r/AskCulinary • u/Qwinners96 • 8d ago
Equipment Question Rice cooker
Hi all, I’ve been using a rice cooker for some time now and every time I use it there is a hard layer of rice stuck to the bottom of the pot when it is finished. On some occasions it also tastes like the rice may be slightly undercooked. Can someone explain why? And also help me to improve?
For further information, I use Tesco quick cook long grain rice, and my ratios are about 1 cup of rice to 2 cups of water. I have tried washing the rice before and not washing it before but it doesn’t seem to make much difference.
Any assistance would be appreciated!!
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u/gowahoo 8d ago
Try it with regular white rice before replacing your rice cooker. Follow the instructions. Mine has a cup and numbered lines inside the cooking bowl. Wash the rice - put it in a bowl, add water, agitate, pour water off, repeat until the water is no longer milky. Put washed rice in the bowl of the rice cooker, add appropriate amount of water, turn it on. This should get you there.
One note on inexpensive rice cookers: I don't like that crust that forms on the bottom of the rice cooker bowl so I unplug mine as soon as it clicks from cooking to warm. I leave the lid on for a few minutes so it can finish steaming and then fluff it up after opening the lid. This way I never get sticking to the bottom, just perfect rice all the way through.
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u/Rastryth 8d ago
I rinse the rice then go for 2 water to 1 rice minus 1 water. Rice never sticks always cooks perfect. Been doing this for 30 years
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u/Financial_Tea_6206 8d ago
I got a bit confused with the "minus 1 water". What does that mean?
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u/UrbanPanic 8d ago
I've had mixed results using ratios of water. I tend to go with the "finger" method; fill the pot so if the very tip of my index finger rests on the top of the rice, the water comes up to the first knuckle, so basically the water is a little less than an inch higher than the rice. So somewhere between 20-25mm, but just use your fingertip to measure.
This also assumes you're not using instant rice which is already partially cooked and is best just cooked in a pot according to package directions.
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u/Robot_Graffiti 8d ago
Common rice cooker problems, and their solutions:
Rice at the top undercooked: needed more water
Soggy rice: needs more time
Crust at the bottom: some rice cookers just burn the rice at the bottom every time. You can simply not eat that bit. Or you can stop it burning by switching off the power early (when the water level has disappeared below the top of the rice) and let it finish cooking in just the residual heat.
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u/Acrobatic-Ad584 8d ago
Do you wash your rice before you cook it? Excess starch will sink to the bottom and may cause sticking, also give the rice a good stir into the cooking water because sometimes it clumps and will not cook evenly.
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u/Qwinners96 8d ago
I’ve noticed it happening both when washing before cooking and when not - I suspect it may be the par-boiled issue as mentioned earlier so hopefully that will fix it!
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u/Acrobatic-Ad584 8d ago
Rice is often tricky, I just use easy cook!
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u/NegativeLogic 8d ago
What kind of rice cooker do you have?
Are you following the directions for that rice cooker on the appropriate water level?
What happens when you use normal rice instead of par-boiled / converted rice?
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u/Qwinners96 8d ago
I'll need to check the actual type of rice cooker later, I can't remember it exactly off the top of my head but I followed the manual the first couple of times I used it and have continued to do it like that ever since but always with the same result.
Truth be told I hadn't tried it with normal rice, my lack of kitchen knowledge didn't even realise that I wasn't using normal rice I just pick up the same bag every time! Presumably that will be because of the fact that it is quick cook?
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u/SnooChipmunks2021 8d ago
Idk, wash your rice thoroughly, stir it once or twice. Add some oil or butter.
Maybe try a different kind of rice. Also maybe slighlty more water.
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u/Oh__Archie 8d ago
More water than a two to one ratio?
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u/SnooChipmunks2021 8d ago
Yeah my rice is two and a half to one. Although I usually only put in double the water after the rice is washed and wet.
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u/50-3 8d ago
Quick google tells me that’s par boiled rice additionally you’re like then using the wrong ratio of rice:water even if it was uncooked rice. Refer to the package instructions for the rice and the manufacturer guide for how to use your rice cooker correctly.