No rice cooker? Learn how to cook Japanese rice on the stove! My simple tips and tricks will ensure your rice comes out fluffy with intact grain each time.
Do you use a rice cooker to make rice or do you cook rice the traditional way in a pot? Today let’s get back to basics and I’m going to show you how to cook Japanese short grain rice on the stove as I’ve received a lot of requests from readers for this recipe.
Watch How to Cook Rice
How to cook rice on the stove tutorial: It is simple to make Japanese (short grain) rice on a stove. Soak the rice, let it drain, and cook on low heat for 12-13 minutes.
Growing up in Japan, where rice is a staple food and primary source of protein, cooking rice is not only just a basic kitchen task, but an extremely important one. While a rice cooker (this is the one I have) with all the bells and whistles seem to be an essential kitchen gadget in most Asian kitchens, I know not everyone eats rice on a daily basis and may not own a rice cooker. It’s also handy to know how to make rice over the stove in case your rice cooker breaks out of the blue or you’re craving for rice while camping.
Japanese short-grain rice is different from long-grain basmati or jasmine rice. So if you want to cook Japanese rice at home, please follow this simple method to cook a perfect pot of glossy and tender rice!
4 Important Tips When Cooking Japanese Short Grain Rice
1. Always soak the rice in water for 30 minutes. Rice has been sitting in the bag dried after milling, hence it needs moisture to revive the texture. It’s important that you give it enough time for rice to absorb water so that rice has a nice fluffy texture after it’s cooked.
2. Drain the rice completely, at least for 5 minutes. Why? If you don’t drain thoroughly, you’ll be using more water in cooking than you intended. The rice might come out all mushy.
3. DO NOT open the lid while cooking! That’s a big no no when it comes to cooking Japanese rice. I learned from my experience to catch the indication of “boiling” by the sound. However, until you do, it’s okay to “quickly peek” inside to see if it’s boiling. The last 10 minutes of steaming is an extremely important part of cooking rice, so continue to keep the pot covered till the end and do not skip this step!
4. Use a heavy-bottom pot with tight-fitting lid that keeps the steam in. If your lid fits loosely, put a clean kitchen cloth between the lid and the pot.
And if you wonder how to keep the leftover rice. And here’s what I do: freeze the rice! If you already know how much rice you will be using, then pack away the unused rice immediately to seal in the moisture. Be sure to let it cool before freezing.
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No rice cooker? Learn how to cook Japanese rice on the stove! My simple tips and tricks will ensure your rice comes out fluffy with intact grain each time.
- 1 cup uncooked Japanese short-grain rice (240 ml)
- 1 ¼ cups water (300 ml)
- 1 rice cooker cup uncooked Japanese short-grain rice (180 ml)
- 200 ml water
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For Japanese short-grain rice, the ideal rice to water ratio is 1 : 1.1 (or 1.2), which is 10-20% more water. For easy American "cup" measurement, I used 25% in this recipe (rice to water ratio is 1 : 1.25). If you have a precise milliliter measuring cup or kitchen scale, use the following measurement. 200 ml water for 1 rice cooker cup (180 ml). 400 ml water for 2 rice cooker cups (360 ml). 600 ml water for 3 rice cooker cups (540 ml). 800 ml water for 4 rice cooker cups (720 ml). 1000 ml water for 5 rice cooker cups (900 ml).
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Put rice in a large bowl. Rice absorbs water very quickly when you start washing, so don't let the rice absorb the unclear water. Gently wash the rice in a circular motion and discard the water. Repeat this process about 3-4 times. Drain to a fine-mesh sieve and shake off excess water.
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In a heavy-bottomed pot with a tight-fitting lid, put well-drained rice and measured water. Soak the rice for 20-30 minutes before cooking.
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Close the lid and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Take a quick peek to see if water is boiling (otherwise do not open the lid).
- Once water is boiling, turn the heat to low and cook covered for 12 to 13 minutes, or until the water is completely absorbed (take a quick peek!). If you see there is water left, close the lid and continue cooking for a little longer.
- Remove the pot (with the lid on) from the heat source and let it steam for another 10 minutes.
- Fluff the rice with a rice paddle when it’s done.
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Transfer the rice in airtight containers and close the lid to keep the moisture in. Let cool completely before storing the containers in the freezer (read my tutorial post).
Recipe by Namiko Chen of Just One Cookbook. All images and content on this site are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without my permission. If you’d like to share this recipe on your site, please re-write the recipe in your own words and link to this post as the original source. Thank you.
Everyone should know how to cook rice properly. No rice cooker required. 🙂
Now that’s a technique!! Thanks, Nami, for sharing… I am forwarding this to my Mom! She’s going to appreciate it. 🙂
Hi and thank you for the recipe. In your tips you recommended to soak the rice for half an hour and in the recipe you didn’t mention it. I am a bit confused. Please let me know
Kind regards
Maurice
Hi Maurice! Thank you so much for letting me know. I’ve edited the recipe to include the soaking time. For Japanese short grain rice, it is very important to soak for 20-30 minutes prior to cooking. 🙂
Hi and ありがとうございます for the recipe!
