One secret that Japanese people use to make Japanese rice soft and chewy and delicious is Washing rice until clean and then soaking it in water for a period of time before cooking. Let’s find out why Japanese people have to soak rice before cooking. And how long should you soak rice in order to get sticky, soft, delicious cooked rice?
Why do Japanese people soak rice before cooking?
Rice soaked in water will absorb water into the rice grains. When cooked, the heat will pass through the rice grains evenly. The gelatinization process occurs. (Gelatinization) that causes the starch granules to swell to the maximum, resulting in cooked rice that is sticky, soft, fluffy, and delicious. This is different from rice that is not soaked in water so that the heat does not reach the core of the rice. This makes the cooked rice sticky and soft on the outside but still hard on the inside, which Japanese people say is unpalatable rice.
Time for soaking rice to get sticky, soft, delicious rice.
Soaking rice in water generally takes about 30 minutes to 1 hour. Water will absorb up to 80 percent of the rice grains after soaking in water for about 30 minutes, which is enough to allow heat to pass through the rice grains to make it. Cooked rice that is sticky, soft and fluffy. However, the time of water penetration into the rice grains will have a different speed according to the ทางเข้า ufabet season. The length of time for soaking rice before cooking in different seasons is as follows.
Summer 20-30 minutes
Winter 60-90 minutes
spring
and autumn 45 minutes
Moreover, the time needed to soak rice does not depend on just the season. But it depends on the type of rice. If it is freshly harvested rice that has a lot of moisture in the seeds, it will take less time to soak in water than normal rice. And if it’s old rice, you may need to increase the soaking time in water.
Should I throw the water away after soaking?
After washing rice, Japanese people usually add water according to the amount of rice and soak it in water for the specified time. Then press the rice cooker to cook as usual. However, some brands of rice cookers may have a process for soaking in water without the need to soak in the water yourself. You can set the time for soaking rice in water according to your preference. However, if it is a Japanese rice menu or cooking in a clay pot, You may need to pour out the soaking water first. Then you will measure out the water or broth and add it later. To prevent the rice from breaking. The rice should be poured through a sieve lined with a cloth moistened with water. Then it can be cooked according to the intended purpose.
Delicious, chewy, cooked rice is another charm of Japanese food menus. If preparing Japanese food at home , don’t forget to soak Japanese rice before cooking. The weather in our house is hot so it should take about 20-30 minutes to soak.