White rice looks much more appetizing than one that has acquired a grayish or yellow hue after cooking. This color change clearly indicates an error during preparation.
Most often, novice cooks encounter this problem. Once upon a time I had to go through this. But now I know how to make sure that the rice remains perfectly white after boiling.
The first thing to look out for is the type of rice. Each of its types is intended for a specific dish. For example, if you need to cook pilaf or a side dish, then you should opt for Jasmine or Basmati rice. They can be recognized by their long grains and crisp white appearance. They have a fairly hard shell that practically does not absorb water during cooking. Due to this, the grains always remain snow-white.
Also, the final color of rice is greatly influenced by the processing technology of the grains. It is impossible to achieve perfect whiteness of rice if it is unpolished or parboiled.
Undoubtedly, such a cereal will be much more useful than its polished look. But after cooking, it will definitely remain yellowish.
But what if the rice was bought a long time ago, and you do not know what sort it is, and how its grains were processed. In this case, you will have to use one of the methods.
Rice washing
Long and thorough washing of the grains is necessary in order to remove excess starch, which would prevent the rice from becoming white.
There are two ways to do this:
- Pour cold water over rice for 2 hours, and then drain it.
- Pour the grains into a fine-mesh colander and rinse thoroughly under cold running water.
This water treatment will not only ensure the whiteness of the rice, but also improve its taste.
Adding citrus juice
Another trick for getting perfect white rice is adding a few drops of any citrus fruit juice while boiling. Lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit and even pomelo are suitable for this. Instead of natural juice, it is allowed to use citric acid or vinegar.
The sour ingredient can be added before or during cooking. In any case, the rice will retain its whiteness.
A few more nuances:
- The amount of water in the pot should be at least three times the volume of the rice itself.
- Cook over low heat.
- Do not put a lid on top.
Roasting raw rice
We proceed to this method after thoroughly washing the rice. Then take a clean saucepan and pour 15 ml of vegetable oil on the bottom. As soon as the container is warmed up, pour the prepared rice into it. As the seeds heat up, they will change color: from translucent to milky white. In this case, be sure to stir them periodically. This entire process will take about 5-8 minutes.
After frying this way, add boiling water to the pot so that it completely covers all the rice. And now continue to cook it over low heat until the liquid has completely evaporated.
Each of these methods will produce beautiful crumbly rice that will amaze with its whiteness. Now its cooking will always be perfect.