Rice & Grains

Q: I have a lot of flax seed. I purchased them about a year ago when I was giving veganism a whirl, since I’d read they were a great omega-filled addition to foods. But honestly, I can’t stand the flavor of them. I’ve tried adding them to oatmeal, breads, and other things, and it always seems to give them an off flavor! Am I doing something wrong?Sent by SarahEditor: Sarah, it sounds like your flax seeds have probably gone rancid. Ground flax seeds and oil spoils very quickly.

Q: My dad gave me 30 bags of rolled barley. Any ideas for what can I make with it?Sent by PinguinoEditor: We find rolled barley most commonly as an ingredient in oatmeal or porridge. They can be a little much on their own, I’ve found, but are great mixed with oats, buckwheat, and other grains.You could also throw them into breads or muffins, granola, or even cookies.

Flax seeds are teensy tiny nutritional powerhouses. They’re absolutely packed with fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, B vitamins, antioxidants, and cancer-fighting lignans. We only need a few teaspoons of seeds a day to benefit from their healthfulness, and happily for us, finding ways to work them into our daily meals is snap.Flax seed and flax oil have been used in cooking for centuries, and there are records describing its use dating as far back as Ancient Greece.

Rolled up in a sheet of seaweed, rice and vegetables can become a simple and easy-to-pack lunch for both adults and kids. This is one of our favorite uses for leftovers, and we often cook extra rice and vegetables at dinner so we can make rolls the next day.Although similar to Japanese maki sushi, our “leftovers” rolls don’t require the use of special vinegared rice, just whatever we have on hand, be it white or brown rice, and occasionally even quinoa.

Q: I love steel-cut oats for their texture and nutrition, but all I do with them is make oatmeal. Do you have any suggestions for using them in baked-goods or other interesting preperations?Sent by BethEditor: Yes! I love adding a scoop of steel-cut oats to baked goods. It adds a nice texture and a subtle oaty flavor. If you’re making a slow-rising recipe, like one of the no-knead breads, throw them in raw.

You might be more familiar with wheat berries in their ground form, a.k.a. whole wheat flour, but we’re talking the whole whole grain here! Cooked in simmering water until soft, wheat berries make a nutritious and mighty tasty addition to soups, salads, and side dishes. Have a favorite way of using wheat berries to share? Wheat berries contain the bran, germ, and endosperm of the wheat kernel, which translates into maximum nutritional payload.

I am the sole granola eater in my house, which suits me just fine. (All mine!) But toward the end of eating my way through a big batch, I find that the granola can start to lose its crisp and get a little stale. A quick spin in the microwave helps take care of that.Microwaving heats up the oils absorbed by the granola and re-toasts the nuts and grains. I usually place the few spoonfuls I’ll be eating that morning into a ramekin and give it about 10 seconds on HIGH.

I cook quinoa pretty frequently, using it in grain bowls or in salads. I’ve been increasingly enamored of red quinoa, which looks really gorgeous in salads, and which seems to hold its shape just a little bit better than the more commonly-found white quinoa. I became curious: was there any real difference between these two colors, or their third exotic sibling, black quinoa? I decided to ask a couple experts.

Teff, an edible seed known for its high nutrition and gluten-free, whole grain status, is a rising star among people concerned with healthy eating. But not everyone enjoys the texture of teff porridge or has the time to make injera, a spongy flat bread used in Ethiopian cooking. If this sounds like you, you may be interested in this simple technique for using teff as a garnish for salads instead!

Even the best of granola has its good and not so good days. You know what I mean: that moment when you realize your granola isn’t as toasty and crunchy as it used to be — instead you find yourself staring at a bowl of slightly soft and not nearly as delicious oats. Lucky for you (and me) I have a few ideas up my sleeve for other ways to use granola in the kitchen.

Sticky rice goes by many names — waxy, sweet, and pearl among them — but the most confusing one is glutinous. Does glutinous rice actually contain gluten? The answer is no: glutinous rice is gluten-free. The misleading name simply comes from the fact that glutinous rice gets glue-like and sticky when cooked. Why is it so sticky? It all comes down to starch content: the starch in rice has two components, amylose and amylopectin.

