Rice is one meal that you can enjoy in various ways. It is a type of grass that most people love to cook due to how it is delicious and easy to prepare. There many places that rice is grown, and also several varieties of rice to try. The well-known types of rice are processed white rice and whole-grain brown rice. However, other types grow in Asia known as the black and the red wild rice. The recipes and cooking techniques that are available for preparing rice are not well known due to the lack of time to try and the rise of convenience culture. Therefore, if you wonder why your rice does not turn out like the restaurants’ rice and is not appealing or appetizing. There are some mistakes that you are doing continuously. Below are ways you can try on how to cook better rice.

Turn burner way down 

To get a perfect pot of rice every time you are cooking rice, you need to know how to control the heat. If you always make the mistake of having a burnt bottom, the burner is too high. Thus, the trick here is to set the burner to the lowest setting available and allow the steam to cook your rice, other than the burner. Importantly, the pot you are using to cook should be a heavy bottom pot, that does not expose the grains to too much direct heat. Try lowering your heat and you can get every grain out, instead of having a burnt bottom every time. Optionally, you can invest in a good quality rice cooker that has a timer and provides the right amount of heat for cooking the rice. 

Select the right lid 

Does your rice always turn out crunchy and in most instances uncooked? Then you are lifting the lid as you cook or it is the wrong lid of the pot you are using. When you have put your pot of rice to boil depending on the recipe you are following. In most cases, you should not lift the lid while cooking. Through this, you cause the steam to evaporate and you will lengthen the cooking time. Also, you need to make your lid tight to prevent the steam from escaping. Steam is necessary to cook the rice. Hence, if it evaporates, it results in undercooked rice that is dry and crunchy. Unless your recipe requires you to add seasoning or you need to check the amount of water. Avoid interfering with the boiling rice pot to get well-cooked rice.

Allow rice to sit after cooking

Do you desire rice that has evenly cooked? Then, you must allow it to sit for a few minutes after cooking. Uneven cooking is a common problem many people face as they prepare rice. So, even though you feel like serving the rice immediately it is ready. Try letting it sit for at least 20 minutes off the heat. This will allow the heat to redistribute in the pot and you will have evenly cooked rice. When you cook the rice correctly, it is normally dry on the top than at the bottom. Therefore, when you allow it to sit, you will achieve better rest as it will all cook the same with the heat from the pot. Also, do not fluff the rice immediately you turn off the burner as it will result in clumps of inconsistent moist rice.

Avoid stirring rice 

If you do not want to have mushy rice as the outcome of your dish. Avoid stirring the rice as it boils. Also, ensure it has the right water to rice ratio according to the recipe you are following. Follow this tip especially with regular rice as you do not need it mushy. Otherwise, with risotto, you can stir as the cooking procedure details are different from that of regular rice. For this reason, since most people prepare regular rice, know the cups of water for every cup of the type of rice you are cooking. So, whether it is short-grain rice, long-grain rice or brown rice all have specific water ratios that you need to be familiar with to avoid ruining your food.

Add some flavor 

If the problem with your cooked rice is that it always tastes bland. Add some flavor to it when adding your rice to get a better result. Some of the options to make it flavorful are adding some butter and salt. Also, adding dry peppers, nuts, cinnamon sticks, are other ways to try at different times. Besides, try replacing the water and use beef, vegetable or chicken broth as it is an easy way to boost the flavor. Others toast their rice before adding the liquid to achieve a nutty taste. All the spices you use to add flavor, are simple to add as they do not require any dicing and chopping and they give your rice dish the necessary flavor.

Wash your rice 

Clumpy white rice is a problem that many people face when cooking rice. Fortunately, the solution is easy as you only have to wash your rice. Through this, you will rinse out the starchy powder that is found in the package of the rice that causes the clumpy mess when it is cooking. Also, add some butter or olive oil to prevent any further sticking. It is important not to skip this step as during the milling process a lot of the industrial by-products are left present in the final product. Thence, have a rinse of cold water or two to get fluffier and more distinct rice.

All in all, there are other tips to follow to cook better rice that are necessary to consider. Especially, regarding the types of rice, you love cooking. Rice is an amazing way to bulk up a dish, hence you must cook it well. As it is straight forward to cook, it is also as easy to mess up. Hence the tips above are helpful to make sure your next pot is perfect.