Do you actually add salt to the rice at any stage or not at all? When cooking parboiled or basmati rice I would do it after the water has come to a boil, but I don’t know how to handle Japanese short-grain rice…
Thank you!
Hi Remy! ありがとう！ No, we do not salt the regular white rice. However, the ONLY exception is brown rice. Some people think salt remove the bitterness of brown rice. 🙂
In Peru we eat all meals with rice, no matter if we have potatoes as a side, we always include rice, so it’s a basic thing for all of us: learn how to cook rice. But I have to admit that I never cook rice in a traditional way, I always use the rice cooker.
may i ask, shouldn’t the unused rice be cooled completely before freezing?
Hi Lillie! Sorry the link to How To Freeze Rice was broken. I just fixed it. 🙂 In the How To page, I mentioned that the rice has to be “packed” when it’s still hot (to trap moisture) but wait till cool to freeze it. 🙂 Hope that helps!
Hi Nami, its the cooking time for 1/2 cup rice and 1 cup rice same?
Hi Momo! It should be roughly the same – but depending on how you like it, you can cook 1 minute less.
This is how I learned it from my mother and I still don’t own a rice cooker – too many gadgets, not enough kitchen space 🙂
Thanks for this Nami! I didn’t know you had to soak and drain Japanese rice, do you do the same when cooking in a rice cooker? 🙂 I love rice cookers and they are so easy to use and you to focus on dinner. I never learned how to cook rice on the stove. I remember my mom cooking it in a kaldero (that’s what we call the pot we use to cook rice in the Philippines) and they LOVE the tutong (English translation accdg to the internet is rice crust! haha!).
Behind-the-scenes are always fun to watch! 🙂 So sorry to hear about your hand, hopefully it healed soon after.
Lorely, you MUST soak and drain. Any Japanese recipes for cooking rice will say that. I know other kinds of rice don’t require soak and drain, but not Japanese rice. I think I’ve seen some recipes that don’t require soaking/draining but cooking time was close to 30 minutes (so maybe moisture goes in? I think the amount of water was like double?). Your rice will improve a lot by soaking, trust me. 🙂
Thank you also for watching the video. You saw my red hand? I was washing the sink with hot water prior to taking the video, and I completely forgot to change to cold water. I was shocked when hot water came…. but pretended nothing happened. But clearly you can see my red hand!! 😀
My bag of Kokuiho Rose rice has in big capitalized red letters “WASHING NOT NECESSARY” but no matter what I do, even if I rinse 5 times it’s been turning out a gloopy mess. Why would the rice company mislead me like this! I will definitely try soaking next time
Hi Sarah! I’ve never used this particular brand of rice, but in recent years, Musenmai (無洗米) – no washing necessary – is popular and some brands sell it. I think the milling technology got better and they think it’s not necessary to rinse so much. It’s a bit more expensive than the regular one (for convenience for busy people). I don’t usually choose those rice just because I can rinse my rice and my favorite brands don’t sell those.
Almost all Japanese short-grain rice is recommended to soak for at least 20-30 minutes. I rarely see any recipes that say you can skip (in Japan). Rice cooker already includes that soaking time too. So please do soak when you use short-grain rice.
Hope that helps and you can enjoy delicious Japanese rice!
I don’t have a rice cooker, so I’ve had to learn how to do it properly! Good post – nice, clear instructions. I’ve gone both ways with washing and not washing the rice. You’re right that the quality of the cooked rice is better (and it cooks faster) if you wash it first. Never thought to freeze rice – I’ll start doing that! Anyway, thanks for this.
John, when you make rice, even though you eat the following day, I highly recommend you to freeze rice. The rice quality is much better than keeping in the refrigerator. 🙂 And it’s so convenient to have frozen rice! I usually heat 2 minutes in microwave and rice is ready for lunch (for my portion). 🙂 Thank you always for your kind comment!
Good to know – I don’t usually let it drain or 15 minutes.
I love Japanese Rice because it’s sticky
Hi Nami, thanks so much for sharing this recipe!! I’ve just finished cooking some and I’ve truly never had such good rice at home! I live in the Netherlands where Japanese rice is hard to find and rather expensive, so I tried it with arborio rice this time, since that’s a similar type of short grain rice, and it came out perfectly and costs about half as much for me to make. Can’t wait to eat my yummy fluffy perfect rice in my lunch! I’m learning all about bento right now so I’m enjoying your blog very much <3
Oops, that was not meant to be a reply, sorry!
Hi Kiki! Yay! I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you for taking the time to write your feedback so others who can’t get Japanese short grain rice can try the arborio rice! 🙂
You make rice just like my mom did:) what brand of rice do you use?
Hi June! So sorry for my late response. I like Koshihikari most, and buy rice from Far West Rice (but very limited places carry their rice). Japanese grocery stores carry Koshihikari, and that’s what I’d recommend. 🙂
Great tips Nami – I never soak my rice first, just put it in the rice cooker. Would you soak the rice before putting it in the rice cooker or is that only for stove-top?
