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Guest
Guest
This is long, so be prepared.
Since so many folks here seem interested in Cuban food, I thought I'd share some advice. You can always find Cuban recipes in books or online, but I want to give you information that you won't always find in a recipe.
Most Cuban meals are served with rice, and it's usually white rice. Therefore, many recipes you'll find, like black beans, picadillo, etc. will say "serve with white rice". The problem is that most people will probably go to the store and pick up a box of instant rice. Big mistake! After eating homemade rice for years, when I see the instant rice, I cringe. It's so bland, I don't know how anyone can stand it.
Making good rice is the easiest thing in the world, and it's the first thing I ever learned how to make. I couldn't have been older than 12. Since it's used so much in Cuban cooking, getting it right is the most important thing you can do in learning to cook Cuban-style.
The first thing you need is a rice cooker. They sell them in stores like Target and Walmart, and they're fairly inexpensive. The one I have now is a small one that makes a maximum of 3 cups. It's enough for me and my wife, but too little for most families. I recommend getting one that makes at least 6 cups. Besides, for some reason the rice seems to come out better in the larger ones. Some people know how to make rice in a pressure cooker or in a regular pot, but for me that's always been hit or miss. The rice cooker does it perfect each time. Buy a cheap one, they work well. I've never had one of the expensive ones, so I can't really say if they're any better, but I always like my rice from the cheap cooker.
The next thing you need is rice. Buy long grain or extra-long grain white rice. Look for a bag, not a box. I've never had good white rice from a box. Very important--make sure it's NOT "converted rice". Just regular long grain white rice. Besides being better, it's cheaper.
When you make rice, wash it several times. This gets out a lot of the starch, which will make it too sticky. The water will start out milky white, and will clear up more and more each time you wash it. By the time you're done, you should be able to see the rice through the water. It will never get perfectly clear. To wash it, just pour water on the rice, swirl it around with your hand, and then strain it out, using your hand to keep the rice from falling out. Make sure to pick out any bad rice, or any foreign matter like stones or twigs. I always do the washing and sorting right in the rice cooker's pot, which separates conveniently from the cooker itself.
Strain out the dirty water one last time. Then add the appropriate amount of clean water for the amount of rice you're cooking. Follow the rice cooker directions to figure out the proportions of water to rice. Here's a warning: always use the measuring cup that came with the cooker to measure the rice, and don't lose it! For some reason, they're never equal to a regular cup. I think the one that I have is about 3/4 cup. The provided cup will give you an amount that will match with the water lines on the side of the cooker.
Then add salt, garlic powder, and vegetable oil. I don't know the exact measurements; I pour the salt into my hand to measure, and the rest I put directly into the pot. I would say it's probably about 2 teaspoons of salt for 3 cups of rice. For the garlic powder I usually try to sprinkle enough so that it lightly coats the entire top of the water. The oil is probably about 1 to 2 tablespoons for 3 cups of rice. The ingredients may sound simple, but that's really how I like it. I've tried adding other things, like onion powder, pepper, etc. but I always like the original better.
Stir it all up, then cover it with the lid and turn it on. About 20 minutes later you'll have great rice. Actually, it's not guaranteed. The problem is ratio of water to rice. The rice should be firm, but not crunchy. If you find that the rice is a little on the crunchy side, you'll need a little more water next time. If it's too soft, maybe even mushy, use less water next time. Use the lines on the pot as a guide. For example, if you filled the water exactly to the line, and it's too mushy, then you know you'll have to go a little under the line next time.
And, of course, next time you can adjust the seasonings to your taste, like more or less salt. When it comes to oil, it's better to have too little than to use too much. Too much oil will make the rice greasy.
When it comes out right, it's good enough to eat by itself. Whenever I eat rice and black beans, I pour the black beans over the rice, but I don't mix it up. That way, I can still taste the flavor of the separate items.
The only problem with making rice this way is that cleaning the pot is not easy. The rice forms a crust on the bottom that is hard to remove. One solution that works well is to put about an inch of water into the pot, put it back into the cooker, and turn it on for a few minutes. This nicely loosens up the caked-on rice. Usually, though, I just fill the pot with water and let it soak a while.
White rice pretty much goes with anything, so don't limit yourself to making it with Cuban food. I feel obligated to tie this back to barbecue somehow, so I'll mention that sometimes I eat white rice with barbecue sauce. Talk about two worlds colliding!
