Martha Stewart's Go-To Method For White Rice That Turns Out Perfect Every Time

Although rice may seem like a simple side dish, a lot of variables can affect how well it turns out, from the ratio of water to rice you use to the type of pot you cook it in. Martha Stewart outlined her go-to method for cooking white rice perfectly every time on her TV series, "Martha's Cooking School." If you want perfect white rice every time, follow Stewart's simple method.

Although there are many different types of rice you can use when making a meal, Stewart's method is for classic white rice. Rather than use a rice cooker, she cooks it in a stainless steel pot on the stove. And instead of using the 1-2-3 rice rule, she uses an even ratio of 1 cup of rice to 1 cup of water. However, what really makes her method different from many others is what she does after taking the rice off the stove. 

Rather than keeping the rice on the stovetop for its entire cook time, she lets it simmer on the heat for exactly 16 minutes, and then turns off the stove burner. She then lets it steam in the pot, lid still on, for 10 minutes off the flame. This results in fluffy white rice with the perfect texture and taste. In this episode, she also offers other great tips for cooking white rice perfectly.

In addition to letting the rice steam in the pot for about 10 minutes so that the water fully evaporates and the rice is fluffy and tender, Stewart offers some other useful tips for making perfect rice. The first one is a good rinse. In order to get rid of excess starch on your rice so that it is the perfect texture after cooking, rinse it thoroughly before cooking it. This can be done in a sieve, or by pouring water in the pan with the rice and stirring it around to wash off the starch before draining off the water.

Stewart also cautions to leave the lid on the rice pot during the 16 minutes that the rice is cooking, as disrupting the rice while it's cooking is one of the biggest mistakes you can make with rice. If you follow these tips, the result should be perfectly cooked white rice that is ready to be fluffed with a fork and served. And once you've got the hang of this simple plain rice, you can try out some of our hearty rice recipes.