Sprouted grains are everywhere these days, from recipes on nutrition blogs to store-bought foods like breads and crackers. But what are they, exactly, and are they healthier? The first thing to recognize is that grains are seeds. All whole grains — such as wheat, barley, corn, oats, and rice — can germinate given the right conditions. Sprouted grains are seeds that have been triggered to germinate and are eaten before they develop into full-grown plants.

We had a good question from a reader earlier this week. She asked why recipes now often specify gluten-free oatmeal. Isn’t oatmeal always gluten-free? I think this is a common confusion; these days many (but not all) packages of oats and oatmeal are labeled as “gluten-free.” The reason for gluten-free labeling may be familiar to those of you who avoid gluten, but I thought it was worth an answer from an expert.

Most recipes call for rinsing quinoa vigorously for a few minutes before cooking it, claiming that it will wash away a bitter natural coating that coats the quinoa seeds. But is this step really necessary? We decided to test it and find out! Our basic recipe for cooking quinoa starts out with rinsing it in a fine-mesh strainer under cold water for 2 minutes. This is the reasoning: Why rinse quinoa?

Today’s Topic: Rice & Grains The Goal: 20 lessons, 20 days to become a better cook at home Enter to win The Kitchn Cookbook: Simply share and tag photos of your Kitchn Cooking School progress on Instagram and Twitter with #kitchnschool to enter for a chance to win. We’re giving away one copy for every homework assignment during The Kitchn’s Cooking School. See rules and regulations.

Cool fall mornings are best tackled with a piping hot bowl of creamy oatmeal. Milk is usually our number one go-to for making this breakfast even creamier, and we’re guessing it is for most of you, too. Today, though, we’re trying something different. We’re sidelining milk and cream to share five of our favorite dairy-free ways to make the creamiest oatmeal ever. If you’ve never had whipped banana, let this be the time give it a try!

As we wrote a few months ago, IKEA is retiring their AKURUM cabinet system and replacing it with SEKTION, a more modular system that promises to be even easier to work with and customize. At the time we wrote that post, we hadn’t yet seen the new system in action, but that was then, and this is now, and now we have all the details, pricing info on sample kitchens, and plenty of photos ahead of the official February 2 launch. Everything!

Q: I recently pulled out a bag of bulgur that had been tied up and stored in a jar, where I keep my other opened bags of grains. I know it’s been there for some time, and when I opened it, I noticed some stringy, cobweb-type things hanging in there. This has happened to me before with lentils I left in the cupboard for a few months. I threw the bulgur out, but I’m wondering what it is and if it’s harmful, or if a quick rinse would be enough.

Q: I was at Whole Foods this past weekend and bought some millet and buckwheat, but now I am not sure what to make with them. Could you please suggest recipes with millet? And some with buckwheat? Sent by Mil Editor: Millet and buckwheat are great in grain salads and can add great texture to soups, too.

Q: I am moving across the country, and I have a big bag of steel-cut oats (bought in bulk) that I am not planning on packing up and shipping to my destination (we’re selling most of our stuff and shipping very little). I also don’t want to bring it on the plane in my suitcase. The oats have technically expired, so my friends are hesitant to take them off my hands, but I’m enjoying them daily and they “expired” in December.

Q: I love Vietnamese fresh spring rolls, and enjoy rolling salads into them, to be dipped into soy and nyokmam. However, I cannot figure out how to prep the rice paper itself. The instructions say dip in warm water for five minutes, and then take out, but once you do this, they stick to everything. So I can only manage to do one rice paper at a time, followed by quickly wrapping to prevent further sticking, but still managing to stick to everything. There must be a better way.

Q: Can you freeze cooked quinoa? Sent by Williams Editor: Yes, you can definitely freeze cooked quinoa; it’s one of our favorite healthy meal shortcuts. Let the cooked quinoa cool down completely, then transfer it to a resealable plastic bag. Press all the air out before sealing, then pat the quinoa into an even layer before freezing. It’s ready to go whenever you need a quinoa fix; just thaw overnight in the refrigerator!