Hi Jeanette! I don’t think all rice needs to be soaked, but for Japanese short grain rice, we do need to soak first. Or at least that’s what everyone does in Japan. We soak rice and drain even though we use the rice cooker. 🙂
Loving ur blog to the max, very informative, interesting. Thanks, Ms Nami for taking time and effort to share your bakes/ recipes with videos and step by step pics. Will try out soon.
Hope you hand is fine now.
Cheers,
Adeline
Hi Adeline! Thank you SO much for your support! My hand is okay now. I was so worried that my red hand will show on the video while I was washing, and it did show… 🙁 I soak in iced water after. Than you for your kind words! 🙂
Nami, this is such a great tutorial on cooking rice! I personally prefer cooking my rice in a pot but I do have a rice cooker for emergency. Does cooking in a dutch oven make any difference? I have never done so but I’d totally try it if the rice comes out better. Thank for sharing!
ビデオ良く出来てました。とても分かりやすいし。無印良品から出ているご飯用の土釜おこげが、お値段も手ごろでいいそうですね。次回、買って帰ろうかと思ってます。
I know how to cook rice, in our country, we eat rice in every meal, now that I’m here in USA, I used to cook rice in a rice cooker, also I cook rice in traditional hargd bottom pot that came from my country, I want to eat the burned bottom rice I let stay longer in top of oven, I want to try to cook Japanese rice if I can found here where I live. One more thing do you know or is there another wayf cooking brown rice?
Hi Oscar! I don’t usually cook brown rice, so I’m not familiar with the best way to cook it. I also love burned bottom rice! So delicious. 🙂
I grew up cooking rice on a stove and I thought that was the only way it was cooked. Then I was introduced to Asian cuisine and noticed everyone had a rice cooker! I was given a rice cooker and it’s been the best gift ever – I use it every week xx
Thanks for showing the way to cook rice on the stove. Most of us do not know how as it is very convenient to cook rice just by using the rice cooker. I have forwarded this link to my daughter. Sorry to notice your “red hand” though.
Hi Chrissie! Thank you so much for sharing my post with your daughter. 🙂 It’s pretty simple instruction in case we cannot use the rice cooker. It’s so convenient to use the rice cooker that I rarely need to use a stove top method. But once in a while it’s a nice change and we enjoyed it while I had to make rice this way for photo and video shooting. I should do this more often! 🙂 Thank you for your kind words!
I have a recipe on my blog for stove top rice too! But I like yours because yours is for short grain rice while mine is for basmathi rice. It’s a little different. So valuable to know for when the rice cooker is out of order!
Thanks for sharing these tips on cooking rice without a rice cooker! I usually only make rice on the stove when preparing rice congee, so this is new to me. I’ve learned to listen for the sound of boiling water as well, though I have to admit, there have been a handful of accidents when I wasn’t paying the proper attention… =)
I hope that your hand is okay from after the filming — but the video is so helpful and fun to watch!
Hi Kimmi! Me too, sometimes I try to multi-task and forget about paying attention to boiling sound. 😀 Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m happy to hear you like my videos and thank you for watching!
Rice is a huge staple in Middle Eastern cooking but the way it’s made is so different than the Japanese way. I had no idea. I’m sorry that your hand got scalded while making the video. I saw that it was getting red and wondered about that. I hope it’s ok. Thank you for making the video though. It helped.
That’s how i do cook rice because as you know I don’t have rice cooker, and you explained wonderfully in this post and video of course! I do use glass lid so I don’t have to open up and check on it 😀
Enjoy rest of the week, Nami!
Oh and I hope your hand is alright now, but great helpful video!!! Take care!
Great tips for cooking rice on the stove-top Nami! Thank you for sharing and that looks like the perfect bowl of fluffy rice 🙂
i use my rice cooker most of the time but its always nice to learn how to do in stove top too. Thanks for clarifying why to soak and rinse because I always wondered about that.
Great basic how-to lesson on cooking rice, especially for those who grew up on rice cookers (like my sons did). I will pass on this post to them. Thanks for sharing, Nami. Enjoy the holiday season 🙂
Thanks for making this video, Nami and Mr. JOC. Sorry to hear your hand was a little burnt.
The video was very informative. I’ve always wanted to learn how to cook rice on the stove.
Thank you so much Candice! I’m glad it was helpful, and thanks for your sweet words. 🙂
I’m not a fan of “single use gadgets” – precisely the reason I would never bother buying a rice cooker. I’ve even gone off kettles for that reason because you can just heat water on the stove.
As A_Boleyn says – everyone should know how to cook rice properly. Unfortunately, I’m not one of those people, and I don’t usually cook Japanese rice, but the next time I do I’ll refer back to here 🙂
Very nice Nami. Sometimes the simplest of things seem difficult. I really like your step by step, perfect.
I am from southern part of India, and rice is a staple and this is one of the ways I cook rice. But, my mom cooks it with lots of water and then drains the water out. Her theory is she takes out a lot of the starch.
As usual, great post and tutorial. You can make even a plain bowl of rice look irresistible! : )
Great tips!
Cheers,
Rosa
Great tips for cooking Japanese rice, I have not cook some yet but want to try. It’s so confusing every rice is different lol.
Great tips Nami! Basic and essential.
