Always making too much rice

[inchrisin]

I recently bought a 25# bag of rice thinking I'll try to get more in my diet. I have a cheap rice cooker that can make about 3 cups at a time. I eat about a fist-sized portion for dinner and throw 2 cups away each time I make rice.

Does anyone know a recipe for day old rice that can be reheated for a side or made into an entree?

Thanks!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Only put 1/2 cup of rice in the cooker with 1 cup of water. That should give you your rice for the day.

 

[Andy M.]

If you can't cook a meal-sized portion in the rice cooker, learn how to cook the amount you will eat in a saucepan.

 

[inchrisin]

It takes 25 min to cook rice in that thing. It takes several hours of soaking to get that pot clean too. Surely this doesn't have to be a daily thing for me.

 

[Barbara L]

Refrigerate leftover rice. Reheat by putting it in a strainer and pouring boiling water over it. Or reheat by adding to a dish, such as Spanish Rice.

 

[Andy M.]

It takes 25 min to cook rice in that thing. It takes several hours of soaking to get that pot clean too. Surely this doesn't have to be a daily thing for me.

Time to learn to cook rice in a pan-a method in practice long before the arrival of rice cookers.

 

[Robo410]

Rice keeps in the fridge several days, and it freezes well too. Make fried rice, add to a stir fry or a soup.

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

Make fried rice!!! Seriously, to make Chinese fried rice the first step is to steam some rice. Then heat a small amount of oil in a wok or other similar pan and add the rice, toss it with a spoon until it's heated through and slightly browned. For Asian style you can then add some soy sauce and vegetables and/or meat (cooked chicken, pork, beef or shrimp).

Just google fried rice recipes for a million recipes. I'd rather eat fried rice than steamed rice almost any day! It's also a really good way to reuse left over rice.

 

[Whiskadoodle]

Make rice pudding. You can reheat it easily for breakfast. Like oatmeal with milk and brown sugar. Set it in little piles and bake chicken breasts over it like a stuffing. Stir in some onion or whatever before baking.

Some fast food restaurant, I think Chipotle, stuffs their burritos with rice. I think that's cheating to make the burritos appear bigger. But at home, I think it sounds fine to me.

I have never used a rice cooker, and I make brown rice and several kinds of white rice.

 

[Addie]

Cooking rice in a saucepan is so easy. Get rid of the rice cooker and cut your electric bill down. A half of cup of rice calls for one cup of water. The ratio is always two to one. But depending how cooked you like your rice, I would add another quarter cup of water. That amount of water will give you some room for error when you first start. And it only takes at most 20 minutes to cook that amount. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat to a simmer. Cover. Do not lift the cover for the first 15 minutes. You lose a lot of heat and steam when you do. Do not stir it until it is done. You can season it right in the pot by adding a bullion cube and a pat of butter at the begining. They will be absorbed by the rice. Fluff with a fork when it is done.

 

[Steve Kroll]

I don't mind having leftover rice. In fact, I sometimes make extra just to have leftovers. It can be used for a lot of things. Besides fried rice, which has been mentioned, you can also blend it with vegetables or ground beef to make a stuffing for bell peppers or cabbage rolls. Or blend it with a can of black beans for a tasty side dish. Or use it to make rice pudding. It's a very versatile ingredient.

 

[Zereh]

I don't have good luck with rice on my stove-top. Never have. I love my rice cooker. The cheap ones make rice just as deliciously as the expensive ones, the biggest different I've noticed is that the more expensive ones can keep the rice @ "warm" for a longer period of time.

Spray the bottom of the rice-cooker pan with a light misting of olive oil (or use the edge of a towel [or a napkin] to do it); that will eliminate about 99% of the sticking issue.

The best way to re-heat cold rice is to put the rice in a glass dish of some kind and then cover it with a very damp paper-towel. Then nuke it. The moisture on the towel prevents the rice from drying out while being re-heated and it turns out perfectly, tasting just like it was freshly made.

You can also use your rice cooker itself to cook meals with rice instead of just cooking plain rice. After trying about a hundred different recipes for Spanish rice, this one is my favorite:

Spanish Rice

4 Roma tomatoes (I used a can of fire roasted instead)
2 c chicken broth

Whirl in a blender or with an immersion blender. Add enough water so you have 4 cups of liquid total.


2 T butter
1 onion
2 cloves garlic

Saute until onions are translucent. Add 2 c rice, stirring to coat well. Continue to saute, stirring frequently, until the rice is lightly toasted.


