Porridge is a very popular dish in Vietnam and other Asian countries. Despite its popularity, not everyone knows how to cook a delicious pot of porridge with soft, fluffy, and well-cooked rice without it becoming sticky.
In this article, let’s explore some tips to cook a perfect pot of porridge: soft, smooth, and aromatic!
1 Mix Sticky Rice with Some Regular Rice
Mix sticky rice with some regular rice
This step will enhance the flavor of your porridge compared to the regular cooking method. Sticky rice, with its distinctive aroma, will add a sticky and smooth texture to your porridge.
Cooking porridge with a mix of sticky and regular rice will result in a more delicious dish. You can also add a small amount of sticky rice to your regular rice, improving the texture of your meal. This combination provides the fluffiness of regular rice and the stickiness of sticky rice.
Note: Mix the rice in appropriate proportions, preferably 1 cup of regular rice to 1 handful of sticky rice. Adding too much sticky rice will make the porridge too thick and cloying.
2 Soak the Rice for 30 Minutes Before Cooking
Before cooking, soak the rice in cold water for about 30 minutes
Before cooking, soak the rice in cold water for about 30 minutes. This step will help soften the rice grains, making the porridge cook faster.
Note: There is no need to rinse the rice during soaking, as this will wash away some of the nutrients.
3 Roast the Rice Before Cooking
Roast the rice before cooking
To cook porridge that is soft but not mushy and has an irresistible aroma, it is recommended to roast the rice before cooking. Roasting hardens the rice grains due to the heat, ensuring they retain their shape even after prolonged cooking.
After soaking the rice, put it in a pan and roast it on the stove until the grains turn from opaque white to translucent white.
4 Adjust the Water Level According to the Type of Porridge
For tasty plain porridge that is neither too watery nor too thick, use 3 parts water to 1 part rice.
For meat, fish, or seafood porridge, the ratio of water to rice is 4 to 1.
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5 Cook the Porridge with Boiling Water
Typically, people add rice to a pot, pour in cold water, and then turn on the heat. However, this method causes the rice to expand unevenly and may burn the bottom of the pot.
The correct way is to boil the water first and then add the rice. Cover the pot, turn off the heat, and after 15 minutes, turn the heat back on to bring the porridge to a boil again. Then, reduce the heat or turn it off, and the rice will continue to soften on its own.
Cooking porridge this way not only speeds up the softening process but also saves energy. The rice will not stick to the bottom of the pot, and there is less chance of burning.
Cook the porridge with boiling water
6 Add a Little Cooking Oil to the Porridge
During the cooking process, adding a small amount of cooking oil to the porridge will give it a glossy appearance and make it easier to eat.
7 Cook the Porridge and Other Ingredients Separately
Avoid the habit of cooking porridge with ingredients such as meat, seafood, and vegetables all together. This method makes the porridge cloudy and affects its flavor.
It is best to cook the porridge separately and prepare the meat, seafood, and vegetables individually. Only after everything is cooked do you combine them in the pot for the final 10 minutes before turning off the heat. This way, your porridge will be clear, tasty, and have distinct flavors without any mingling of tastes.
Avoid cooking porridge with meat, seafood, and vegetables all together
8 Minimize Stirring During the Cooking Process
Stirring may seem like a way to ensure even cooking and faster softening of the rice, but it is a mistake!
Excessive stirring can cause the rice to become mushy and, if cooking with other ingredients, may make the porridge taste fishy.
Stir the porridge only twice during the cooking process:
- The first time is when you first add the rice to the boiling water, stirring in one direction only.
- The second time is after cooking the porridge for 20-25 minutes. Stir in one direction for about 5 minutes, then cover and simmer for another 3-5 minutes until the porridge is ready.
We hope that with these porridge-cooking tips, homemakers will be able to prepare delicious and appealing meat, fish, and seafood porridge for their families every day. Do you have any other tasty tips to share? Let us know!
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