Genmai, or brown rice, is of course the healthier choice than its white counterpart, however not everyone likes it. Few people dislike regular rice, but there are many who don’t like brown rice out there. How about you?
Brown rice has a nutty flavor and chewy texture. A lot of people complain that it is too hard compared to white rice. Yes, white rice is pretty tasty… soft, fluffy, and even sweet. Unfortunately, like many other white foods like white bread, white rice is less nutritious. Brown rice has a lot of fiber and nutrients like vitamins and minerals. So if you want to eat rice everyday, brown rice is a better choice.
The reason why brown rice seems hard is because of the outer layer, bran and germ. The good news is inside the brown shell is the same tasty white rice. How you cook the brown rice makes a big difference in texture. Soaking longer and cooking with extra water helps. And also cooking in a heavy closed pot works better to create some pressure on the rice.
As you get used to the flavor and feel of brown rice, you might not mind so much. Try it more than a couple of times before you decide!
Genmai (Brown Rice)
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown rice (short grain, using 8-oz-cup (240 ml))
- 2 cups water (480ml)
Instructions
- Put rice in a bowl. Wash and pour water out, then repeat 2 more times. Place rice and measured water in a heavy pot. Let it soak for 1 hour.
- First cook rice without lid at high heat until the water boils. Stir and reduce heat to low. Then cook covered for 25-30 minutes.
- Remove from heat and let it stand covered for 10 minutes.
Video
11 Comments
Beautiful website. Was wondering what type of brand of brown rice do you use. Thanks
Kit,
it was from Costco, I believe.
Just found this website, very nice recipes.
I was wondering what’s a good way to get brown rice to be sticky. When I cook white rice, it’s sticky enough so I’ll be able to hold it within my chopsticks. However, I seem to be unable to achieve the same result with brown rice.
Marco,
did you use short grain brown rice? You can try different brand, too.
As far as I can tell it’s long grain. I can’t seem to find short grain brown rice here in the Netherlands.
Long grain rice is not sticky rice… Go online to see if you can find short grain brown rice.
Bit late as a reply but you can buy organic genmai at the Meidi-Ya on Beethovenstraat in Amsterdam, along with several other fresh ingredients and staples.
Can this be used to make onigiri? Because I bought short grain brown rice and followed the instructions on the packaging which were different than yours, but when I tried to make onigiri with it, it kept falling apart.
Amy,
yes, you could. Depending on brands, some brown rice is harder than the others and they may not sticky enough. Choose short grain brown rice and add a little more water when you cook it.
What is the difference between short grain brown rice and long grain brown rice? Which one is healthier? Thanks.
Do you have something like a season to make it a bit tastier? One unrelated question do you recommendation for Karate instructors? I mean I see the Kyokushin fighters of many countries and there kind a big.