Perfectly cooked, tender grains of rice are an ideal base for any poke bowl. While rice cookers offer an easy and reliable route to fluffy rice heaven, hob cooking is easy enough to master. We use white, brown or black short-grain rice in our recipes. Cooking techniques vary for each, so follow the steps below carefully, depending on the grain you have selected.
The following method will yield approximately 480 g (1 lb 1 oz/2½ cups) cooked rice.
Step 1
Weigh out 240 g (8½ oz/1 cup) rice and place in a saucepan with a close-fitting lid.
Step 2
Rinse! Cover the rice with cold water and, using your hand, stir gently to release the excess starch from the grains. Drain and repeat until the water stops turning cloudy.
Step 3
Once fully rinsed and drained, cover the rice with the following amount of cold water:
White rice ........................ 240 ml (8 fl oz/1 cup)
Brown rice ................. 360 ml (12 fl oz/1½ cups)
Black rice ....................... 480 ml (16 fl oz/2 cups)
(soak black rice for up to 1 hour before cooking)
Step 4
Place the saucepan on a medium-high heat and bring to a rapid boil. Cover, turn down the heat to a gentle simmer, and cook for the following length of time:
White rice .......................................15–20 minutes
Brown rice ........................................... 20 minutes
Black rice ............................................30 minutes
Step 5
Once the rice is cooked, remove the pan from the heat and leave, covered, to steam for a further 10 minutes.
Step 6
Now you can turn the rice out into a wooden sushi rice bowl, if you have one. Using a rice paddle or wooden spoon, gently fold and turn the cooked rice, allowing the steam to evaporate.
Step 7
At this stage, we like to season the freshly cooked rice. Whisk together 2 tablespoons of mirin with 2 tablespoons of rice wine vinegar, plus 1 teaspoon of sugar and ½ a teaspoon of salt. Drizzle the mixture over the hot rice while gently folding to coat each grain.
Step 8
The rice should now be left for 10 minutes to cool before using for your poke bowl.