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    Home » Sides

    How To Cook Basmati Rice

    Published: Jul 21, 2022 Updated: Jul 27, 2022 by Alison Andrews This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe
    How To Cook Basmati Rice

    Learn how to cook basmati rice so that it’s light, fluffy and perfect every time! No need to rinse it, drain it, or add any extra ingredients!

    Basmati rice topped with fresh parsley.

    Learning to cook basmati rice so that it comes out perfectly every time is an excellent life skill. After all, it’s so versatile and goes brilliantly with so many things!

    It’s amazing with a good vegan curry or stir fry and it’s even our favorite rice to stuff into a vegan burrito.

    Of course if it comes out mushy or gluey then that can ruin an otherwise great meal.

    There’s just a couple of essential things to master and you’ll be a pro at making perfect fluffy, tender basmati rice, anytime.

    The most important tip of all, is to get the right ratio of water to rice, which is 1 cup of basmati rice to 1 and ½ cups water.

    If you don’t get this ratio right, then nothing else matters. If you DO get the ratio right, then you are well on your way to perfectly cooked rice. It’s as easy as that.

    We have a few more tips up our sleeves, but that is the most important.

    Ingredients You’ll Need:

    Ingredients for basmati rice.
    • 1 cup Basmati Rice
    • 1 ½ cups Water

    Ingredient Notes

    There is no need to add oil, salt or anything else to your rice while it’s cooking. Once it’s cooked and fluffed up, you can absolutely add salt, fresh lime juice, chopped cilantro or parsley or anything else you please. But you don’t need to cook it with any added flavorings.

    Basmati rice topped with fresh parsley.

    How To Make Basmati Rice

    You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.

    • Add basmati rice and water to a medium sized saucepan.
    Water added to rice in pot.
    • Heat it over medium high heat, uncovered.
    Heating basmati rice and water in a pot.
    • Bring to a gentle simmer, where the edges are bubbling and the surface of the water is white and foamy.
    Basmati rice and water brought to a boil in a pot.
    • Place a tight fitting lid on, turn down the heat to medium low.
    • Leave it to simmer for 12 minutes. Don’t lift the lid!
    Basmati rice cooking in a pot with the lid on.
    • After 12 minutes, remove it from the heat and leave it to rest with the lid on for 10 minutes. Don’t lift the lid during this time.
    Basmati rice resting in a pot with the lid on.
    • After 10 minutes, remove the lid.
    Cooked basmati rice in a pot.
    • Use a rubber or wooden paddle to fluff the rice.
    Fluffing cooked basmati rice with a rubber paddle.

    Tips For Perfect Basmati Rice

    Use a big enough pot. When making 1 or 2 cups of rice, it’s fine to make it in a medium saucepan (with a lid). When you’re making 3 or more cups of rice then it’s best to move it to a big pot. There needs to be plenty of space for the rice to expand.

    The saucepan or pot must have a tight fitting lid. If the lid is loose then steam will escape and you’ll lose some of the water.

    Bring it to the boil before putting the lid on. When you bring the rice to the boil it should be uncovered. As soon as it starts to boil, you add the lid. This results in even cooking because the water reaches the correct temperature before the lid goes on.

    Don’t lift the lid once it’s on. Once the lid is on, don’t open it until all the water is absorbed. If you open it too soon, steam will escape and you will get unevenly cooked rice.

    Let it rest for 10 minutes. While the rice is resting, it is actually completing the cooking process. This is essential.

    Fluff with a rubber or wooden paddle. Don’t fluff it with a fork as that can break the rice.

    Basmati rice topped with fresh parsley.

    Basmati Rice Q&A

    What about rinsing the rice? There is no need to rinse the rice if you bought your rice in a sealed package from the supermarket. In fact, rinsing it can result in your rice ending up gummy. If you must rinse the rice (for hygienic purposes, if you didn’t buy it in a sealed package from the grocery store) then you can reduce the water in the recipe by 2 tablespoons.

    How should basmati rice be stored? Keep your cooked basmati rice stored in a sealed container in the fridge for 4-5 days.

    Can you freeze basmati rice? It freezes really well for up to 3 months. You can freeze it in a freezer safe container. You also don’t need to thaw it! Just reheat it directly from frozen in the microwave. If it’s a bit dry, mix in a splash of water.

