Apparently, I have never fully embraced the possibilities of my InstantPot. Which is mostly okay with me because it makes two things I love so well that it was worth the cost and cabinet space: hard boiled eggs and rice.
But now the seal is busted and because I take essential to truly mean food, medicine, and emergency services, I’m not going to the hardware store to buy a new one. So I had to figure out how to make rice a different way. Stovetop has always produced uneven results for me, plus if I’m making rice, I am usually making other dishes that require me lots of stove space.
But I’ve been making rice in the oven for a few weeks now, at least 3 times per week, and it’s better than I’ve ever made before. Rice requires both accurate measuring and decent technique; thankfully, in this recipe, both are easy.
It also makes a bunch, which I need, because we eat a lot of it. This is enough for 4 people to eat a meal and plenty of leftovers. (For what? Egg-and-kimchi fried rice for breakfast.)
Ingredients:
- 3 cups rice, soaked and drained or rinsed until water runs clear
- 2-3 Tbs butter, sliced into pats
- dash of salt
- 5 c. boiling liquid: water, almond milk, coconut milk, chicken, mushroom, or vegetable broth OR some combination of thereof (I typically use some kind of milk + chicken broth)
- Add ins: cashews, rehydrated golden raisins, pistachios, diced carrots, diced onions, diced celery, peas
Directions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Bring salted liquid to a boil.
- Place rice in a baking dish or Dutch oven. The more surface area, the better.
- Place pats of butter on top of rice.
- Place baking dish on oven rack. Pour boiling water into dish.
- Seal tightly with foil.
- Bake for 30-45 minutes, depending on surface area of the dish and kind of rice. Basmati rice (the most common we prepare) takes the least amount of time, whereas brown rice takes much more.
- Remove from oven; remove foil, and serve.