Oh yay! I learned so much from this…and I just emailed Ryan a link to your post. He loves cooking rice, and I think he’ll benefit from all these tips! I never knew to soak rice. Brilliant! Thank you for sharing sweet friend!
I can’t cook rice without rice cooker, it will end up either not cook or burnt rice ;P
What a perfect, fluffy rice! Great tips. I never use rice cooker – I always cook rice in a pot, just like you!
Only here in the States that we started cooking with rice cooker. Back home, we always cook rice in a pot and with open fire. Nice to see you doing it. Have a good week, Nami. 🙂
Thanks for sharing these useful tips!
Great idea Nami. Sometimes the simplest things are the ones that get us. Great video
That looks beautiful!! nice and fluffy!! just the way I like my rice!
i want to know how to make my tempura crispy
Hi Madel! Please see my tempura post:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/recipes/vegetable-tempura/
This is great! I still don’t own a rice cooker and have been thinking about getting one because my rice never turns out the way I want it to. Now I’m thinking I’m just using the wrong pot! Thanks for the tips Nami and I love the video!
never even know that japanese rice is needed presoaked prior to cooking, btw, i thought all short grain rice is easily overcooked when soaked…..
btw, i’m jealous with your yellow crockpot Nami
I know this may sound weird, but I cook rice in the microwave! I used to do it on the stove but i kept burning the bottom, and have to keep an eye on it. With the microwave I just kinda shove it in for about 20-30 mins and its done. It works well, but its probably not as good as the proper way. But I like cheating when it comes to cooking (^-^)
Hi Lava! REALLY?!?!? I’ve never heard of it before!!! And I don’t think I turn on the microwave for more than 5 minutes. 😀 I didn’t know microwave can actually cook food for such a long time. Thanks for sharing your trick!
Yup! it works really well, kinda like a rice cooker. I just use a pyrex dish, and make sure the lid isn’t on otherwise it will overspill (^^;)
I have to admit, I have been totally cheating and cooking rice in the microwave. I am too lazy to even pull out my rice cooker since it’s big and bulky. I like your tips for the stove top method.
PS.. freezing rice. I love that. I love to freeze single potions for myself since I am home alone at lunch. 🙂 I think freezing rice has a much better texture than putting it in the fridge. 🙂
this is just the recipe we were looking for…we usually cook rice(long grained) in a pressure cooker…this recipe is going to come so handy for making sushi,thanks for sharing 🙂
Your rice looks absolutely perfect, though this doesn’t surprise me one bit :).
いつも電気炊飯器でごはんを炊いているので本当に勉強になりました。
ご飯がないと生きられない私は両親の家まで電気炊飯器を送りました。（びびなびで２０ドルで販売しておりました。びびなびでなにか購入したことがありますか。）とにかかくストオブでご飯できることは重要です。どうもありがとう ＝）
Great info, Nami! I never soak my rice, but will definitely start now. Lots of wonderful tips…I know my rice will be perfect from now on 🙂
Ciao Nami, you should write this article in nihongo for Japanese travelers. I often have Japanese guests (usually young) and the girls always say that they like to cook for us one evening, making sushi or other stuff, and then they panic when they see that I don’t have a rice cooker! I find it quite funny that I have to teach them how to cook rice, and they are very thankful, often they travel on, go to youth hostels, camping grounds and homestay around the worlds and they need to know how to cook rice! It is a basic skill that should not be forgotten
Ciao
Alessandra
I use rice cooker all the time because the last time I cooked without it many years ago was a total burning disaster 🙂
I remember my grandmother never measue the water by cup but by fingers. She just pours water until it reaches the second line of her long finger from the top of the uncooked rice when dipped into the pot.
What a great post, Nami! I always mess up rice, so I will try this the next time I make sushi at home.
Nami, you have no idea how difficult it is for me to get the rice cooked properly for my Asian dinners – it is eiter too wet or too lumpy. I shall follow your instructions to the “Tee” now and then enjoy the recults of my labor (inspired by lovely Nami!).
The video was great !
I’ve always cooked rice on the stovetop as I don’t have room on the counter for a rice cooker though I have dreamed of having one. There are so many kinds of rice to try. I enjoy all of the variety.
Hi Kathleen! Thank you for watching my video! I’m dreaming of having a slow cooker but I don’t have a room on the counter or in the cabinet…so I know what you mean. 🙂 Thanks for writing!
Hi Nami,
I am so glad you did a post on this. Sometimes, the most simple and basic things are hard to do especially if you have no experience with cooking. When I moved to the States 10 years ago, I really did not know much cooking and often struggled with making the rice.
I like to cook pulaos/pilafs on the stove as I feel it retains the moisture well and does not dry out on me. But if I am cooking regular white rice, its usually the rice cooker. That way I can handle or do something else.
I’ve never soaked the rice first! Good to know! 🙂 I don’t cook alot of short grain white rice, but I did buy a big bag of short grain sweet brown rice. I’ve cooked it a couple of times with not the best results. I did not soak it though. I know it cooks longer that white rice, but is there anything else that is different to cooking short grain brown vs. white (other than the cook time)? Thanks!
