Are you a rice lover? Have you ever soaked your rice before making it?
If you’re cooking a Middle Eastern recipe, you’ll most likely be asked to let the
rice soak prior to cooking it. This is not common in other cultures; however, soaking rice can indeed make the food more delicious.
However, why do we let rice soak overnight, while others simply rinse it before making rice?
Rice can be safely put in a soaking bath for a few hours at room temperature, or even in the refrigerator. There are numerous benefits of soaking rice, such as eliminating the starches and harmful substances like arsenic.
While not required for certain rice varieties like jasmine rice, in the long run, soaking rice for a night will result in rice that is fluffier and is lower in arsenic and other harmful substances.
While rice is thought of as a nutrient-rich food item, the toxins that may be present in the soil could cause harm to the health of many people. Recent research has discovered a significant concentration of arsenic in rice.
Arsenic is among the most harmful components found on the planet. The fact that arsenic made its way into the food chain poses a huge health risk.
Let’s look at the reasons you should soak your rice, or at a minimum, wash your rice before cooking it.
Why We Rinse Rice Before Cooking
To understand why it is beneficial, it is important to know why we wash rice prior to cooking it.
The rising rice can do two crucial things:
Get rid of any dirt that’s on the rice
Removes surface starches
If you first wash your rice, the water will appear to be an opaque white color. This is due to the starch that’s being removed from the rice.
If you don’t wash the rice before cooking it, you’ll notice the rice grains will stick together when it cooks.
Why We Should Soak Rice Before Cooking
Rice can be soaked for up to 30 minutes if you’re stuck for time or overnight.
The advantage of the soaking process is that it allows more starches on the surface to break free from the rice.
That means you’ll be capable of giving your rice a second rinse or two following the soak.
Another benefit of the rice being soaked is that it helps eliminate toxins and other harmful substances that the rice could have absorbed.