    Wooden spoonful of basmati rice.

    Vegan Curries To Serve With Basmati Rice

    1. Vegan Chana Masala
    2. Vegan Cauliflower Curry
    3. Vegan Katsu Curry
    4. Vegan Tikka Masala
    5. Vegan Butter Chicken
    6. Thai Pumpkin Curry

    Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!

    Basmati rice with fresh parsley in a black bowl.

    Basmati Rice

    Learn how to cook basmati rice so that it's light, fluffy and perfect every time! No need to rinse it, drain it, or add any extra ingredients!
    5 from 2 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: Indian, Middle Eastern
    Diet: Vegan
    Prep Time: 1 minute minute
    Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Resting Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 26 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 169kcal
    Author: Alison Andrews

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup Basmati Rice
    • 1 ½ cups Water
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add basmati rice and water to a medium sized saucepan. Heat it over medium high heat, uncovered.
    • Bring it to a simmer, where the edges are bubbling and the surface of the water is white and foamy.
    • Place a tight fitting lid on and turn down the heat to medium low. Leave it to simmer for 12 minutes. Don't lift the lid!
    • After 12 minutes, remove it from the heat and leave it to rest with the lid on for 10 minutes. Don't lift the lid during this time.
    • After 10 minutes, remove the lid. Use a rubber or wooden paddle to fluff the rice.

    Notes

    1. Flavorings: There is no need to add oil, salt or anything else to your rice while it’s cooking. Once it’s cooked and fluffed up, you can absolutely add salt, fresh lime juice, chopped cilantro or parsley or anything else you please. But you don’t need to cook it with any added flavorings.
    2. There is no need to rinse the rice – if you bought your rice in a sealed package from the supermarket then there is no need to rinse it. In fact, rinsing it can result in your rice ending up gummy. If you must rinse the rice (for hygienic purposes, if you didn’t buy it in a sealed package from the grocery store) then you can reduce the water in the recipe by 2 tablespoons.
    3. Storing: Keep your cooked rice stored in a sealed container in the fridge for 4-5 days.
    4. Freezing: It freezes really well for up to 3 months. You can freeze it in a freezer safe container. You also don’t need to thaw it and can just reheat it directly from frozen in the microwave. If it’s a bit dry, mix in a splash of water.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1Serve | Calories: 169kcal | Carbohydrates: 37g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Sodium: 7mg | Potassium: 53mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 0.1g | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 0.4mg
    DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Rate it & leave your feedback in the comments section below, or tag @lovingitvegan on Instagram and hashtag #lovingitvegan
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    About the Author

    Hi I'm Alison Andrews, I'm the voice and cook behind Loving It Vegan. I love making delicious vegan food and creating vegan versions of all your old favorites, so that you’ll never feel like you’re missing out. Find out more about me here.

    Loving It Vegan is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This site may contain some of these links to Amazon.com. If you make a purchase through one of those links, Loving It Vegan will receive a small commission from the purchase at no additional cost to you.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tatum says

      May 11, 2024 at 1:47 am

      How can there be only one rating?! This is the best cooking tip/hack I’ve ever used! All those years making gummy rice no matter how hard I tried, dealing with a messy rice cooker in the hopes of Indian restaurant-quality basmati rice–I can’t believe that everything I did for the “perfect” rice (salt; oil; rinsing 25x) just made it worse. You’ll be nervous the first time, expecting to burn the bottom of your pot or undercooked the rice, that’s okay! Trust me, if you follow her directions to the letter, you’ll be making rice as often as you’ve really wanted to! I haven’t bought even one box of frozen rice at Trader Joe’s since discovering this amazing web site a while ago. Thank you!5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        May 30, 2024 at 1:02 pm

        Yay! So happy to hear Tatum! Thanks so much for your great review!

        Reply
    2. Eve says

      July 23, 2022 at 3:08 am

      Can I use this same cooking method with jasmine rice?

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        July 24, 2022 at 12:14 pm

        Hi Eve, jasmine rice is similar but not exactly the same. The ratio is different, so you would use 1 and 1/4 cups water to 1 cup jasmine rice.

        Reply

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    5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

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