Apart from the soaking (I am always in a hurry!) I prepare the rice exactly this way… I love touching rice with my hands when I rinse it… but afterwards I cook in the rice cooker. I have already burnt two pans before buying the rice cooker;, but I didn’t have such a good teacher at the time 😉 I must try once more because many people say that rice from a bad rice cooker (like mine) is much worse than the one from a simple pan. Thank you for this useful recipe!
I had a Japanese roomate for a few months and she taught me how to make Japanese rice. I pretty much use that method with all kinds of rice now (when making white rice to accompany a dish). All her steps were the same (washing, covering with a lid and not peeking etc.) except for the soaking and draining. I will try it, I am sure it will turn out even better (and fluffier of course!).
I have a Zojirushi too! Only a 3 cup one though. =) Sorry about your hand!
What went wrong when my rice broke after cooking and fluffing. Too much water?
Hi Darren! I did a little bit research and found out a few reasons why the rice could be broken.
1) Rinse the rice too harsh (for example, don’t wash in sieve).
2) Drain the rice for too long. No more than 15 minutes. When the rice dries out completely, rice may be broken.
3) Didn’t soak rice in water for long enough.
I don’t think too much water was the reason for this. It’s more likely that rice was already broken before you started to cook? Hope this helps. 🙂
Hi Nami:
I’ve been enjoying your recipes, and have a question about the of water:rice ratio. Is it always 1/4 C. water more than the amount of rice? For example, with 1/2 C. rice do you add 3/4 C. water? For 2 C. rice is it 2 1/4 C. water? Thanks.
Hi June! Thank you so much for reading my blog! The basic is that you need the same volume of water as the volume of soaked & drained rice (so in a way, measuring cup is not necessary and you can just use a regular cup, for example, to measure volume of soaked & drained rice, then add the same amount (volume) of water to the pot. Ratio should be around 1 cup: 1 1/4 cup water. However, each rice (brand of rice, type of rice) absorbs different amount of water, and you need to adjust according to your rice. Hope this helps! 🙂
Hi Nami,
You shouldn’t wash the rice until the water is clear, since most the goodness of rice is in the skin. Just wash it once or two times to get rid of unwanted particles. By the way, Brown Rice is far healthier than white rice, since it still retained some of the skin.
Hi Linda! These days rice is milled very well, so I don’t think we need to rinse the rice till water is clear. Maybe my choice of words was not right. I removed “till water becomes almost translucent” but I usually rinse 3-4 times. Thank you so much for your feedback! I really appreciate it! I agree about brown rice. 🙂
Hi. I’ve been seeing a lot of pictures comparing Japanese to American food servings (e.g. small Coke at McDonalds in Japan and US) and I wondered what a “normal” serving of plain rice is in Japan. Some sites say 150ml, others 380, more 200. So what is “normal”, and what is “modest” for an adult woman, for example?
Thanks!
Hi Jane! So I just had lunch actually and made ochazuke (I was reading your comment and had sudden craving. :)). In a regular-size rice bowl in Japan (probably consider small for American standard), I put rice just like how I serve normally, and it was about 1 cup. That’s about 240 ml. There are smaller rice bowls or even bigger ones for men. So the amount of rice that can fit in rice bowl varies due to the size of bowls… For modest for an adult woman, I think 240 ml is considered good amount of rice. But this is for typical Japanese rice bowl size. Hope this helps!
Hello, is it necessary to soak the rice in water for 30 minutes before cooking? Thank you.
Hi Tiffany! I’m not sure about other kinds of rice but Japanese short grain rice, yes. I never seen any Japanese recipe that tells you to skip soaking process…Japanese rice has high moisture content and it’s very important to soak. But I have to admit that I have skipped soaking several times as I was running behind…(and rice comes out drier as expected). Hope this helps!
Hi, I love your recipes they are so delicious! And the tutorials you have are great.
I am in Israel and am having a hard time finding sushi/Japanese rice.
Can I use regular brown or white rice to make sushi? will it come out like your rice if I follow your instructions, or does the type of rice make a huge difference?
Thanks!
Hi Rachel! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy my recipes and thank you for following my blog/videos! You really need short grain rice to make sushi if you want to make rolls or nigiri sushi. Rice will fall apart otherwise. Short grain rice has the right kind of moisture and stickiness (not sticky like glutinous rice). Hope you can find online, maybe?
It would take a very long time to use this recipe to make rice. 45 minutes is too long for me. Hungry children don’t want to wait. Is there a shorter way? Please reply to my needy question. Thank you very much
Hi Hello! If you worry that your children can’t wait for the rice to be ready, you can rinse, soak, drain rice much ahead of time. I usually do that in the morning. Since I use a rice cooker, I set a timer for 6 pm, and the rice is automatically ready.
I made おにぎり in school the other day. I loved it and wanted to make it at home. But I was told that you have to use sticky rice. This recipe was really helpful. Thank you so much.
Hi Barney! The confusing part is that many people think Japanese short grain rice is “sticky rice” because compared to long grain rice each rice is stickier. However, the real “sticky rice” is glutinous rice (or sometimes called sweet rice) and it’s different from Japanese short grain rice. When you look for rice for Onigiri or Japanese food, I recommend to use the word “short grain rice” or Japonica. Hope this helps!
