Read The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook Online
Authors: The Editors at America's Test Kitchen
Tags: #Cooking
The Cook's Illustrated Cookbook (102 page)
SERVES 4
You will need a saucepan with a tight-fitting lid for this recipe.
1 | tablespoon vegetable oil |
1 | (3-inch) cinnamon stick, halved |
2 | green cardamom pods |
2 | whole cloves |
¹⁄ | cup thinly sliced onion |
1 | cup basmati rice |
1¹⁄ | cups water |
1 | teaspoon salt |
1.
Heat oil in medium saucepan over high heat until almost smoking. Add cinnamon stick, cardamom, and cloves and cook, stirring, until they pop. Add onion and cook, stirring until translucent, about 2 minutes. Stir in rice and cook, stirring until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2.
Add water and salt; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover tightly, and simmer until all water has been absorbed, about 17 minutes. Let stand, covered, for 10 minutes. Fluff rice with fork and serve.
W
HY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Rice cooked the Mexican way is a flavorful pilaf-style dish, but we’ve had our share of soupy or greasy versions. We wanted tender rice infused with well-balanced fresh flavor. To keep the rice grains distinct, we rinsed the rice of excess starch before cooking it. Sautéing the rice in vegetable oil before adding the cooking liquid produced superior grains. We found that equal portions of chicken broth and fresh tomatoes (combined in a 2:1 ratio with the rice) were ideal for a flavorful liquid base. To further guarantee the right flavor, color, and texture, we added a little tomato paste and stirred the rice midway through cooking to reincorporate the tomato mixture. Baking the rice in the oven (rather than on the stovetop) ensured even cooking. More than a garnish, fresh cilantro, minced jalapeño, and a squirt of fresh lime juice complemented the richer tones of the cooked tomatoes, garlic, and onions.
SERVES 6 TO 8
Because the spiciness of jalapeños varies from chile to chile, we try to control the heat by removing the ribs and seeds (the source of most of the heat) from those chiles that are cooked in the rice. It is important to use an ovensafe pot about 12 inches in diameter so that the rice cooks evenly and in the time indicated. The pot’s depth is less important than its diameter; we’ve successfully used both a straight-sided sauté pan and a Dutch oven. Whichever type of pot you use, it should have a tight-fitting, ovensafe lid. Vegetable broth can be substituted for the chicken broth.
2 | tomatoes, cored and quartered |
1 | white onion, peeled and quartered |
3 | jalapeño chiles |
2 | cups long-grain white rice |
¹⁄ | cup vegetable oil |
4 | garlic cloves, minced |
2 | cups low-sodium chicken broth |
1 | tablespoon tomato paste |
1¹⁄ | teaspoons salt |
¹⁄ | cup minced fresh cilantro |
Lime wedges |
1.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Process tomatoes and onion in food processor until smooth, about 15 seconds, scraping down bowl if necessary. Transfer mixture to liquid measuring cup; you should have 2 cups (if necessary, spoon off excess so that volume equals 2 cups). Remove ribs and seeds from 2 jalapeños and discard; mince flesh and set aside. Mince remaining jalapeño, including ribs and seeds; set aside.
2.
Place rice in large fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until water runs clear, about 1¹⁄
2
minutes. Shake rice vigorously in strainer to remove excess water.
3.
Heat oil in ovensafe 12-inch straight-sided sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Drop 3 or 4 grains rice in oil; if grains sizzle, oil is ready. Add rice and cook, stirring frequently, until rice is light golden and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add garlic and seeded minced jalapeños, and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1¹⁄
2
minutes. Stir in pureed tomatoes and onions, chicken broth, tomato paste, and salt, increase heat to medium-high, and bring to boil. Cover pan and transfer to oven; bake until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring well halfway through cooking.
4.
Stir in cilantro and reserved minced jalapeño with seeds to taste. Serve immediately, passing lime wedges separately.
SERVES 6 TO 8
The vegetables are charred in a cast-iron skillet, which gives the finished dish a deeper color and a slightly toasty, smoky flavor. A cast-iron skillet works best for toasting the vegetables; a traditional or even a nonstick skillet will be left with burnt spots that are difficult to remove, even with vigorous scrubbing. Vegetable broth can be substituted for the chicken broth. Include the ribs and seeds when mincing the third jalapeño.
2 | tomatoes, cored |
1 | white onion, peeled and halved crosswise, thin end halved lengthwise, thick end quartered lengthwise |
6 | garlic cloves, unpeeled |
3 | jalapeño chiles, 2 stemmed, halved, and seeded, 1 stemmed and minced |
2 | cups long-grain white rice |
¹⁄ | cup vegetable oil |
2 | cups low-sodium chicken broth |
1 | tablespoon tomato paste |
1¹⁄ | teaspoons salt |
¹⁄ | cup minced fresh cilantro |
Lime wedges |
1.
Heat 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes. Add tomatoes, onion, garlic, and halved jalapeños and toast, using tongs to turn them frequently, until vegetables are softened and almost completely blackened, about 10 minutes for tomatoes and 15 to 20 minutes for other vegetables. When cool enough to handle, trim root ends from onion and halve each piece. Remove skins from garlic and mince. Mince jalapeños.
2.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Process toasted tomatoes and onion in food processor until smooth, about 15 seconds, scraping down bowl if necessary. Transfer mixture to liquid measuring cup; you should have 2 cups (if necessary, spoon off any excess so that volume equals 2 cups).
3.
Place rice in large fine-mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water until water runs clear, about 1¹⁄
2
minutes. Shake rice vigorously in strainer to remove excess water.
