32/471_2.png) [@bare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bare)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2006, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/25 "2006-07-31T02:52:44Z")
> [@Darth Vader's Little Pal](#): > > Well, that sounds pretty close. I used 1/3c. brown basmati rice and 2/3c. water, plus a smidge more water due to all those here who said it should be 1 to 2.5 😃 I make small quantities since it’s (usually) just for me. > > It turned out it was too much water. When the rice was done (tender but not sticky) after about 30 minutes, it was still very wet. I took the lid off and boiled off the excess water. It turned out pretty good. Well see? You didn’t trust me! ---
**Author:** ![bare](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bare/32/471_2.png) [@bare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bare)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2006, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/26 "2006-07-31T02:55:26Z")
Another nice thing about it is it works wheter you are making a cup of rice or 30 cups of rice, long as your pot’s big enough anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Rachael\_Rage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/71c47a/32.png) [@Rachael\_Rage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachael_Rage)\ **Post date:** [July 31, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/27 "2006-07-31T03:08:17Z")
> [@bare](#): > > Well see? You didn’t trust me! Naw, I just read your post too late. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BlueKangaroo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3d9bf3/32.png) [@BlueKangaroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlueKangaroo)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/28 "2006-08-04T15:50:21Z")
I just wanted to thank **bare**. Last night I had perfect brown rice. Finally! ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2006, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/29 "2006-08-04T16:06:12Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Ah…jasmine. Are you rinsing it first? I rinse jasmine first and it holds onto enough water that it then needs less added in the pot. Plain ol’ cheap “long grain white rice” I don’t rinse first, and that gets the 2:1 treatment. > > Sorry, didn’t mean to insult. Takes all kinds to make up a message board. Glad you’re not \*that \*kind! 😃 It depends on the rice how much water to add. The standard is 2:1, but I find that too high for most rices (and I do not rinse my rice). The jasmine rice I use, unrinsed, at about 1 1/2 water : 1 rice ratio. It is also marked as “New Crop 2006” on the packaging. The fresher the rice, the less water it needs. Plain ol’ store-bought rice I put a little more water, say 1 3/4 : 1. With a 2:1 ratio, the rice always ends up too mushy and soggy for me in most cases–unless the rice is very dry. ---
**Author:** ![bare](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bare/32/471_2.png) [@bare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bare)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2006, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112/30 "2006-08-05T02:19:45Z")
> [@BlueKangaroo](#): > > I just wanted to thank **bare**. Last night I had perfect brown rice. Finally! Amazing ain’t it? I want to thank you for giving it a try and coming back to report the results. Folks don’t think it’s going to work and rice is way more complicated than it is, and don’t even bother to try it. I had to go count just now, I have on hand 16 different types of rice, which includes two types of wild rice (which isn’t rice at all) , I make them all the same way and they all come out nicely done, with no burning and no extra water and always just the way it should be even if it’s sticky rice or supposed to be fluffy. Amazingly, once the boiling is done, even if you don’t open up the pot for an hour or an hour and a half, it’s still perfectly done. If you like to stir fry, the next secret is to let your rice age in the refrigerator for a day or two before you use it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/brown-rice-help/366112.md?page=1)