Text 10320, 104 rader
Skriven 2007-01-10 10:34:54 av Glen Jamieson
     Kommentar till en text av Dale Shipp
Ärende: 688  70110
==================
 -=> Quoting Dave Sacerdote to Dale Shipp <=-

 DSh>  Just what is it that your rice cooker does that ours does 
 DSh>  not?  (I am curious since I've never even looked at one).   
 DSh>  Does it do away with the recommended rinse, soak, rinse 
 DSh>  steps before cooking?  Or do you just ignore those steps?  
 DSh>  (TTTT, I'm not sure what good they really do).

 DS> I never rinse or soak rice before cooking it.  Why would any
 DS> one do that, anyway? And I control how "fluffy" or sticky the 
 DS> rice will be after cooking by the amount of water I put in the 
 DS> rice cooker.

I normally rinse my rice, in the rice cooker, but only once, using my
hand to scrunch it, then pour off the milky washing water - usually.
Sometimes I save the rinse water and allow it to settle for an hour or
so, then decant off the clear water, leaving water fairly high in rice
flour.  This is then used where a thickening agent is required, as in
a fish soup; a common practice by economical Filipino housewives.  :)
There is a plastic cup which comes with the cooker, and by using that
to measure the rice, then filling the water to the corresponding level
marking on the inside of the pot, perfectly cooked rice is produced
every time, regardless of whether only 2 cups, or 10 cups are cooked.
For rice as I prefer it, I add an extra half cup of water.

 DS> I bought our rice cooker at Saigon Market at the recommendation
 DS> of the owner's wife.  We buy most of our rice there, because I can
 DS> get huge sacks of jasmine rice (our favorite) for not too much 

Now, there you are.  Dave uses jasmine rice, which is a long-grain
variety, which doesn't need washing, as it comes with very little rice
flour.  Medium grain, Calrose rice, which is the most common in SE
Asia, does contain a fair amount of flour, which increases the
stickiness of the rice when cooked.

 DS> It saves me a lot of time and aggravation.  I just dump in the rice
 DS> and the water (and oil and salt or saffron or whatever,) close the
 DS> lid, and hit the START button.  When the rice is done - and no matter

My rice cooker doesn't have a "start" button; I use the switch in the
power point on the wall.  ("So primitive!" I hear Dave cry.)

 DS> what kind of rice I put in, the cooker always knows it's done - the
 DS> cooker makes a "clunk" noise as the relay flips the switch over to
 DS> "KEEP WARM."  I don't have to watch it, I don't have to set the

Certainly Dave is right there!  The main heater under the pot is of
high power, brings the water to the boil quickly, keeps boiling as the
water is absorbed by the rice, and then when all the water is
absorbed, the temperature of the bottom of the pot increases to the
point where the centre thermostat is triggered and the main heater is
switched off, just leaving the low power warmer element working.  This
will keep the rice warm and ready for serving for an hour or more
before it starts to dry out.   Because the triggering of the main
heater is dependent on when the water is all absorbed, the cooker
automatically compensates for slow cooking rice, and works with even
brown rice; that takes about twice as long as white rice.   I have not
tried it with "minute rice" or "converted", but I would expect it to
compensate and give good results for them, also.

One thing to watch is that you have to be very careful not to allow
even one grain of rice to stick to the underside of the pot, as that
will hold the pot clear of the heater, and the grain of rice will burn
onto the element.  This takes a fair amount of bad language to clean.

 DS> So, to answer your question:  the rice cooker saves me time and
 DS> allows me to concentrate on other tasks while the rice is cooking.
 DS> And it frees up a burner on the stove, too.

Right!   You can save your rice washing water for this:

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.05
 
      Title: SINAGANG NA HIPON (SOUR SHRIMP SOUP)
 Categories: Soups, Fish, Filipino, Asian
      Yield: 6 Servings
 
    1/4 c  Sliced onion
    1/4 c  Tomatoes, chopped
     10 ea Camias (or juice of 6 lemon)
      6 c  Rice washing water
    500 g  Fresh shrimps
      1 ts Salt
      1 ts MSG (Aji-no-moto)
      2 c  Kangkong leaves and tender
           Stalks
 
  Saute onion and tomatoes.  Add the camias and cook until tender and
  mushy, Add the rice water.   Let boil.   When boiling, drop the
  shrimps. Season with salt and MSG.  Add kangkong and cook 2 minutes.
  
  (Note that any other fish, or even meaty pork bones can be used, but
  of course the onion and tomatoes are cooked separately and then added
  to the stock.)
  
        -Recipe from "Philippine Cuisine", by Nora and Mariles Daza
 
MMMMM
 

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