This is, by far, the side dish I make most often. Why? Because The Kids will eat it. Always. I think they'd be happy if this was all I ever made for them. "White rice? Just plain white rice this time, right, Dad?"*
📖 Recipe Card
Basic White Rice
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Simple stovetop white rice - the side dish I make most often, because the kids will always eat it.
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice (my preferences are jasmine rice, CalRose rice, or Carolina long grain rice)
- 3 cups water
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (or table salt)
- 1 tablespoon butter (optional)
Instructions
- Boil the rice: Put the ingredients in a 3 quart or larger saucepan with a tight fitting lid. Cover, and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Boil down the water: Remove the cover once the water is boiling, reduce the heat to medium, and continue to boil until the water boils away to just below the level of the rice - you'll see "fish eyes," holes in the surface of the rice with bubbles forming in them.
- Steam the rice: Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, and let the pot stand, covered, for another 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.
Notes
You need a pot with a tight fitting lid for this recipe - I use this one from Calphalon. It doesn't have to be nonstick, but nonstick helps with cleanup.
Don't skip the salt! Without it, the rice is plain AND bland. I only add the butter if I'm cooking rice for a western-influenced meal; the rice tastes better without it alongside a stir fry.
To halve this recipe, use 1 cup rice and 1.5 cups water. To scale up, I usually cook 3 cups rice and 4.5 cups water, so there are leftovers.
Leftovers: store the rice in a covered container and reheat it directly in the microwave - the liquid in the rice gives you enough steam to reheat it.
Thanks to Tom Johnson of the WRSOC for the "fish eyes" tip.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
mspw says
Made this tonight. I never cook rice and it came out perfect. Makes a lot though... My kids even said they liked it (they aren't big rice eaters...). Thank you!