The Ultimate Rice Cooker (81 page)
2. Heat a small, heavy 6-inch skillet until a drop of water skates over the surface, then add 2 teaspoons of the butter or olive oil, coating the entire surface. Place half of the mixture in the skillet, flattening with the back of the spoon or spatula to make an even pancake that fills the bottom of the skillet. Cook over medium heat until the edges are dry and the bottom turns golden and crusty, about 5 minutes. Loosen the bottom with a spatula and turn once by flipping with the spatula or sliding the pancake onto a small plate and sliding it off the plate to retain the large size.
Add the remaining 2 teaspoons butter or olive oil to the pan, return the pancake to the pan, and cook the second side until golden and crusty, about 5 minute longer. Remove from the pan and cook the second pancake using 2 teaspoons butter for each side.
3. Serve the pancakes immediately, sprinkled with the cheese and some black pepper, keep warm in a preheated 200ºF oven until ready to serve, or let cool to eat later.
buttermilk rice breakfast pancakes
Leftover rice makes a great American-style breakfast pancake. If you are a pancake lover, consider investing in an electric griddle, so you can cook all the pancakes at one time. We like our pancakes served simply, with luscious grade B pure maple syrup and butter dripping down the sides, but sliced fruit, cottage cheese, or hot applesauce works as well. If you wish to make rice waffles, simply cut back the buttermilk by ¼ cup to make a slightly thicker batter.
YIELD: 12 four-inch pancakes;
serves 2 to 4
2¼ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
Large pinch of salt
2½ cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, or vegetable oil
1 cup cold cooked white or brown rice
1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the butter milk, eggs, and butter. Add the butter milk mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring just until combined. Do not overmix; the batter should have small lumps. Stir in the rice. Let the batter rest at room temperature for 5 minutes.
2. Heat a griddle or heavy skillet over medium-high heat until a drop of water skates over the surface, then lightly grease with butter. Pour the batter onto the griddle, using a ¼-cup measure for each pancake. Cook until bubbles form on the surface, the edges are dry, and the bottom is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Turn once, cooking the second side until golden, about 1 minute. The second side will take half the amount of time to cook as the first side. Serve the pancakes immediately or keep warm in a preheated 200ºF oven until ready to serve.
THE BASICS : FRIED RICE
The pan:
You don’t need a wok to make good fried rice; a good sauté pan or cast-iron skillet will do just as well, maybe better. We find a large nonstick skillet the best tool for making fried rice. A 10-inch skillet is large enough to make fried rice for one or two hungry people; a 12-inch skillet is needed to serve three or more.
A thorough spray of Pam or a similar product is generally enough to keep the rice from sticking to the pan. We usually spray the pan twice. (If you encounter sticking during the cooking, you can always add a few drops of oil.) The more traditional method is to use oil. Let your conscience be your guide, but if your pan has a good nonstick coating, 1 to 2 teaspoons of oil per serving is really enough. If you don’t have a nonstick pan, you’ll need 2 tablespoons or more.
Fried rice was invented for leftover cooked rice. Cold cooked rice works best in fried rice dishes because the grains remain separated You can use almost any kind of plain cooked rice. While we recommend the type of rice to use in the ingredient lists, any variety of leftover rice can be substituted.
Cold, hard rice straight from the refrigerator is just fine and, in fact, is less likely to stick together than fresh cooked rice. One of the secrets to good fried rice is the rice itself: the colder the rice, the better. Use it directly out of the refrigerator or use just-thawed frozen rice that you let rest on the counter for an hour. (Some people freeze cooked rice just for fried rice.) When using cold rice, be sure to break up any clumps with your fingers as you add it to the skillet.
If you don’t have any cold rice on hand, go ahead and steam some rice in the rice cooker just for your fried rice. Spread the steamed rice in a single layer on a baking sheet and let it cool to room temperature. Place the uncovered baking sheet in the refrigerator for up to eight hours or overnight before using the rice. If necessary, the rice may be used after one hour in the refrigerator, if you run your fingers through it to break it up before using.
Sliced green onion (white and green parts) is a popular ingredient in fried rice. Some sauté it at the beginning of cooking; some sprinkle it on top at the end. Garlic, too, makes frequent appearances. Be careful not to burn the garlic. Chopped or sliced onion works nicely, too.
Quick-cooking vegetables can be added raw. The list includes Napa cabbage, bok choy, fresh or dried (and already reconstituted) mushrooms, celery, zucchini, green peas (these can be used straight from the freezer), shredded carrot, and many more. For veggies that take longer to cook, such as broccoli or carrots cut into larger pieces, you might want to cook them crisp-tender first. Don’t use too many vegetables, or too much of one kind; you don’t want to overwhelm the rice. It is amazing how good fried rice can be with just a small amount of vegetables. When adding raw vegetables, you may want to sprinkle on a few teaspoons of water to help them cook.
Scrambled eggs are a very common addition to fried rice. Some people scramble them, remove them from the pan so they don’t overcook, and add them back later. Others just clear a space on one side of the pan (or in the center) by pushing away any ingredients that are already there, pour in the eggs, let them sit till they are about half-set, then toss or scoop the rice on top, folding and scrambling the eggs to break them up and mix them with the rice. It’s an easy skill to master. You’ll want no more than one egg per person, and less than that is fine.