You’ve probably been hearing for years that eating a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast is a healthy way to start the day — but do you know why? What is it that makes oatmeal so special, and how much of it should you eat? And does instant oatmeal count? Here’s a quick, science-based breakdown of the health benefits of that morning bowl of oatmeal. Oats are whole grains, which means they haven’t been stripped of their nutritious bran and germ.

Love the idea of a smoothie for breakfast, but wish it filled you up a little more? I hear you, and I’m totally with you. My main criteria for any breakfast, including smoothies, is one that isn’t going to leave my stomach grumbling a couple hours later. The key to a good breakfast smoothie is making sure it has the power to carry me through the morning. One of the easiest ways to do this? Add a scoop of oats!

By now you’ve mastered making a pot of grains. You know all about the freestyle routecommon pitfalls Before you get to actually cooking that pot of grains, toast them on the stovetop or in the oven first. This simple step elevates their naturally nutty or earthy flavors and makes them noticeably tastier. Read More: My Number One Tip for Cooking Better Grains Up your grain game with crunchy quinoa. Okay, so quinoa is really a seed, but this method is smart.

For many years, at least once a week I’d look up from my computer at around 7:00 p.m. and realize that my husband was about to arrive home and that I’d completely forgotten about dinner. I used to panic as I scrambled to get to the market to buy groceries. I was tired and hungry — the worst possible state to be in when shopping for food. And the long checkout line was sure to put me in a foul mood even before I got home and started cooking.

Brown rice seems like any other dry good, right? Buy a big bag and throw it on a shelf in your pantry, and it will last for what often feels like an eternity. Well, not exactly. What makes brown rice not only more nutritious than white rice, but also extra nutty and flavorful, is that its bran and germ are still attached, which contain oils that are full of good, unsaturated fats. While that’s great from a health and taste perspective, those oils unfortunately go rancid pretty quickly.

Regular breadcrumbs and panko are standard go-tos for crisp breaded meat and fish, but what happens when you need a gluten-free option? The answer is probably closer than you think. Sure, there are plenty of premade gluten-free breading options on the grocery store shelf, but you probably already have one of the best solutions for gluten-free breading in your pantry right now. On its own, breading is a pretty simple mix, but it has the potential to have a big impact on your meal.

There are quite a few handy rice upgrades to lean on when you want to up the flavor of rice, like toasting the grains or cooking with stock — all of which are effective and useful. But what you do when you want to change the texture of your rice? Perhaps so it shares the characteristics of ramen? Yep — you can do that too. The secret to cooking rice like ramen is alkaline water, which can be achieved by creating a solution of water and baking soda.

Swap out the bag of arborio and it will make all the difference.

Q: I am moving from NYC to Houston, Texas, but my belongings will be in storage in Texas for about three weeks. I have a great number of spices and terrific grains from my winter CSA that I know I won’t finish before the big move. I imagine my storage situation will be climate-controlled, but I can’t guarantee it. What from my pantry could survive transit and three weeks of storage in Texas in June, and what should I pitch?

While there’s nothing better than oatmeal cooked over the stove, sometimes cooking it in the microwave is your best (or maybe only) option. Whatever the reason, a microwave can produce a satisfying bowl of oats. If you know a few tricks, it can produce an even tastier one than you might imagine. Oatmeal made with milk is not only richer and extra creamy, but it’s also higher in protein and thus even more rib-sticking.

With cooler mornings comes the immediate desire for something warmer to wake up to. The cold bowl of yogurt and granola gets swapped out for a comforting bowl of oatmeal as the season turns to fall. But oats are only as good as how they are made. Here are seven tips to achieve oatmeal success throughout the season. While oatmeal is supposed to be soft and porridge-like, sometimes it can be just a little too mushy. To solve this problem, try cooking up a mix of both rolled and steel-cut oats.

You're going to love this gluten-free and quick-cooking alternative to oats.

You’ve likely seen grain bowls in your favorite magazines, food blogs, and on trendy restaurant menus. They always look beautiful and taste so composed and interesting — the exact opposite of how they can come across in real life. So how do they do it? How is it that a dish that’s lauded for its supposed simplicity can seem so tough to pull off in reality? Grain bowls are a big part of my diet, but like anything, it’s really easy to fall into a rut.