Thank you very much. Very helpful!:)
Thank you for reading my post! 🙂
Hello! I recently discovered this site and I’m eager to start making the recipes. I just tried this rice recipe, but my rice came out incredibly mushy and fat. My mom said I put too much water, but I used the amount of water proportional to the amount of water you used. I used 4/3 cups of rice and 1200 mL of water. I even checked with a proportions calculator to check that the amount of water was correct with the amount of rice. Was that too much water?
Hi Fay! Welcome to my blog and thank you for trying this recipe already. Please be aware that water amount slightly varies depends on the type of rice – first, this recipe is for short-grain rice, and even the same Japanese short grain rice, new crop and older crop requires different amount (for newer crop, reduce the amount slightly). I hope you experiment to see the perfect amount of rice for your rice you’re using. When you finish cooking the rice (and wait for 10 minutes), the pot should not have any water left on the bottom. At step 5, make sure there is no water left. 🙂 Hope this helps!
Hi Nami, may I ask if I were to use this recipe to make sushi rice do I have to reduce the amount of water since I need to mix vinegar into the rice later ? If yes how much water and vinegar should put ? Thanks in advance.
Hi Ping! If you were to make sushi rice after making this rice, I recommend you to reduce the water a little bit. I have a separate post on how to make sushi rice here:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how_to/how-to-make-sushi-rice/
Instead of using a rice cooker, you can use a heavy pot like this to cook rice. Hope this helps! 🙂
How should I reheat the frozen rice? By microwave? If so, for how long and at what power? Also, the instructions on the page for “How to freeze rice” are missing…
Hi Poonnapa! Thank you for letting me know! I fixed the issue and now you can read the page properly…
https://www.justonecookbook.com/how_to/how-to-freeze-rice/
I use microwave to reheat, and with 1 bowl of rice it takes about 2 to 2 1/2 minutes on 1100 w microwave. Hope this helps.
Thank you for sharing this recipe with us! We love to eat short grain rice, but I hate to cook it because it’s never right. Tonight however it came out perfect! I had to Pin it for next time…surprised I was the first to save it.
Thanks again!
Hi Linda! Thank you for trying this recipe and I’m so glad your rice came out well! 🙂 Thank you for pinning. I updated the website not a long ago and I now use a different plugin so I lost all the pinning counts… although that’s okay. 🙂 Thank you for your kind feedback. 🙂
Hello Nami,
I wanted to firstly say that I am so happy I found your blog. I do not have a rice cooker and none of my Asian friends know how to cook rice on the stove. I am used to Jasmine, Basmati and Carnaroli rice and the way to cook them are all different from each other and from Japan short grain rice.
I had a business trip to Japan last month and my colleague made me buy this rice called Aomari. I made your kimchi gyoza nabe with some rice and it came out perfect! It was shiny and fluffy just like in Japan. The only thing was I felt the rice in Japan was “saltier” or had some flavour…I don’t know if it’s the altitude or the water. I live in Toronto. Do you think I should add salt when cooking the rice? If yes, at which step?
I also read your recipe on cooking rice in the rice cooker just for fun. And you mentioned the first two times, to rinse & discard the water very quickly and then after do the circular motion of washing the rice. Should I also do the same for the stove recipe ?
Thank you
Hi Jade! Thanks for finding my site! Did you get rice from Aomori (prefecture)? I purchase imported rice from Japan because they taste much better than California-grown rice. It’s just so different. They are plump and taste amazing, I pay extra and consider it a luxury in my house (no wasting!). 🙂
I’m not sure about “saltier” rice in Japan though. We never add salt. Could be water? Maybe. But don’t add salt unless you season the rice and cook with other ingredients (like Takikomi Gohan – mixed rice).
Rice rinsing method should be the same. My instructions may be slightly different (like how many times you rinse etc) but do the circular motion and all. You just need a bit of water to get going with circular rubbing with your hand. The most important part about short-grain rice is soaking rice for 20-30 minutes. Do not skip – you need to let the rice absorb water to core of the rice kernel. 🙂
Hope you enjoy!
Hello Nami,
Thank you for the prompt reply..I am not too sure if the rice is from the Aomari prefecture however I found that the brand is called Seiten no hekireki. The rice comes in a white and sky blue bag. Here is a link https://www.umai-aomori.com/products/rice/seiten-no-hekireki/
I’ve followed the recipe almost to T. Next time I’ll use a ratio 1:1.2 since I did 1:1.25 this time around. I’ll check to see if it changes anything. The first two rinses I’ll add less water and keep washing in circular motion as I did previously and I’ll try to soak it for 30 minutes instead of 1 hour to see if more “flavour” stays in the rice instead of going into the water. Thank you very much 😉
Hi Jade! Thanks for the link. The rice is from Aomori prefecture and it’s recommended to use 10% less water than the usual amount. You may actually want to try 1:1 or 1:1.1… 🙂
Hello Nami,
Thank you so much for letting me know. I am making a poke bowl tonight I’ll definitely use the 1:1.1 ratio
Hi Jade! Hope poke bowl came out well (as well as steamed rice)! 🙂 ox
Hello Nami, it came out perfect with the 1: 1.1 ratio. I think having a ratio of 1:1.25 was making the rice lose its natural flavour.
