How To Fix Undercooked Rice In Rice Cooker? (3 Quick Fixes)

How to fix undercooked rice in rice cooker? (3 quick fixes)

By TheWholePortion

Page last updated: 04/05/2023 | Next review date: 04/05/2025

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In this brief guide, will answer the question ‘How to fix undercooked rice in the rice cooker?’. Rice cookers are easy to handle. However, non-familiarity with an appliance can cause more harm than good to some. Let’s elaborate on some fixes to undercooked rice in the rice cooker.

How to fix undercooked rice in rice cooker?

Eating undercooked rice can be an unpleasant experience if not sickening. It can be hard to chew and tastes poor. It takes time and patience to master the rice cooking process.

Uncooked rice can cause food poisoning. Some spores release bacteria and can potentially make you sick.

Remember to add 1 part rice and two-part water and cover the lid tightly. If you add less water, the water ends up evaporating from the cooker. Now, if you don’t act promptly enough, your rice can burn and go to waste.

How does a rice cooker work?

An automatic rice cooker heats the bowl which then conducts heat into the water and rice. After the water starts to boil, the steam rises and causes the rice grains to absorb water. The water depletes as all of it is taken up by the rice and the rice cooker turns itself off. But what to do if the water is less than what was needed?

What makes rice remain undercooked in a rice cooker?

A rice cooker makes use of steam pressure to cook rice. If vapor steam pressure then you can get fluffy, edible rice.

Undercooked rice can be a result of adding too little water or cooking at a high temperature. Also, refrain from removing the lid of the rice cooker too soon.

Check your rice cooker to ensure that the lid is secure while cooking. Look for signs that confirm that heat is not escaping from the cooker. As insufficient retention of steam causes the rice to stay uncooked.

To check for undercooked rice in the cooker:

Open the lid and carefully scoop up a few rice grains from the cooker. Squish them between your fingers to check their texture. Raw rice would feel stiff and grainy, unlike cooked rice that is soft and mushy. If this doesn’t work for you can also taste test the rice.

Other FAQs about Rice which you may be interested in.

How many pounds of rice per person?

Can rice go bad?

How long is rice good for in the fridge

Ways to fix undercooked rice in the rice cooker:

If you find out that your rice remains undercooked, and the water in the cooker would not suffice, pour in some more. Add a quarter or a half cup of water. Stir the rice using a spoon to ensure uniformity.

Cook the rice on medium-high heat for 1-2 minutes. Do not cook for longer. Otherwise, you will end where you started. Now turn the heat down and let it simmer for 5 more minutes.

After your rice has cooked and the machine has turned off, let your rice sit in the cooker for a few minutes. The residual heat from the cooker pan will allow your rice to become even more tender.

Transfer rice to a big pot of boiling water and let it cook for a few minutes. When you cook it, the starch escapes into the water. To let this happen, you need space to allow the water to bubble. By using a big pot, you will prevent water from boiling over. A lesser cooking time is required now because the rice is already cooked in the rice cooker. Monitor the rice closely while it cooks, stirring it every two minutes. When you think it has cooked thoroughly, drain it through a sieve.

You can recook rice in the microwave as well. First, put your rice in a microwave-safe bowl and take two paper towels drenched in water. Wring some of the water from the towels onto the rice and cover the rice with the paper towels.

Cook it in the microwave at high power for 2 minutes. Take it out to check the texture of the rice. Repeat the process if necessary.

This process is equivalent to steaming the rice; the moisture from the towels and heat from the microwave helps cook the rice.

Recooking rice diminishes the quality of rice, so be sure to do it as soon as possible. It will be edible but not as good as one-time cooked rice.

If you run out of water in the rice cooker, you can pour in some more and turn the cooker on again. Check the rice once again in a few minutes, fifteen minutes maximum.

You can also steam the rice. Take it out of the rice cooker and steam rice on the stovetop.

In this brief guide, answered the question ‘ How to fix undercooked rice in the rice cooker?’. We discussed some reasons that can cause the rice to stay undercooked in the rice cooker. We also elaborated on some fixes to make uncooked rice edible.

https://www.chowhound.com/post/rescuing-undercooked-rice-332714