How To Cook Brown Rice - Japanese Style
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Everyone knows that brown rice is healthier than white rice, but why is it different and does it need to be cooked in a different way?

Brown rice consists of an outer layer of bran that is full of vitamins and fibre. This layer of bran gives brown rice its brown appearance and is milled away to make white rice. The germ of the rice is a small part of nutrients that is also milled away when making white rice, but is kept for brown rice. Because both the husk and the germ are left intact in brown rice, you get a delicious nutty flavour, but it does require a little extra preparation and cooking time compared to white rice to get the most out of it.

The husk of brown rice is a bit tougher than normal white rice which means that the cooking times need to be adjusted to get the most out of this healthy rice.

2 people 5 minutes 25 minutes save

Ingredients

• 300g Brown Rice

How to prepare

Firstly, add 150g of brown rice per person to a large bowl and wash it under a running tap by swirling the rice around. Drain the murky water and repeat a few times until the water runs clear. Once the rice is clean, add the rice and water to a saucepan in a 2:3 ratio.
Now place the lid on the saucepan and heat over a medium flame. When the water boils, turn the heat down to a medium flame. Make sure that you don’t remove the lid at all for the next 15 to 20 minutes while the rice absorbs the water.
Once all the water has been absorbed, add more water equivalent to the amount of rice in the saucepan. You can add a little extra water if you like your rice extra soft, or a little less for that slightly al-dente texture. Mix the water into the rice well and then place back on a medium heat. Again, keep the lid on at all times until the next step.

After 10 to 15 minutes, turn the heat down to low and let your rice simmer until all the water has been absorbed. After that, turn off the heat and allow the rice to steam with the lid still on for five minutes. After that, your rice will finally be ready, so mix it well and serve.
NOW TURN IT INTO SUSHI RICE!

Requirements: Sushi Vinegar 80ml
Optional: Wooden Sushi Bowl

To make sushi rice, the cooked rice needs to be mixed with sushi vinegar, which is Japanese rice vinegar mixed with salt and sugar. Mix 80ml of sushi vinegar (or about 12% of the total cooked rice weight) with the rice. To get the best flavour, the vinegar needs to be folded into the rice while it is still warm. As you are mixing the rice and vinegar together, use a fan to cool the rice and remove the moisture. Your sushi rice is now ready to be used in all types of delicious sushi. For best results use a wooden sushi bowl (sushi oke) to mix and cool the rice.

Tips and information

• You need a thick saucepan in order to make nice brown rice. You can use a ceramic, stainless steel or an enamel pot.

• If you want to make sushi, you may have to increase the proportion of water to rice when you cook your brown rice as it tends to be drier than white rice.

• If you have any burnt rice at the bottom of your pot, just remove it carefully and it can be used for ochazuke!