Add the 4 c of broth / tomato / water mixture along with:
1 t kosher salt
1 bay leaf
1 serrano or jalapeno pepper, diced fine
2 T tomato paste

Cook until the rice is done.


A favorite addition is some smoked kielbasa-type sausage (like linguica).

 

[Aunt Bea]

It is good for breakfast!

Reheat it add some milk, spices, raisins and a sprinkle of sugar!

 

[Zhizara]

I only cook for myself, but I usually make a double batch of rice (2 cups rice 4 cups liquid). After cooling, I spoon into zip type baggies, and flatten out for freezing into dinner size portions.

Easy to reheat in the microwave.

 

[taxlady]

I don't mind having leftover rice. In fact, I sometimes make extra just to have leftovers. It can be used for a lot of things. Besides fried rice, which has been mentioned, you can also blend it with vegetables or ground beef to make a stuffing for bell peppers or cabbage rolls. Or blend it with a can of black beans for a tasty side dish. Or use it to make rice pudding. It's a very versatile ingredient.

Same here, except I don't like stuffed bell peppers and I detest cabbage rolls.

I always want to have some in the freezer. It's so nice to be able to have unpolished rice ready in 5 minutes. To reheat it, I nuke it or steam it - yes in a vegi steamer or colander.

 

[CharlieD]

Many good advises here. Really, why would you make 3 cups of rice if you are only eating no more than a cup? Use a small pot, if you have non-stick even better. Or warm up the leftovers next day. Chinese fried rice recipe specifically calls for using day old rice, for example.

 

[danpeikes]

Make fried rice!!! Seriously, to make Chinese fried rice the first step is to steam some rice. Then heat a small amount of oil in a wok or other similar pan and add the rice, toss it with a spoon until it's heated through and slightly browned. For Asian style you can then add some soy sauce and vegetables and/or meat (cooked chicken, pork, beef or shrimp).

Just google fried rice recipes for a million recipes. I'd rather eat fried rice than steamed rice almost any day! It's also a really good way to reuse left over rice.

I agree use the leftovers for fried rice. You can add any protein or veggies.

 

[CWS4322]

Cooking rice in a saucepan is so easy. Get rid of the rice cooker and cut your electric bill down.

Being on Time-of-use electricity has made me much more aware of how much energy things use, of course, running the house on a generator for 12 days also made me aware of these things. And having just enjoyed 6 days out of the last 9 days on "cheap" power (before TOU rates), I really miss being able to be "unaware" of power rates. Fortunately, I only cook for 1 most of the time and I'm in the city Wednesday and Thursday nights this week. And, I really hate TOU--it penalizes those who are at home (whether working, caring for children, or retired) during the day. It also makes it really hard for people to cook from scratch because the rates don't change to lower rates until 7 p.m. Most people want to eat before that or have something ready when they come home. I see it as being counter-productive re: trying to encourage people to eat better...

When this was implemented in April 2011, my goal for 1 year was to to see if I could keep my energy costs around the same as they were before TOU rates. I figured this would be a sufficient length of time to alter life-long behaviour patterns. A friend put a water holding tank on his woodstove, routed the warmed water to a hot water tank (it was a little more complicated than that). His electricity bill has dropped by $30/month since doing this. He used to have his hot water tank on a timer. Now, he complains that sometimes the water is too hot and he has to run a bucket off. He's thinking of rigging up a solar means of warming the water for the summer months.

For example, I wanted to take 1/2 of the pork loin I had left from Saturday and cook it and freeze it for another time. I checked to see if (a) 10 hours on low in the crockpot, (b) 5 hours on low in the crockpot, or (c) ~2 hours at 325 in the oven would use less energy. Given the consumption rates for the crockpot and oven/hour/setting, the crockpot on low for 10 hours would be more expensive than either (b) or (c) with (b) being slightly cheaper and more energy efficient. Cooking rice in a saucepan would be more energy efficient than using a rice cooker.

I have found that rinsing the rice under hot water until it runs clear helps. I also bring the water in the saucepan to a boil, add the rice, stir, and then reduce to a simmer, cover, and don't peak for 20 minutes. Remove from heat, let sit for about 5 minutes, fluff with a fork. If I want rice for a pilaf, I reduce the water slightly--instead of 2 c water to 1 c rice, I use 1-3/4 c water to 1 c rice.

 

[Fabiabi]

I think the general measurement is one coffee cup of rice per person. As for recipes for leftover rice, I make a hot and sour soup to go with rice.

 

[CharlieD]

I think the general measurement is one coffee cup of rice per person. As for recipes for leftover rice, I make a hot and sour soup to go with rice.

care to share your recipe of hot and sour soup?