How To Cook Jasmine Rice

Name: How To Cook Jasmine Rice
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1 cup jasmine rice; 1 1/2 cup water; 1/2 tsp salt

I'm here to show you how to cook jasmine rice the easiest way. In a few simple steps, you'll get perfectly cooked rice every single time. You don't even need a rice cooker!

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What Is Jasmine Rice
Why This Recipe Works
Ingredients
Step-By-Step Instructions
Recipe Expert Tips
How To Serve And Store
Recipe FAQs
What to Eat this With
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What Is Jasmine Rice

What's so special about it, you might wonder, right?

It is a long-grain variety of rice and is famous for its aromatic fragrance. Mainly grown in Thailand, it is heavily consumed in South East Asia.

When cooked, it's fluffy, soft, and slightly sticky. It also has a subtle, sweet touch to it. Its texture and flavor make it perfect to be eaten with other meals like my crispy air-fryer soy sauce chicken, Thai basil beef, Chinese steamed fish, and 30-minute chicken massaman curry! Or keep it in the fridge and use it to make my delicious nasi goreng kampung the next day.

Why This Recipe Works

Sliced air-fryer soy sauce chicken with some rice in a plate view from top.

Being a Malaysian and having been living in South East Asia since I was born, rice is compulsory in our daily meals. I've been cooking rice since I was 10 and I can cook it with my eyes closed!

Follow my easy instructions on how to cook jasmine rice successfully and I promise you'll get perfectly cooked rice, every single time. There are too many myths and useless rules out there on the internet, if I might say.

You don't need a rice cooker. I'm going to show you how to cook jasmine rice on a stovetop. And my secret to cooking a perfect large batch of it is to use a wide pan instead of a pot!

Ingredients

Jasmine rice - White, not brown. Don't substitute for basmati, short-grain rice, or any other rice as it's not the same.

Water - My jasmine rice water ratio has forever been 1 ½ cups of water to 1 cup of rice. It's easy to remember and it works every single time! Or instead of water, use chicken stock to flavor it as I did in my Hainanese chicken rice recipe.

Salt - To season the rice. Depending on what you're going to eat it with, you can use 1 tablespoon of chicken or beef bouillon powder instead.

*See recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Boil the water. On medium-high heat, bring the water and salt to a rolling boil. For a bigger batch, use a wide pan or a casserole pan with a lid to make it boil faster. Or boil it in a kettle.

2. Rinse the rice. Meanwhile, place the rice in a strainer under a tap and let the water run through it for a minute or so. Lightly move the rice around to help remove the starch. Do this until you see the falling water is clear (not light-milky color).

3. Add in the rice. Pour the rice into the boiling water and wait until there are bubbles on the edges of the pot and some foam forming in the center.

4. Cook and rest. Put the lid on and reduce the heat. The lowest possible for a gas stove. Number 3 for vitroceramic cooktop, or induction stove. Cook for 20 minutes and remove from the heat. Rest for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork, chopsticks, or a wooden spoon. Enjoy!

Recipe Expert Tips

My easy tips on how to cook jasmine rice to perfection. Follow these and you'll never fail!

Choose the utensil correctly. For a small batch (1 cup of rice), use a small pot. For a bigger batch (more than 1 cup), use a wider surface utensil like a wide pan/pot, or a casserole. This will ensure the rice to cook evenly and the rice at the bottom is not mushy.
Lid on. While cooking, try not to open the lid. It's not the end of the world if you open it for a few seconds, for 2,3 times. Just make a habit of not opening it.
Rinse the rice. It only takes 1 minute. Using a strainer makes rinsing rice way easier and faster! Not rinsing it will result in sticker, clumpy rice.
Rest the rice. Always rest the rice with the lid on, for 10 minutes. I noticed that the rice is sticker when it's not rested.

How To Serve And Store

Serve - Preferably hot together with other meals like my Thai chicken green curry or my basil beef stir-fry! Its texture and flavor are perfect to be eaten with curries, stir-fry, or made into fried rice.

Store - Keep the leftovers in an air-tight container. It lasts in the fridge for up to 5 days and 6 months in the freezer. Reheat without thawing, in a microwave. Sprinkle 1-2 tablespoon of water beforehand.

Recipe FAQs

What's the difference between jasmine rice and regular rice?

Although both are long-grain rice, once cooked jasmine rice is stickier whereas regular rice is not. Jasmine rice is primarily grown in Thai and has a distinctive aromatic fragrance that regular rice doesn't have.

Is jasmine rice healthy?

It has similar nutritional values as any other white rice. Although, it's much more filling than basmati rice if you have to compare them.

Do you have to rinse jasmine rice?

Yes. Rinsing it will remove the starch and make the cooked rice less sticky and not clumpy. Follow my method for rinsing it, it's so easy and faster!

Why did my jasmine rice turn mushy?

If you followed my rice-to-water ratio and it's still mushy, it means that the pot that you're using is too small. For more than 1 cup of rice, use a wide surface utensil like a wide pan/pot or a casserole.

What to Eat this With

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