Old (Uncooked) Rice

[Chris Amirault]

I found a bit of arborio sitting at the back of our pantry's rather extensive rice collection tonight. After a brief ponder, I decided that a lemon basil risotto would use up some wine and chicken stock in the fridge and make an interesting side to go with a simple frisee, fried egg, and lardon salad we were having as a light dinner. (Ok, that's my version of a light dinner. Ahem.) So I minced an onion and a tiny bit of garlic, sauteed them in some olive oil, and then tossed in the rice.

As my 18 month old daughter says: "Pee-Yewwwww!"

That rice gave off a stale, almost rancid odor, and though it eventually died down, it lingered in my nose for the rest of the night. I doused the risotto with too much lemon and hoped that no one else noticed it.

This got me thinking about old rice. The Japanese apparently have a word for old rice, komai, and I'd bet that other languages do too. In addition, if this topic is any indication, komai produces some of the same problems there as it does in my kitchen. I buy enough of certain kinds of rice, especially jasmine, to keep most of my supply fresh, but this got me wondering: just what does age do to rice? What can one do to deal with old rice, if anything?

[Gabriel Lewis]

I've never before encountered any problems with "old rice" but it seems to me that it must vary by type of rice. I know that both basmati and jasmine rice are often intentionally aged, and most discerning consumers of these types of rice prefer aged rice of this type.

I only read the first page and a half of the thread you linked, but it didn't seem like there was a very detailed description of what was wrong with old rice, are you sure you are facing the same problem? Although if you are, it'd be my guess that there is nothing to be done.

I tried doing some searching to see if arborio is aged or not but didn't have any luck.

[Abra]

The only time I have ever had this happen is with Arborio, and yep, it was vile.

[Hiroyuki]

Just for clarification, "the newer the better" only applies to short-grain Japonica rices.

[BarbaraY]

I had a similar experience not long ago. Old Arbario that had gotten pushed to the back of the pantry. Aside from the fact that the flavor was off, the testure just wasn't right. It didn't make that nice risotto texture.

I tossed what was left.

[snowangel]

I, too, have had the same experience with old arborio. Flavor and texture were off. Instead of tossing what uncooked rice I had, I used it as pie weights!

[origamicrane]

could it be becuase the rice wasn't in an airtight container?

arborio is meant to absorb more moisture then other types of rice

maybe it just absorbed the odour from the surroundings??

[helenjp]

Residual oils left after the rice has been husked and polished could still go off. Apparently it then forms stinky acetylaldehydes, and also becomes more resistant to water, making it hard to cook properly.

Apparently the nasties are mostly on the surface, so rubbing the rice in water as you wash it, rinsing it well, and using a little more water, will help to minimize problems.

[coquus]

Residual oils left after the rice has been husked and polished could still go off. Apparently it then forms stinky acetylaldehydes, and also becomes more resistant to water, making it hard to cook properly.

Apparently the nasties are mostly on the surface, so rubbing the rice in water as you wash it, rinsing it well, and using a little more water, will help to minimize problems.

←

Is the mystery of the washing of the rice now solved? If so, thanks helenjp.

[Chris Amirault]

OK, wash the old rice first. Check. But here's a question. I don't want to put wet arborio into the oil or butter in the crucial risotto step of pan-frying the rice a bit, right? So how do I dry it quickly after washing it?

[helenjp]

I just drain it and when it's not actually dripping, go ahead and dump it in...but I'm no expert on risotto, and rarely make it, so please don't take it from me that my method is an acceptable way to make risotto! I think you might be better to use up this rice in some other dish. How about "omu-raisu", where the rice is heavily flavored with ketchup?

If you drain the rice and let it sit till dry, it will start to crack, and will then break up more when cooked.

[Hiroyuki]

The comparison between Japanese rices and arborio ends here, because Japanese rices are always washed before being cooked, except no-wash types. Some komai (old rices) will stink no matter how well they are washed.

Any expert on Italian rices here?

[Gabriel Lewis]

Wouldn't washing arborio also wash a lot of the starch that thickens risotto and gives it it's characteristic creamy texture? That aside, I am not sure why you are worrying about wet rice hitting the butter/oil. I am no expert on risotto, but am familiar with the basic principles and don't see what would be wrong with this.

I do this all the time with Indian and some Mexican rice dishes where the rice has been soaked first. I simply wash the rice and then drain it in a sieve, patting the bottom lightly to get rid of excess water or combining this with letting it sit to drain, if I am not in a hurry.

I don't see any real viable way of drying the rice after you wash it, short of spreading it on a sheet and letting it air dry or dry in a low temperature oven, but again you might have washed a way some of the starch that you want for risotto.

Doesn't seem like you have too many options, hopefully you don't have a lot of this stuff.

[snowangel]

I am just thinking after reading all of this that old arborio does indeed make great pie weights!

[Chris Amirault]

Wouldn't washing arborio also wash a lot of the starch that thickens risotto and gives it it's characteristic creamy texture? That aside, I am not sure why you are worrying about wet rice hitting the butter/oil. I am no expert on risotto, but am familiar with the basic principles and don't see what would be wrong with this.

←

I think that your rhetorical question implies an accurate point: you don't want to wash away the starches on aborio. As for the wet rice question, it's just the usual issue concerning wet things in hot fat: instead of frying the outer coating of the grains, you're creating steam, which changes the texture of the surface of the grains. It's the same principle behind the drying of vegetables and proteins before stir-frying them in a wok.