Thank you again 😉
Argh! I can never make perfect Japanese rice! I’ve tried it many times with always the same result…mush. :((
I followed your instructions to the T and I still have a bowl of mush.
Doesn’t make a difference if I use a pot or a rice cooker. I was so excited to make onigiri with the two fillings I came up with tonight but can’t even use the rice. Guess I’ll be making congee (rice soup) instead.
I give up.
Hi Minh! First of all, it’s important to know about the quality of rice and how the rice is (kind of silly, but we actually experiment as each brand is slightly different – some needs more water etc). It also matters how old the rice is.
If you (always?) get mushy rice, have you reduced the amount of water, with the same amount of rice, same method, etc? When I switch the brand of rice, I sometimes get mushier (softer) rice – so I had to adjust next time and it works. It sounds like it’s not about your skill – it’s so simple you won’t do much to affect the rice. Try reducing the water and experiment. 🙂 Good luck!!
Merci pour les conseils
Can I use this recipe for onigiri rice?
Hi Laura! Yes, for Onigiri, you need regular steamed rice like this, NOT sushi rice that includes vinegar. 🙂
I was always told that no matter how much rice you have in the pot, the water should come up to your first knuckle if you put the tip of your finger on the rice, and it works perfectly every time. Here in Charleston SC rice is served with every meal, or IS the meal.
Hi Kendall! Really, I had no idea people in Charleston eat rice every meal! That is so cool!!!! Thanks for teaching me something new. I guess you grow rice there? Your trick is same in Japan too!
Hi, i followed all the steps, the rice turned out to be good. But the rice at the bottom was burnt and the water keep rising and spilling out during the 12mins cook.
may i know why is this so?
Hi Annie! Two possible reason:
1) Probably the heat was a little stronger for your pot.
2) You could stop cooking 1-2 minute before and let the steam cook all the way (inside the rice kernel). So the water didn’t dehydrate everything and end up burning on the bottom.
Hope this helps!
Hi Nami san,
I’m really excited that you are using your Instant Pot more and more. I have tried so many times to cook Japanese rice in the Instant Pot, but it never turns out right. Because the Instant Pot is becoming more popular, maybe it would be a good update for your site!
Donna
(from Denenchofu!)
Hi Donna! Ohh you live in Denenchofu! You use the instant pot in Japan? COOL!
I usually use IP to make main dish, so I use my rice cooker to make rice all the time. Plus, I love Japanese rice cooker that I can set timer… so great, I can set it for the dinner time. I also heard that steamed rice sticks to the bottom of the stainless steel pot of Instant Pot. I do not waste any rice (you know how much Japanese people care about rice and eat till last rice kernel… haha). So I don’t plan to make it with IP… sorry! 😀
Thanks for the helpful recipe!
I also just bought an Instant Pot (partly due to your high endorsements ☺),
do you think there is a good way to prepare Japanese/Sushi rice using the Instant-Pot’s advantages, which is easier/faster than the regular stovetop method? I’ll be happy to hear your (or anyone else’s) thoughts about that!
Sorry, I just saw that you answered practically the same question in the comment above, so please ignore my previous comment and thanks anyway!
No problem! Feel free to ask me if you still have any question. 🙂 So glad you got an IP. More IP recipes coming soon! 🙂
Thanks for this post Nami. I always wondered why you needed to soak the rice before cooking it! My rice tends to always come out mushy, so hopefully these tips will help. I am guilty of all the no-nos!
I am glad I found your blog. I was actually recommended to check out your website by a friend who knows who you are and your cooking style. It’s made me motivated to start working on my Japanese cuisine.
Hi Danielle! Welcome to my blog! Oh I wonder who your friend is! 😀 Please send my thanks to him/her. 🙂 xoxo
I swear by this rice cooking method. I must have tried 5 other online methods for stove top rice and this is the only one worth using. I highly recommend this method for use at high altitudes. Other methods don’t use enough water for the mile high area and as such make dry crunchy rice. This is the only ratio I have tried that works here in the Rockies.
Hi Christine! Japanese rice usually requires more water than other types of rice. If the other recipes didn’t include that to consideration, the rice probably won’t come out well. Also, for Japanese rice, soaking is very important. 🙂 So happy to hear this recipe worked out for you! 🙂
I just wanna say, the smell of cooked rice is absolutely wonderful.
Yeah it is. Though, I couldn’t smell that while I was pregnant. Very weird, but a lot of Japanese pregnant women have same problem… So strange!
Thank you!! Will try your pieces of advice – I had a housekeeper from the Philippines for 14 years and she used to make Japanese rice for us in her rice cooker. Once I moved to the US , I decided not to buy a rice cooker and cannot seem to be able to do it in my dutch oven either!! Now I know why : I am not washing as much as you do , I am not soaking either and I am cooking with lid haf closed !!!!! It’s always a disaster !! Thank you so much for your video
Hi Marcia! Oh half closed only? No no no, NEVER open the lid while cooking. I think you’ll be okay next time! If you use Japanese short grain rice, soaking does help. 🙂
Hi,
I am wondering if rice is cooked the same way everytime no matter what it’s used for? For example, rice for sushi would be the same cooking method for rice to eat on the side with your main entree?
