How to Cook Brown rice
While you can certainly follow the instructions on the package, these are the two absolute best methods for cooking brown rice, depending on your priorities. First ask yourself: Do you want the best brown rice or do you want quick and easy? For the fluffiest, most perfectly tender brown rice: Use “Option 1” and soak it overnight in your fridge. This method not only makes the best texture, but as an added bonus the water starts the rice’s germinating process. This makes it easier to digest and helps your body absorb its nutrients more effectively. And it’s just a matter of planning ahead! If quick and easy is the name of the game: Skip to option 2 and boil it like pasta! The texture won’t be quite as perfect, but it’s so dead easy you probably won’t mind too much.is the name of the game: Skip to option 2 and boil it like pasta! The texture won’t be quite as perfect, but it’s so dead easy you probably won’t mind too much.
Servings: 6 to 3, as a side (makes 3 cups cooked rice)
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice
- Kosher salt
Instructions
Option 1: Soak then Simmer (Best Texture)
- About 10-12 hours before cooking the rice: soak. In a large saucepan, add the rice, 2 cups of cold water, and a pinch of salt (about 1/4 teaspoon). Give it a good stir, cover, and set in your fridge to soak.
- Cook the rice. Remove the pan from the fridge, uncover, and set it right on your stove. Bring to a boil over high heat. When the whole pot is boiling–including the center–turn the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes without lifting the lid or stirring.
- Let sit. Remove the rice from the heat. Lift the lid and immediately cover the rice with a clean kitchen towel, then replace the lid. Leave for 10 minutes without peeking–the towel will absorb the excess steam.
- Fluff. Use a fork to fluff the rice, separating the grains.
Option 2: Cook like Pasta (Easiest/Fastest)
- Get ready. Bring a large saucepan filled with water to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, season with a big pinch of salt.
- Boil until tender. Add the rice and give it a stir. Boil until the rice is cooked to your liking, about 30 minutes.
- Drain. Drain through a fine mesh strainer. Enjoy immediately, or allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container in your fridge for a couple of days.
Notes
- A note on rinsing: Rinsing rice removes the starch and any debris from the grain, making the rice fluffier and less mushy. And I'll just say I'm a big rinse person when it comes to cooking white rice. I would also rinse brown rice if the traditional way from the package. But I tested these two methods both with rinsing the rice and without rinsing the rice and found no difference. The soaking and boiling seems to take care of that for you, and it wasn't worth another dish and 5 minutes time. But if you'd prefer to rinse for good measure, by all means feel free!
- 1 cup of uncooked rice will yield about 3 cups of cooked rice. If you’d like more, keep the 1:2 rice to water ratio. That means for 2 cups of uncooked rice (which will yield 6 cups of cooked rice), soak in 4 cups of water.
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Nutrition
Calories: 114.6kcal | Carbohydrates: 24.1g | Protein: 2.4g | Fat: 0.8g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Sodium: 1.3mg | Potassium: 84.9mg | Fiber: 1.1g | Calcium: 10.5mg | Iron: 0.6mg
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