The simplest recipes are sometimes the hardest to get right. ​

Rice, though seemingly simple, is one such example.​
 

I was never partial to rice, but badly made rice nevertheless really depresses me! It is indeed one of my pet peeves (one in a very long list I might add) The extra long Indian Basmati is my favorite with it's delicate fragrance and perfect texture. 

​

As a rule of thumb, for any variety of rice, the ratio of

rice to liquid is 1:2. So 2 cups liquid for every cup of

rice.

​

Perfect bowl of steamed rice​

​Ingredients:​

1 cup of rice
2 cups of water

​
Directions:Trim asparagus spears by either chopping off 2 inches from ​​

the bottom or bending and snapping each separately. If too

thick they may need peeling. Thick fibrous stalk are quite

unappetitising.

Bring water to a rolling boil in a pan that will neatly fit

all your spears.

Drop the asparagus in the water. Bring out your timer and

set the timer for 2 minutes. If your have thicker spears,

increase the time to 3- 5 minutes.

If you wish to serve the dish immediately, no need to rinse

in cold water. If not, rinse under cold water to stop the

cooking process and retain the gorgeous green color.

Melt the butter in a small pan.Once it starts to foam, add

the mined garlic cloves to it. Cook till soft about a minute

or two on medium-low heat. Do not venture away from the

stove at this point. It takes only a second to burn garlic.

Arrange the asparagus on your serving dish. A square one

suits best for maximum visual impact. Add salt and pepper

generously. Pour lemon juice to cover entirely. Drizzle the

lemon butter to coat evenly.

Tip: In simple dishes like this one try using pink himalayan

salt. It has a delicate flavor which suits well here.

• Wash the rice well in water and drain. Soak the rice in water for 15 minutes.

​Method 1: An electric rice cooker

• Many people believe that it is useful only if you cook huge batches of rice at a time. That is not necessarily so. However I do object to a large amount of rice sticking to the bottom in a sticky film.

• Years ago when the electric cooker was a novelty in our home, my mom came up with a very nifty idea of avoiding both these issues. Here is what you do. You need a smaller metal container that fits in the rice cooker and will hold the quantity of cooked rice that you wish to prepare.

• In the rice cooker, add an inch of water. Place you pan with the uncooked rice and water in steps 1 and 2 in the rice cooker.​

• Turn it on and set to steam option for 25 minutes. The cooker does it's magic and you have perfect rice without any fuss! You can even cook the smallest amount of rice this way.​

Method 2. A pressure cooker

I would not recommend the kind of rice that is a result of this preparation unless it is being served to a small child or a convalescent or used for some very specific rice preparations which require the rice to be either gummy or mushy. I am going to skip this step.

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Method 3. In a pan

• All you need is a suitably sized pan.

• Place the rice in a pan with 2 cups water. Place on medium high heat till water comes to a boil.

• Then reduce heat to low. Set the timer to 15 minutes. Once the timer is done, remove the pan from heat and let stand for at least 5 minutes so that the steam is absorbed in the rice.

Do NOT stir at this point or you will break the grains which

at this point are at a very delicate stage.

​

Serve with you favorite accompaniments!​