How to properly cook rice How to properly cook rice Rice is a perfect compliment to many recipes and especially when it is properly cooked until it is plump tender and flaky.
American rice comes in three different types.
For main dishes, salads and soups, long grain rice is best since the slender grains remain separate when cooked. Medium grain rice is plumper and more tender than long grain rice making it perfect for such dishes as chow mein, fried rice or Spanish rice. For molds and puddings a short grain rice is best since it is almost round and the grains tend to cling together when cooked. Depending on the way rice is processed, it can be classified as brown rice, white, polished, converted or precooked. There are more nutrients in brown rice since the bran and germ are retained, while in white or polished rice these are removed.