Oatmeal is our go-to breakfast all year long, but especially on chilly winter mornings when we crave something warm and comforting. While it’s quite simple to cook, there’s more to making a really good bowl of oatmeal than stirring together the grains and water over heat. Here are our best tips and tricks to help you cook up a better batch of oatmeal. Before you get cooking, know the oats you’re working with.

It’s so easy to whip up a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. You can customize it to your liking, which means everyone has their own way of making it. Whether you’re a devotee of steel-cut oats or you always err on the side of savory, oatmeal style is a very personal thing. So in the spirit of personal preference, I present to you seven things I never do to my oatmeal. Maybe it’s just me, or maybe you too will find some extra oatmeal love in avoiding these things.

If you’ve long been a fan of granola’s clusters and crunch, maybe it’s time to consider a similar-looking cereal on the block: muesli. So how does equally delicious muesli compare to your beloved granola? Here are the answers you’re looking for so you can navigate the cereal aisle at the grocery store with confidence.

What’s better than a big, comforting bowl of homemade rice pudding? Having that bowl in your lap in just about 20 minutes. And that’s absolutely possible if you start with leftover rice. Making a cheater’s rice pudding really can be a quick afterthought when you decide a little dessert would be nice after all.

I’ll never forget the day in second grade when my mom showed up with two giant sheet pans of homemade cinnamon rolls. It was my birthday, and this was her surprise to me — a special treat to share with the whole class. I was genuinely surprised. And also a smidge disappointed that she hadn’t shown up with trays of store-bought cupcakes sporting thick swirls of frosting and plastic toppers that said, “YOU’RE RAD!

Oatmeal deserves all the praise it gets: It’s hearty, fiber-rich, wholesome, and ridiculously comforting when you wake up and really just want to stay in bed. While the porridge is incredible easy to make, there are a handful of things you can do each time you ready the oats and a saucepan to ensure your bowl will be at its very best. Here are five thing to keep in mind. There was a long period in my life when I just really could not get myself to like oatmeal.

Whether you’re simply pouring them into a bowl with milk or whipping up marshmallow-loaded treats, it’s hard to beat the reliable simplicity of Rice Krispies cereal from that blue box. Since they’re made of rice, you might be wondering if they’re gluten-free. The answer to that question may surprise you. Rice Krispies are, in fact, not gluten-free.

While I firmly believe that risotto is much easier to make at home than many people think, I will agree with the notion that it can be tricky to figure out when it’s done cooking. Unlike pasta, which has a pretty set amount of time it needs to boil until it’s al dente, risotto has a bit of wider range. There are a few variables to contend with: How hot the cooking liquid is, how strong it’s simmering, or the type of rice used can all affect the total cooking time.

If you met me on the street and got me talking, sooner or later I’d probably bring up risotto. I want to tell everyone I meet not to be afraid of it! There’s so much about risotto that scares people, and I think that’s really because there are too many myths floating around and not enough fact. So since I probably won’t run into you on the street anytime soon, I am here to set things straight right now. Here’s what you need to know to make awesome risotto.

Risotto is like my dinner patronus — it appears to help me make a satisfying dinner, even when I have the barest of kitchen staples. I’d argue that every home cook should learn the basic principals of risotto for making quick dinners without having to reach for a recipe. Part of making delicious risotto at home is also knowing what mistakes to avoid along the way. Here are five of the most common and what to do instead when making risotto.

For years, risotto intimidated me. All the commotion about constant stirring, attention, and exactness scared me out of really giving it a go; it seemed like a dish I was better off leaving to the professionals in restaurants. Then, when working on a farm in Italy, I met a dear old nonna that shook the fear right out of me. She’d make a giant pot of risotto frequently for the staff and guests staying on the farm and never worked up a sweat.

By now, risotto has finally managed to shake that myth that it’s a fussy, restaurant-only dinner. Once you have the hang of the technique —it’s pretty easy to make and doesn’t require a single special tool. I’ve cooked risotto in everything from a Dutch oven to an Instant Pot with great success but I have one pan that I love best for cooking risotto. This one pan helps me cook risotto faster, with greater ease, and more regularly — here’s why.

