Back when I was a carbivore I went to Asian and International markets and bought what folks who ate a lot of rice bought. I don't remember specific brands, just that there was a lot of variety of both brand and type.
We probably eat rice four to six days a week. I have eaten rice on four continents and I can't imagine how you could screw up the basic grain. The thing to remember if you are storing rice is that brown rice can go bad. I would never have guessed it could bother me because I'll eat nearly anything, but I am pretty picky about my rice. We're Hispanic, so my husband prefers white rice. Sushi rice cooks much more quickly because of the size of the grain but it's pretty easy to over cook which will leave you with mushy rice. If you love rice pudding, this is the rice you want to stock up on. We prefer medium grain and I keep a hundred pounds of it around my house outside of storage (we're pigs, what can I say). If you love rice a roni, a lot of what they have in those "rice" side dishes is actually orzo. Orzo is a short grain pasta and you can toss a couple tablespoons into a thermos with some broth and make a pretty sturdy soup in ten minutes or so. I keep a couple pounds in the car for when we hike in case I...errr....we want to stop for a snack or a hot lunch. Long grain rice takes more time to cook but is a great deal more forgiving on the stove. So, if you're the sort who leaves rice cooking while you jog about the house doing other things, this might be a better choice for you to store. It also has the added benefit of being the cheapest choice overall. Maybe Morgan and Thunderranch will fill in any blanks I've left.
well... I purchased some mahatma? rice and found some things I did not care for. 1 it is pretty dirty? also seems hard to wash it. The dark impurities just wont come out? 2 smells like sulfur or like a nasty fart AFTER cooking? perhaps I just got a poorly QC'd bag? smells OK BEFORE cooking? Cook it in a insta-pot using rice setting and use bottled water as the water here is not the best. here's the thing... bought some rice from local dollar store earlier and cooked up fine no smell and cleaned up easy... store brand IIRC... so was wondering if anyone else had such experiences ?
Rice is pretty much a staple in New Orleans for cooking. I get mostly white rice,house brand at the local supermarket or Wal Mart. Don't matter to me about labels.
We buy rice in 50 Lb bags, no brand specific, but it's the Asian Sticky rice, and we usually try and get the Jasmine sticky rice! it steams up nice and quick, and a bag will last two of us about 4 months! No prep required!
My favorite is Golden Star Jasmine rice. It lasts a long time and cooks up just a little sticky. Numnum!
I think the point I tried to make is I don't think brand matters. It's a grain. What is my favorite brand of sunflower seed? Same answer.
Doguet Rice...grown in SE Texas. Eat local when you can. They grow rice and crawfish in the same fields.
does your rice smell like sulfur AFTER you cook it? Is there a lot of dark things mixed in that are very hard to wash out? nothing else I cook smells that way... just this particular bag of rice... so? that is my point... brand may very much matter? smell and impurities... at least to me... matter...
What kind of rice is it? Brown rice has oils that can make it go rancid. Most of the pilaf mixes have tiny dark things in them on purpose. I've never had any of the issues you're talking about and I, again, have bought rice in lots of places. I bought rice in Bolivia, Peru, Columbia, and the US and the only issue I've had was with brown rice smelling pretty stale. I usually get whatever is cheapest, but I've tried all the main brands (Uncle Bens, Mahatma, and whatever) and I've never had a sulfur smell. It's wise that you're eating your preps. It would be terrible to be in a grid down situation and be stuck with rice you clearly don't like. Try a different brand, but my money would still be on this either being a one off or a cooking method problem.