4.
Heat oil in ovensafe 12-inch straight-sided sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, 1 to 2 minutes. Drop 3 or 4 grains rice in oil; if grains sizzle, oil is ready. Add rice and cook, stirring frequently, until rice is light golden and translucent, 6 to 8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, add toasted minced garlic and toasted minced jalapeños, and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1¹⁄
2
minutes. Stir in pureed tomatoes and onions, chicken broth, tomato paste, and salt, increase heat to medium-high, and bring to boil. Cover pan and transfer to oven; bake until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring well halfway through cooking.
5.
Stir in cilantro and reserved minced jalapeño with seeds to taste. Serve immediately, passing lime wedges separately.
RICE—NO SOAKING REQUIRED
The question of whether rice should be soaked prior to cooking is often up for debate in our test kitchen. During the testing of our brown rice recipe, we decided to put this one to rest. Some recipes call for soaking brown rice for three hours, so that’s just what we did. We pitted the soaked rice against rice that was not soaked, using both to make our recipe, slightly reducing the water in the recipe for the soaked batch. What did we find? To be frank, soaking was a waste of time. The rice was overcooked, and the grains tended to “blow out.”
This result led us to test the wisdom of soaking other types of rice. And when we cooked up batches of long-grain white rice and basmati rice that had been soaked, we produced nearly identical results: bloated, mushy rice.
Does that mean that there’s no place for water in the world of rice preparation? Not necessarily. We found that the extra step of rinsing long-grain white in several changes of water was indispensable for a pilaf with distinct, separate grains. Rinsing washes away starches on these grains and doesn’t cause the problems associated with soaking. What about rinsing brown rice? Our tests showed no benefit (or harm). Because the bran is still intact, brown rice doesn’t have starch on its exterior. So rinsing doesn’t accomplish anything—except for wasting time and water.
W
HY THIS RECIPE WORKS
Brown rice should be ultimately satisfying, with a nutty, gutsy flavor and more textural personality—slightly sticky and just a bit chewy—than white rice. To achieve this ideal, we stayed close to the water-to-rice ratio established in our
SIMPLE WHITE RICE
, settling on 2¹⁄
3
cups water to 1¹⁄
2
cups rice. But unlike our white rice method, we cooked the rice in the oven to approximate the controlled, indirect heat of a rice cooker. A couple of teaspoons of butter or oil added to the cooking water added mild flavor while allowing the earthy, nutty flavor of the rice to take center stage.
SERVES 4 TO 6
To minimize any loss of water through evaporation, cover the saucepan and use the water as soon as it reaches a boil. An 8-inch ceramic baking dish with a lid may be used instead of the baking dish and aluminum foil. To double the recipe, use a 13 by 9-inch baking dish; the baking time does not to be increased.
1¹⁄ | cups long-grain, medium-grain, or short-grain brown rice |
2¹⁄ | cups water |
2 | teaspoons unsalted butter or vegetable oil |
¹⁄ | teaspoon salt |
1.
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Spread rice in 8-inch square baking dish.
2.
Bring water and butter to boil, covered, in medium saucepan. Once boiling, immediately stir in salt and pour water over rice in baking dish. Cover baking dish tightly with 2 layers of aluminum foil. Transfer baking dish to oven and bake rice until tender, about 1 hour.
3.
Remove baking dish from oven and uncover. Fluff rice with fork, then cover dish with kitchen towel and let rice stand for 5 minutes. Uncover and let rice stand 5 minutes longer. Serve immediately.
Increase amount of butter to 2 tablespoons and melt in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 1 minced small onion and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes; set aside. Substitute low-sodium chicken broth for water and reduce salt to ¹⁄
8
teaspoon. Stir onion mixture into rice after adding broth. Cover and bake rice as directed. After removing foil, stir in ¹⁄
2
cup grated Parmesan, ¹⁄
4
cup minced fresh parsley, ¹⁄
4
cup chopped fresh basil, 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest, ¹⁄
2
teaspoon lemon juice, and ¹⁄
8
teaspoon pepper. Cover dish with kitchen towel and proceed as directed.
Increase amount of butter to 2 tablespoons and melt in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 1 minced small onion and cook until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add 1 minced garlic clove, 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger, 1¹⁄
2
teaspoons curry powder, and ¹⁄
4
teaspoon salt and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add one 14.5-ounce can drained diced tomatoes and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Set aside. Substitute vegetable broth for water and reduce amount of salt to ¹⁄
8
teaspoon. After pouring broth over rice, stir tomato mixture into rice and spread rice and tomato mixture into even layer. Bake as directed, increasing baking time to 70 minutes.
Before covering baking dish with kitchen towel, stir in ¹⁄
2
cup thawed frozen peas.
Substitute low-sodium chicken broth for water and reduce amount of salt to ¹⁄
8
teaspoon; bake as directed. When rice has about 10 minutes baking time remaining, melt 1 tablespoon unsalted butter with 1 tablespoon olive oil in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 leek, white part only, sliced into ¹⁄
4
-inch-thick rings, and cook, stirring occasionally, until wilted, about 2 minutes. Add 6 ounces cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced ¹⁄
4
inch thick, and ¹⁄
4
teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until moisture has evaporated and mushrooms are browned, about 8 minutes. Stir in 1¹⁄
2
teaspoons minced fresh thyme and ¹⁄
8
teaspoon pepper. After removing kitchen towel, stir in mushroom-leek mixture and 1¹⁄
2
teaspoons sherry vinegar; serve immediately.