Cooking healthy rice in rice cooker - post your recipes

[raildogg]

The rice I cooked in the rice cooker (about a month ago) came out really mushy and sticky. And plain.

What do you guys put in the rice cooker along with the rice? I'm looking for healthy stuff to go along with it. Or maybe just have vegetables on the side. But how do you make it taste nice but still be very healthy.

Not a great cook as you can see

 

[Kaido]

Do you have a timer rice cooker or a good fuzzy logic one?

 

[mkrohn]

I tend to cook meat separate and just put it on that plain rice... Anything you cook in with the rice will be mushy and ruined

 

[Kaido]

I do oatmeal in mine (usually steel-cut). Brown rice is great. Jasmine and basmati are great. Sushi rice is great. Just have to get your proportions of water vs. rice down.

 

[Kaido]

I tend to cook meat separate and just put it on that plain rice... Anything you cook in with the rice will be mushy and ruined

I did mixed veggies in my rice cooker and it was like all of the color got sucked out of them. Now I just microwave them in a bowl of water for 3 minutes and they come out great :thumbsup:

 

[raildogg]

Do you have a timer rice cooker or a good fuzzy logic one?

Not timed, just press one button and it will let you know when ready.

 

[raildogg]

I tend to cook meat separate and just put it on that plain rice... Anything you cook in with the rice will be mushy and ruined

But how do you make that plain rice taste a bit better? The ones from the Chinese restaurants taste very different to the one I make in my rice cooker.

 

[mkrohn]

But how do you make that plain rice taste a bit better? The ones from the Chinese restaurants taste very different to the one I make in my rice cooker.

the ones in the Chinese places are usually FRIED rice with insane amounts of fat content. I'm assuming your goal for the rice is to eat healthier. They have bottles of stuff like General Tso's and other flavorings that I cook the chicken up in and some of that super salty sauce ends up on the rice.

Basically with the rice you can either be super healthy OR you can have it taste good. There's not a decent balance.

For rice sometimes I'll pull some out and drop butter and brown sugar in it. That tastes pretty good and isn't that bad for you.

Real butter makes everything better than say margarine and apparently real butter is actually healthier for you too. For years they said how bad it was because of fat content but margarine has other bad stuff.

 

[It's Not Lupus]

it might be the rice you bought, the cooker, or too much water, but cooking rice is easy and it shouldn't be mushy.

brown rice is healthier than white. i'm not even sure how bad white rice is.

i sometimes cook quinoa in my rice cooker as well. it works.

 

[raildogg]

the ones in the Chinese places are usually FRIED rice with insane amounts of fat content. I'm assuming your goal for the rice is to eat healthier. They have bottles of stuff like General Tso's and other flavorings that I cook the chicken up in and some of that super salty sauce ends up on the rice.

Basically with the rice you can either be super healthy OR you can have it taste good. There's not a decent balance.

For rice sometimes I'll pull some out and drop butter and brown sugar in it. That tastes pretty good and isn't that bad for you.

Real butter makes everything better than say margarine and apparently real butter is actually healthier for you too. For years they said how bad it was because of fat content but margarine has other bad stuff.

I'm talking about the white rice that you can on the side. They have a unique flavor.

Hmm, butter and brown sugar. May not sound very healthy but small amounts won't be too bad. Thanks.

 

[mkrohn]

I'm talking about the white rice that you can on the side. They have a unique flavor.

Hmm, butter and brown sugar. May not sound very healthy but small amounts won't be too bad. Thanks.

The last one I went to it was just better on the plain stuff but LOTS of it. Salt too of course

 

[blackdogdeek]

I've used chicken broth instead of water to add flavor to white rice before.

 

[spacejamz]

obligatory asian rice cooker tip:

place your finger so that your finger tip touches the top of the rice. The water level should be at the first joint.

if you do this, your rice should come out perfect every time...

 

[Kaido]

But how do you make that plain rice taste a bit better? The ones from the Chinese restaurants taste very different to the one I make in my rice cooker.

Sushi rice (not white rice)
Salt
Butter
Olive oil
MSG
Gluten
Chicken broth

My favorite local sushi place puts gluten in their rice, I think to help it stick together...I'm gluten-allergic so I can't eat there anymore

 

[Zeze]

But how do you make that plain rice taste a bit better? The ones from the Chinese restaurants taste very different to the one I make in my rice cooker.

The difference between a real tasty plain white rice vs restaurant fried rice is similar to eating a plain whitecorn tortilla chip vs Doritos Super Ranch BBQ Flavor.

 

[4eigner]

Add butter and coconut milk with the water. Also, the picture above is an excellent tip for where your water level should be.

 

[raildogg]

Sushi rice (not white rice)
Salt
Butter
Olive oil
MSG
Gluten
Chicken broth

My favorite local sushi place puts gluten in their rice, I think to help it stick together...I'm gluten-allergic so I can't eat there anymore

I think I might pass on those ingredients - at least for now

Appreciate it though.

 

[surfsatwerk]

"healthy" rice?

 

[vailr]

1 1/2 c. uncooked rice
3 c. water (preferably use something better than tap water)
1 Tbsp. coconut oil
Optional, if available: fresh Rosemary sprig for seasoning.

Cook (using programmed setting) in rice cooker, about 50 minutes.

Add Himalayan pink table salt and sesame tahini to taste.

 

[Imported]

What type of rice are you using? I almost always cook jasmine or basmati and it always tastes great on its own.

 

[Svnla]

I don't know why folks are having trouble cooking rice with the rice cooker.

I get Indian basmati rice from Sam's Club such as this one = http://www.samsclub.com/sams/royal-basmati-rice-20-lbs/131053.ip?navAction=

Fill up about 1/3 of the rice into the rice cooker cup. Fill it with water and about 1 knuck of the middle finger of water on top of the rice. Turn it on and after 30 minutes, rice is ready to eat. Very simple to do.


If you are eating cheap rice as Uncle Ben, brown rice, and other stuffs, you don't know what you are missing.

 

[SheHateMe]

Rail, i've never cooked a whole recipe in a rice cooker....your problem also seems to be that you are messing up your rice. It shouldn't be mushy, it should be kind of fluffy and sticky. I normally make a chicken, steak, or pork dish in a slow cooker and put the rice in for the last half of the meal. OR, I will bake some fish like Tilapia or something.

Sometimes, I eat rice with my breakfast and I will scramble some steak, eggs, and sausage with some rice and eat that with some hot sauce.

Once the meat is done, I just scoop out some rice and ladle the meat dish over the rice.

It tastes good to me

 

[ponyo]

If your rice was mushy and sticky, then it was likely medium or short grain rice. If you want white rice like the Chinese restaurant, you have to cook long grain rice.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Must... resist... urge...

 

[BurnItDwn]

put like 5 sticks of butter in the rice cooker, when it's all melted, then, dunk toast in it to butter it.