Pro tip
 

I was nearly inspired by pierceH in the "Brown rice, white rice" thread to get a rice cooker. My previous attempts at cooking rice on the stovetop have been hit and miss. But I hate to buy special-purpose kitchen items when I can avoid it.

So I did some more google research and tried another batch. I think I've got it under control now. At least for long-grain white rice which is what I make.

Making tender rice means getting moisture through the whole grain. You should be able to get decent basmati rice by using 2 cups of water and one of rice and following the directions on the package. But that only works if you've got a pot with a tight fitting lid. I don't. So here's how I got a really good batch of white rice.

You'll need:
A heavy pot.
A strainer.
1 cup good long grain rice (basmati or jasmine)

Put the rice in the pot and run a bunch of water. Swish the rice around pour off the excess water. Do this until the water is fairly clear after swishing.

Cover the rice with water again plus a bit. Let it sit for 30 min (at least). (and there's the pro tip. Most rice recipes never mention this and it made all the difference.)

Pour the rice and water through the strainer (to get all the water off).

Put the rice back in the pot. Add two cups (or less. I'm going to try a bit less now that I'm getting moister rice).

Put the pot on heat to boil (don't cover).

Once it's boiling, turn the heat down to its lowest and cover. Disturb the rice as little as you can after this point.

Take it off the heat as soon as all the water has evaporated. For me this is ~15 minutes. (Some recipes recommend letting it rest (sit) for a few minutes after its done. This happens for us naturally in that it takes some time to get the whole family to the table and settled down.)

So there it is. Let me know if it works for you.

I love this kind of small but useful knowledge. Add your own bit of how-to below on any topic.

Marry a good cook.

j/k

I use the two water to one rice reduction method every time when cooking rice. I put it in cold water, then put it on the slowest burner on my stove at the highest heat with the lid on. Once it starts to boil, about 5 minutes or so later, I simply turn the heat down to the very lowest setting and leave it there for about 20 mins, then turn the heat off but leave it on the burner for another 10 or so with the lid on.

My saucepans just have normal lids, but they do have heavy bases which is the key to cooking rice with the reduction method.

If you're going to do it the other way, bring the water to the boil before you put the rice in, then just boil it till it's cooked, making sure it has room to roll around freely at all time.

I had a rice cooker, but I gave it to my step mum. I just found it to be a pointless waste of space in my kitchen when I could do the job just as quickly and with less fuss on the stove top.

Diligence (and good rice) can get you good rice regardless of method. But the beauty of a rice cooker is I can take my long grain brown rice, pick any random cup off the shelf, measure 1:2 rice:water, throw it together, and forget about it for 1-4 hours while I work on something. Rather than being reminded about my rice because it's burning, I'm reminded by a gentle "click" or the overwhelming smell of deliciousness.

This one still has a price tag on it: $5.99. Check your local thrift stores, they're fairly common.

ditto

Its been a long time since I ruined a batch of rice. Its not that hard.

On a roll. I made a really decent batch of fried rice today.

Not so ditto for me. We have two rice cookers, large and smaller, in the house. Either one is simply charge, plug, and play. Set it and forget it while doing whatever you're putting with your rice. No fuss at all if one doesn't fill the big one to max capacity but give it a little room at the top, and even maxed out the smaller one seldom makes any mess.

We use a rice cooker too. But it's one cup rice to 1 1/2 water. But lately, the rice has been a bit dry so we increased it to 2 cups. In my opinion, cooking rice over the stove top is so much more hassle than using the rice cooker. :D

Protip:

Cellar thread page numbers are relative, post numbers are absolute.

I use a rice cooker too, despite all my cooking training. I have very few pots and I sometimes need to cook two things at a time. I have one good saucepan and one little one. So the cooker comes in handy for cooking rice while I am also cooking sauce or whatever.

I hate being undersupplied.

You can make a very decent panini on a Foreman grill. Just make sure to use good italian bread and real butter.

You can make smores with a propane forge, but the marshmallows will taste a bit gassy.

that sound more like a "here, hold my beer and watch this" tip.

You can drive a car with your feet, but that doesn't make it a good f***ing idea.

--Chris Rock