Enjoy!
--Mick
Since so many folks here seem interested in Cuban food, I thought I'd share some advice. You can always find Cuban recipes in books or online, but I want to give you information that you won't always find in a recipe.
Most Cuban meals are served with rice, and it's usually white rice. Therefore, many recipes you'll find, like black beans, picadillo, etc. will say "serve with white rice". The problem is that most people will probably go to the store and pick up a box of instant rice. Big mistake! After eating homemade rice for years, when I see the instant rice, I cringe. It's so bland, I don't know how anyone can stand it.
Making good rice is the easiest thing in the world, and it's the first thing I ever learned how to make. I couldn't have been older than 12. Since it's used so much in Cuban cooking, getting it right is the most important thing you can do in learning to cook Cuban-style.
The first thing you need is a rice cooker. They sell them in stores like Target and Walmart, and they're fairly inexpensive. The one I have now is a small one that makes a maximum of 3 cups. It's enough for me and my wife, but too little for most families. I recommend getting one that makes at least 6 cups. Besides, for some reason the rice seems to come out better in the larger ones. Some people know how to make rice in a pressure cooker or in a regular pot, but for me that's always been hit or miss. The rice cooker does it perfect each time. Buy a cheap one, they work well. I've never had one of the expensive ones, so I can't really say if they're any better, but I always like my rice from the cheap cooker.
The next thing you need is rice. Buy long grain or extra-long grain white rice. Look for a bag, not a box. I've never had good white rice from a box. Very important--make sure it's NOT "converted rice". Just regular long grain white rice. Besides being better, it's cheaper.
When you make rice, wash it several times. This gets out a lot of the starch, which will make it too sticky. The water will start out milky white, and will clear up more and more each time you wash it. By the time you're done, you should be able to see the rice through the water. It will never get perfectly clear. To wash it, just pour water on the rice, swirl it around with your hand, and then strain it out, using your hand to keep the rice from falling out. Make sure to pick out any bad rice, or any foreign matter like stones or twigs. I always do the washing and sorting right in the rice cooker's pot, which separates conveniently from the cooker itself.
Strain out the dirty water one last time. Then add the appropriate amount of clean water for the amount of rice you're cooking. Follow the rice cooker directions to figure out the proportions of water to rice. Here's a warning: always use the measuring cup that came with the cooker to measure the rice, and don't lose it! For some reason, they're never equal to a regular cup. I think the one that I have is about 3/4 cup. The provided cup will give you an amount that will match with the water lines on the side of the cooker.
Then add salt, garlic powder, and vegetable oil. I don't know the exact measurements; I pour the salt into my hand to measure, and the rest I put directly into the pot. I would say it's probably about 2 teaspoons of salt for 3 cups of rice. For the garlic powder I usually try to sprinkle enough so that it lightly coats the entire top of the water. The oil is probably about 1 to 2 tablespoons for 3 cups of rice. The ingredients may sound simple, but that's really how I like it. I've tried adding other things, like onion powder, pepper, etc. but I always like the original better.
Stir it all up, then cover it with the lid and turn it on. About 20 minutes later you'll have great rice. Actually, it's not guaranteed. The problem is ratio of water to rice. The rice should be firm, but not crunchy. If you find that the rice is a little on the crunchy side, you'll need a little more water next time. If it's too soft, maybe even mushy, use less water next time. Use the lines on the pot as a guide. For example, if you filled the water exactly to the line, and it's too mushy, then you know you'll have to go a little under the line next time.
And, of course, next time you can adjust the seasonings to your taste, like more or less salt. When it comes to oil, it's better to have too little than to use too much. Too much oil will make the rice greasy.
When it comes out right, it's good enough to eat by itself. Whenever I eat rice and black beans, I pour the black beans over the rice, but I don't mix it up. That way, I can still taste the flavor of the separate items.
The only problem with making rice this way is that cleaning the pot is not easy. The rice forms a crust on the bottom that is hard to remove. One solution that works well is to put about an inch of water into the pot, put it back into the cooker, and turn it on for a few minutes. This nicely loosens up the caked-on rice. Usually, though, I just fill the pot with water and let it soak a while.
White rice pretty much goes with anything, so don't limit yourself to making it with Cuban food. I feel obligated to tie this back to barbecue somehow, so I'll mention that sometimes I eat white rice with barbecue sauce. Talk about two worlds colliding!
Enjoy!
--Mick
