Have You Eaten Rice Today?
More than half the world’s population eat this global staple crop. First domesticated in China as long as 13,000 years ago, rice spread around the world throughout Asia and then to the Americas. Another variety of rice was domesticated in Africa about 3,000 years ago. China leads the world in rice production, followed by India and Indonesia. The United States ranked 10th in rice production, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
In the U.S., farms grow about 20 billion pounds of rice every year in Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Texas. Rice grows in Florida, too, in lesser quantities. In 2021, the Sem-Chi Rice Mill in Belle Glade grew rice on 20,000 acres, and processed rice grown by independent farmers in western Palm Beach County. “We are proud to mill enough rice to feed more than 4 million people annually,” says Daniel Cavazos, director of rice farming for Florida Crystals.
To delve deeper in rice, we turned to Kazu Abe and her husband, Johnson Teh, of Lan Pan Asian Café in Kendall, where they’ve been serving rice dishes from different Asian cuisines since 1999. Before that, Abe’s parents opened Miami’s first traditional Japanese restaurant, Su-Shin, in Coconut Grove in 1977. For her, eating rice means, simply, comfort. “It’s the one food I miss most when I travel,” she says. “I need to eat rice once a day.”
Cooking rice is another story. Even seasoned chefs fret about getting it right – not dry and crunchy, or soggy and mushy. For home cooks, there are lots of ready-made rice products on the market – microwavable cups or packets ready in 60 seconds. “But these can end up being expensive,” she says. Instead, buy economical bags of rice and learn how to cook it – rinsing and draining, using a heavy pot, and timing it. In these pages, Abe and Teh share their expertise in mastering the art of cooking rice, so that you never need to feel uncomfortable making this classic comfort food.
Cook Perfect Rice Every Time
First, rinse your rice to get rid of the starch that clings to the grains (unless you are making risotto, in which case you want that starch). Rice cookers – essential in Asian and Latin American kitchens – make rice that’s evenly cooked, fluffy, tender, not mushy. “You set it and forget it,” says Abe. The benefits are consistent rice that never scorches. It cooks slower for a longer time and frees up a burner on your stove. If you don’t have a rice cooker, she recommends using a very heavy pan with a tight-fitting lid. A small (2-qt) Dutch oven also works. Measure out 2 cups rice. Rinse 3 times. For every cup of rice, use 1¼ cups cold water, a little less for long-grain rice. Let soak for 15-20 minutes. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Take a fork and stir it once, then put on the lid, lower heat to medium low, and cook for exactly 10 minutes. Open the lid, stir once more with a fork, replace the lid, and cook for 8 minutes. Turn off heat and let sit for 5 minutes. Serve. For brown rice, which is chewier, she uses a pressure cooker for the best results, using a 1:1 ratio of rice to water. An Instapot works pretty well, too, Abe says.
How to Make the Best Fried Rice
When Lan Pan Asian first opened, Kazu Abe and Johnson Teh say they didn’t want to add fried rice to their menu, partly because their small kitchen, with only two woks, couldn't handle it. Today their garlic fried rice is on the menu in their Filipino Rice Bowl, topped with braised pork, pickled onions and a fried sunny-side-up egg, and their Green Bowl with brown rice, veggies and peanut sauce. “Making fried rice is a way to use leftover rice,” says Abe. “Every Asian household has rice. It’s eggs, oil, salt, garlic, and add what you want,”although she prefers fried rice that’s “more curated."
Here are her tips for perfect fried rice. This will go together in five minutes once you prepare your ingredients.
1. Assemble everything:
• Use cold cooked rice – any kind except sushi rice, which is already seasoned. Hot, freshly cooked rice will become mushy. Refrigerate it until it’s cold. Crumble it with your fingers to break up the clumps.
• Neutral cooking oil, like avocado, canola or grapeseed
• Eggs, beaten lightly
• Minced garlic or ginger
• Salt and pepper
• Scallions, sliced in thin rounds, for flavor and color
• Proteins, like chopped cooked roast pork or chicken or shrimp
• Veggies, including colorful diced peppers edamame; diced carrots; asparagus
• Flavorings, to add at the end. Sesame oil can be used to saute proteins or added for flavor. A little goes a long way. Chili sambal adds color and flavor. Use soy sauce at the end so it doesn’t burn and get bitter
• Winning combinations include roast pork and mushrooms; asparagus and ginger; iceberg lettuce with shrimp; pork, fresh basil and fried chiles
2. To make the fried rice, a wok is ideal because there’s lots of space. Or use your largest skillet.
Heat wok or skillet over medium-high heat, then add a generous amount of oil. Add eggs and cook quickly so they remain moist, then remove to another bowl and set aside. Add another tablespoon of oil to the pan and add minced garlic or ginger. Cook for 10 seconds, then add rice. Using a flat spoon, stir over heat until hot. Add salt and pepper, scallions and other ingredients and toss together to make sure everything is heated through. Add flavoring if you want, adjust seasoning, and serve immediately.
