Separating Grains

[Dawnbird]

Hi Everyone!

Had a quick question. Why is it that grains like rice and quinoa are cooked separately from other legumes or vegetables in nearly all recipes? Clearly there must be some reason people go through the extra hassle, but after lots of searching I can't find any reason why.

 

[cmontg34]

If I had to guess, I would imagine that they are cooked separately due to the ratio of liquid to grain that is normally called for, especially for rice. Granted, some soup recipes call for you to just add rice to the entire pot of other ingredients, so I am sure there is more precise reasoning behind it. For other recipes though, it usually calls for the grain to be cooked properly, and the easiest way to achieve that is by cooking the grain separately first, and then adding it to whatever you are using it for. Hope this helps.

 

[Andy M.]

If I had to guess, I would imagine that they are cooked separately due to the ratio of liquid to grain that is normally called for, especially for rice...

Yes. Also, beans take longer to cook than rice so would be prepared separately. Veggies added to rice would be mushy if cooked along with the rice so are often added later.