How to fix undercooked rice? Best 3 Answers

So, how to fix undercooked rice? There are tons of ways to cook rice in the world. Cooking rice may seem easy to some but it’s a delicate dance to get the rice just right. You have to figure out the proper water to rice ratio for every type of rice you cook while considering the recipe you are cooking. Also, you have to decide whether you have to rinse the rice or not.

Although rice cookers are smart devices but a tiny mistake and you get burnt rice, mushy rice, salty rice, or undercooked rice. Some of the ultra-advanced rice cookers from Zojirushi, Cuckoo, and Aroma can adjust and compensate for human error but when you are using a simple rice cooker it is all on you. In case your rice cooker gives you hard rice, we are here to help you out with how to fix hard rice in a rice cooker.

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How to fix undercooked rice? Why Undercooked rice?

As said, it isn’t that straightforward to get perfectly cooked fluffy rice every single time. Mistakes are made! While cooking rice, people often make pretty simple mistakes which results in undercooked rice. Not only undercooked rice is hard to chew, the dish lacks the proper taste and texture as well. The most common errors are, cooking for less than the required time, improper rice to water ratio, and cooking on low heat. Another issue is that people do not understand the mechanism behind a rice cooker.

How to fix undercooked rice?

We all make mistakes so don’t take it on your nerves if your rice didn’t turn out the way you expected. Upon opening the rice cooker if you find out that the rice is undercooked, there is nothing to worry about. One can easily find out how undercooked it is by pressing a grain of rice between 1^st finger and the thumb. Depending upon the condition, add a little warm water to the rice, place the lid back on and switch on the cooker for two minutes.

Turn the cooker off and let the cooker sit there for five minutes. Open the lid after 5 minutes and your rice is cooked to perfect condition. If you are using stovetop cooking pot for rice, add little hot water in the rice container, cover it with the lid and cook it on low flame for 3-4 minutes. You can place a skillet in-between the fire and the pot for a precise temperature control. After 3-4 minutes, put the flame down, let the pan sit there for a few minutes and you are good to go!

FAQs: How to fix undercooked rice?

How to fix Burnt Rice?

Fixing burnt rice can be tricky. Before you device any plan to fix the burnt rice, check again if the rice is actually burnt. If it is tarmac black, toss it as there is no way you can fix that. If it looks not burnt rather smells toasty and looks crispy that’s actually a great thing. Many cuisines actually celebrate crispy and toasty rice. Nurungji is the word for toasty rice in Korean cuisine, socarrat is the crispy base of Spanish paella, and Tahdig is the golden crust at the bottom of Persian rice.

If you find some golden brown bits at the bottom of your rice, scrape them using a wooden spoon. You may add small amount of water to loosen it and enjoy, it tastes real well!

How to Fix Watery Rice?

If the rice is cooked to your inclination but there is still water in the cooking pot, there is nothing to worry about. First thing you should do is not to cook the water off. By doing so you will end up having overcooked, mushy rice. The easy way out is to pour the rice into a mesh strainer – as you do with pasta, drain the excess water and carry on with your recipe.

How to fix salty rice?

If the rice you cooked is too salty here is the way out. Cook a second unsalted batch of rice. Once the unsalted batch is ready, mix the two batches together using a fork to keep the rice fluffy and light and you will have perfectly cooked rice. Don’t have uncooked rice? You can make unsalted green or red sauce and stir that into the rice. The result will be even seasoning with the perfect texture.

How to fix mushy rice?

By fixing mushy rice doesn’t mean you will get perfectly cooked fluffy rice, Not at all! However, instead of tossing the rice out, you can turn it into delicious rice pudding. Add some more liquid, some milk, a dash of vanilla, sugar to taste and your mushy rice is now a rich rice pudding. Cheers!

How to fix gummy rice?

Over-rinsing the rice before cooking may result into sticky rice. Try rinsing the rice under cold water to remove some of that excess starch. Once rinsed, spread the rice on a tray and place it in the oven for approximately 8-10 minutes to dry it out a little. Secondly, you can go for pudding, porridge or risotto when you know the rice is getting gummier.

How to keep rice from overflowing? How to fix undercooked rice?

Keep in mind one thing, the rice needs to expand. So, one of the reasons of overflowing rice might be the small pot. You may be cooking at too high a temperature. Take a bigger pot for cooking rice and keep the temperature modest for even and perfect cooking. Another reason of overflowing rice is the one and only STARCH. Rinse your rice using a colander before cooking to get rid of excess starch.

Conclusion: How to fix undercooked rice?

Rice is cooked almost every other day in most households, especially in South Asia and it is an integral part of daily meals in some parts of the world especially Kerala- India. Despite having a ton of experience, one might mess up while cooking rice. Other than the burnt rice, one can make something great out of mushy, gummy, and undercooked rice. We hope that our little guide is of assistance to you.

If you have a basic rice cooker, check out some of the most sophisticated, advanced, and best Zojirushi rice cooker for precise temperature and pressure control. They are called appliances with a brain!

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