Ever since I was a kid, one of my favorite sounds in our house was hearing my mom’s KitchenAid mixer turn on. I knew it meant something delicious was coming our way, like chocolate chip oatmeal cookies, blueberry scones, or her famous apple cake. The sound of the mixer also signaled a chance to bake with her.

This year we’re bringing grains to the breakfast bowl with the help of your everyday fruit salad. Together with a choice combination of fruit and grains — be it quinoa, barley, or farro — you can transform a light fruit salad into a hearty, one-bowl meal satisfying enough for breakfast, lunch, and yes, even dinner.

Mornings are about efficiency. How can you quickly get out the door while still managing a healthy breakfast and a caffeine kick? Here’s your answer: Cook your oatmeal in tea. You’re not only getting a buzz from your breakfast bowl, but it’s also creamy, spicy, and delicious! The concept is simple. While you usually cook your oats in a simmering pot of water, cook them in a simmering pot of tea instead.

There’s something about Rice Krispies Treats that already make them seem fit for the Halloween season — perhaps it’s that candy-like, extra-gooey thing they have going on — but with the addition of candy corn, they become the perfect treat. This is easy — I promise. Get your favorite recipe for Rice Krispies Treats (may I suggest this one?) and gather the supplies (toasted crisp cereal, mini marshmallows, and whatever else it may call for).

The harried 6 p.m dash to the grocery store without a clue of what’ll end up on the dinner table can be a thing of the past — that is, if you lock down the fine art of meal planning. We asked Danielle Walker, the blogger behind Against All Grain, to share the strategies she implements to prepare for a week’s worth of healthy food for her family.

When it comes to cooking rice, the options are many. You can choose the tried-and-true stovetop method, or a more hands-off approach with the help of a rice cooker or an electric pressure cooker. But the simplest and easiest approach involves your oven. Whatever kind of rice you’re cooking — long-grain, short-grain, white, brown, or wild rice — it can all be cooked in the oven.

I don’t know about you, but if there was a competition for most-used appliance in my kitchen, my waffle iron would easily come in last place. In fact, it wouldn’t even be a competition at all — one look at the dust collecting on it and all bets are off. The good news for waffle irons around the world is that there are people who are much more clever than I am and have found ways to lift the waffle iron out of its single-use appliance stigma.

The other day my mom asked me where I learned to cook (because we both know it certainly wasn’t from her). I didn’t have to think too long for an answer: “From PBS and cookbooks,” I said. One of my favorite PBS shows, which I later had the chance to work on, was Ming Tsai’s Simply Ming. That’s where I learned how to tea-smoke fish, braise short ribs, and make Ming’s house 50-50 rice.

Open up your rice cooker, and in addition to your new appliance you’ll find a plastic paddle. Your first instinct may be to think you already have plenty of wooden spoons, spatulas, and cooking utensils, so the last thing you need is a flimsy plastic one taking up space. You may even be quick to toss it, deeming it useless. But not so fast — this paddle actually has an important purpose.

How much of a difference does using leftover rice really make when cooking fried rice? How much does it affect the cooking process, and more importantly, is there really a noticeable difference in taste? I decided to find out by cooking two batches of fried rice side by side — one made with day-old white rice and one with freshly cooked white rice.

Both jasmine and basmati rice are prized for one specific thing: their aroma. There’s nothing quite like the two — they’re far from any other average white or brown rice. And while they carry distinct characteristics in their own right, it’s their fragrance that makes them stand out. But why are they more fragrant than any other long-grain varieties? It’s all thanks to a compound called 2-Acetyl-1-pyrroline.

Rice is a very important grain. It is the number-one staple food in dozens of countries, providing an inexpensive and readily available source of energy. In fact, 20 percent of the world’s dietary energy comes from rice. It is nutritious — but it is far from perfect due to its high starch content. Here’s why that’s an issue — and a surprising way to actually mitigate rice’s less-healthy aspects with one simple, surprising cooking method.

Put away the cream, skip the hassle of making a slurry, and leave the stick blender where it is — there’s an easier way to thicken your soup, and the answer is right inside your pantry. Even though I can (and do) eat it year-round, I crave soup on a daily basis during the cold winter months — especially homemade soups that are thick, hearty, and nourishing.

