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I'm about to put some rice in the pressure cooker, then I will put in the fridge over night then fry in a wok and season with soy and teryiaki sauce.

I'm wondering how would it be different if I put it in now in the pressure cooker. Never seen anyone suggest it but I'm tempted to try with a test batch.

I at least wanted ask if anyone has tried this and how did it work out before I waste perfectly good rice for no reason though. :)

Anastasia Zendaya
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BVernon
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2 Answers2

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Adding sauces to the rice, in the cooker (regardless of method), will certainly impact the flavor of the rice. However, the fried rice of many (if not all) cultures, benefits from searing in a high-heat pan. Not only does this searing impact the flavor of the rice and other add-ins, but the sauces as well. So, flavoring the rice first might be delicious, but you might also miss out on the impact of caramelization, which takes place during the final cook step. It also makes it difficult to taste and adjust seasoning.

moscafj
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  • I would still fry it actually. But my thought is it would be much easier to mix the seasoning in well without spilling the rice all over my stove as I often end up doing. – BVernon Jun 08 '21 at 14:56
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Rice cooks well in a pressure cooker, in fact rather than using overnight rice I quite often follow an adaptation of this video (https://youtu.be/vvYUYiEW1Uw) for a very quick fried rice:

  1. Cook white basmati rice in pressure cooker for 3 minutes at the ratio of 2 cups of rice to 2 cups of water. Let the pressure release naturally, which takes around 5 minutes. Decant the rice into a large bowl, preferably metal.
  2. Separate the rice gently with a fork while the grains are still steaming. Add 1 tbsp light soy sauce and stir through until all the grains are evenly coated. Repeat with 1 tbsp dark soy sauce and 1 tbsp of sesame oil.
  3. By this stage, the rice will have become separate and almost cool. Leave until totally cooled off and use as you would overnight rice.

I have tried this with an electric pressure cooker, and the results have been excellent. The rice grains are separate, and as it is very slightly undercooked, by the time it has been fried in the wok the consistency is perfect. The metal bowl helps in rapidly cooling the rice, but you could achieve the same result spreading the rice on a baking sheet.

I don't know what the times would be for a regular stovetop pressure cooker, you may have to experiment with that as the pressure differs between those and electric models. You might need to reduce the pressure time by 30 seconds or more, you know when you have it right as the rice is cooked through but doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan.

Note: It is essential to meet the minimum quantities as specified for your pressure cooker. My pressure cooker works OK with 4 US cups total volume.

Greybeard
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    I think you've misunderstood the focus of the question; the OP is asking about the effect of flavouring the rice when first cooking it rather than when frying it. You do mention flavouring briefly in part 2 but I think the OP is wondering about adding the sauces to the pressure cooker. – dbmag9 Jun 08 '21 at 06:03
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    @dbmag9 Correct, but this is also helpful and another option of which I had not though. – BVernon Jun 08 '21 at 06:38
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    @Greybeard I have an Instant Pot. Whatever other ancient ways of pressure cooking you are referring to, I am not familiar with them. :) – BVernon Jun 08 '21 at 06:40
  • @BVernon, Instant Pot will work with the measurements I suggested. Some PC's are really fussy about minimum quantities. Mine (an IP clone) will not work below 4 cups. – Greybeard Jun 08 '21 at 17:27