We’ve all been there: You forgot to set the timer, or you stepped away from the stove and got totally distracted by something outside the kitchen. Next thing you know, that pot of grains you were planning to serve with dinner is overcooked beyond belief — like, cooked into submission, there’s no going back, definitely cut it for dinner kind of overcooked. But don’t jump to the compost bin so fast — there’s still hope for those overcooked grains.

It’s always the simplest foods that end up throwing you a curve ball, and grains are the quintessential example. Thanks to their versatility, they make it into most meal plans — that pot of rice you make on the weekend working its way into lunches and dinners throughout the week. But even if you’ve made quinoa a thousand times, there’s still that one day you burn it, over-salt it, or cook it until it’s a mushy goo.

From chewy farro to a simple pot of rice, barely a day goes by that we’re not cooking or consuming some kind of grain. Still, as with any staple, we can grow weary of the same old flavors day in and day out. Isn’t there an easy way to shake things up in the grain pot? Something that doesn’t involve more chopping or fancy ingredients? You bet there is! The answer is simple: Swap out all or part of the water for another liquid! That’s right.

I love porridge for its earthy flavor and creamy bite, but I also see it as a blank canvas in which to spin tales of delicious and diverse toppings. The opportunities for creativity and invention are endless — from sweet to savory, and everything in between. Once you start to move beyond traditional brown sugar and raisins, you’ll find merriment in blobs, dashes, and slivers of anything and everything lingering in the larder.

We are all busy people in our own ways. Some of us have busy jobs, some manage busy families, others go to school or volunteer — for most of us, there’s no shortage of things to fill the day. So it’s a bit daring then to write about an oatmeal method that takes two hours — even for me, someone who writes about whole grains and experiments with different recipes as part of my job. At first this one seemed like a stretch — that is, until I finally tried it.

When I’m using muffin liners for baking cupcakes or muffins, I’m always frustrated with how the liners absorb the grease and never come out looking as nice as when they came out of the package, especially if I’ve spent the money on pretty patterned ones.

Who: Hoàng Thị Thẩm and Nguyễn Đình Đạt What: Rice Where: Bac Ninh Province, Vietnam Rice doesn’t have the most exciting of reputations. It’s often thought of as filler, a background food to hold up dishes with more flavor — but rice has a few secrets you might not know.

Q: How far in advance can I make baked risotto? I have a potluck on Saturday night and was thinking of bringing one, and then realized I have to be there early to set up! Can I make it a few hours in advance and then warm it up there or will it be gummy? Thank you! Sent by Molly Editor: Risotto is one of those tricky dishes to prepare in advance, but it can definitely be done.

Brown rice is an ideal side dish for stir-fries, curries, and just about any cut of meat. The big drawback, though, is its lengthy 45-minute cook time, especially if you’re trying to get dinner on the table fast. I recently came across a tip that mentioned soaking brown rice could cut the cook time by more than half. Talk about a dinnertime game-changer! Obviously I had to test this tip for myself. The original tip comes from Marion Burros in a 1991 article from The New York Times.

Whether it’s from ordering take-out or when I make it at home, I always count myself lucky when I have leftover rice. Unless you plan to repurpose it for fried rice or a quick pudding, the key to enjoying soft, fluffy rice a second time around is knowing the right way to reheat it. After sitting in the fridge overnight, rice loses some of its moisture — it becomes dried out, tough, chewy, and clumps together. Let’s just say it needs a little help.

We know and love cornmeal as the foundation for soft, buttery cornbread, but don’t let that be the only way you use it. This is one versatile pantry staple that’s capable of quite a lot. From breakfast to dinner to dessert, here are five ways to cook and bake with cornmeal. Want to up your pancake game next weekend? Sure you do! Add-ins are always great (I mean, who can turn down those fresh blueberries?), but it’s time to go bigger.

I grew up as a Catholic in India, and one of the holiest times of our year was Lent and Easter. In India Christian Easter (and Christian traditions in general) is probably even holier and a more important religious holiday than even Christmas, as it represents rebirth and renewal. It is a time to spend with family and friends, and has a host of traditions associated with it. Here’s a peek into my family’s traditions of Easter in India.