Thanks!
Good question! I’m glad you asked. I mentioned in How To Make Sushi Rice post, but I didn’t write it here. When you make sushi rice, we do decrease water a little bit as we pour sushi vinegar AFTER cooking rice. So we make rice with less water. Otherwise, you will cook rice same way. 🙂
Just tried it and the result was great, thank you!
In Japan rice isn’t cooked in seasoned water (in Portugal we always cook it in salted water). Is it because it’s combined with other ingredients that have stronger/salted flavours and it ends up being seasoned or what you’re after is that “clean”/bland flavour ?
Oh and, sorry if you already answered this question, does the washing of the rice influence the degree of stickiness of the rice or is it just to clean the possible impurities? Thank you
Hi Catarina! Not the stickiness, but more for taste. You can taste the difference when you rinse vs you don’t. 🙂
Hi Catarina! We do have seasoned rice (we call it “Takikomi Gohan”: https://www.justonecookbook.com/?s=takikomi+gohan), but we normally eat plain rice because other food is salty (soy sauce and miso are salty). Japanese rice in Japan taste amazing by itself. It’s something we can’t get oversea. If you have a chance to visit Japan, do enjoy simple white rice. It’s shiny, fluffy, and has sweet taste to it. 🙂
My Japanese rice always turn out dry when left to cool down after steaming. Is it because I did not soak the rice prior cooking?
Hi Terence! I can’t say 100% sure, but I think that’s high likely the true. I always soak my rice, but when I didn’t have enough time and made rice right away, the outcome of the rice is more dry. I really believe rice kernel is more plump when you give at least 20-30 mins of soaking…. 🙂
I use a good quality Teflon sauce pan with a glass lid so I can cheat a little. Followed this recipe exactly and it was perfect.
Hi Skeena69! That’s wonderful. Thanks so much for trying this recipe and I’m happy it came out well. 🙂
Loved it
Thank you Merry!
Thank you for the post! I really needed it! Your blog is amazing and super useful
Hi Alva! I’m so happy to hear that. Thank you very much for following my blog! 🙂
Hi Nami! For one more time I have to give you congrats for your helpful blog.
I have a question to make you cause I think I confused about the ratio. At the recipe you give 1 c rice with 1 1/4 c water and at the end you giving us 1 c rice and 1 1/2 c water. So what is the right thing?
Thanks for your time to answer me.
Hi John! The recipe is correct, and you are probably talking about the rice to water ratio? It’s 1 to 1.2.
You’re saying “1 cup rice and 1 1/2 cup water” but that ratio will be 1 to 1.5. Hope that helps!
Thank you for your kind words on my blog. Hope you enjoy cooking recipes from my site!
Thanks for this post! Any tips if you’re using musenmai (no rinse rice). Should I still soak it??
Hi Voni! I would still soak even 15 minutes. Soaking helps the rice to absorb more moisture. Japanese rice is round and fatter, so it helps to soak and let the rice absorb some moisture before cooking. That way, even the center gets nice and fluffy. 🙂
Hi Nami san,
How do I prepare rice overnight in a rice cooker so that it is ready the next morning? Do I still have to soak it for 30 minutes and then drain it before leaving it overnight in the rice cooker?
Hi Kaya! If you’re making rice in a rice cooker, you can rinse the rice and let it soak in rice cooker until the morning. I add a little bit more water as rice will soak up water that’s meant for cooking. Ideally, you want to let soak for 30 minutes, then add right amount of water. 🙂
I’m only used to making brown rice in the pressure cooker so when I wanted to make onigiri (after visiting Japan and eating 1000 of them!) I was totally lost with how to make the rice! Following your instructions it comes out perfect every time. Thank you 🙂
Hi Shelly! Ahahaha! You got addicted to onigiri in Japan! It’s so good insn’t it. Rice is so delicious to start with, and then nori is good too… hard to achieve the same quality outside of Japan. I’m happy to hear this recipe was helpful. Thank you so much for your kind feedback!
Very interesting subject , regards for putting up.
Hi,
Can I steam the rice instead of cooking in the rice cooker or on the stove?
Thanks.
Hi Helen! So you’re saying that you put the uncooked rice in a steamer? Sorry I wish I could give you some tips etc but I’ve never done it so I’m not too sure…
Thanks for the useful tips including freezing leftover rice – very helpful!
Hi Jack! I’m glad to hear it was helpful! Thank you for your feedback!
First of all thank you for all your delicious recipes!
Towards the end of the year and early in the new year the bag of rice I normally purchase says “New Crop”. This rice comes our really well but I’ve noticed that rice that’s been sitting in the pantry for a while does not come out very good. Do I need to add even more water when cooking?
Hi Lin! Thank you so much for trying my recipes! I’m happy to hear you enjoyed them. 🙂 New crop needs a bit less water, but after a while, you need to add more water. We usually use up rice quickly so I do not wait too long, but one thing you can do is to buy a smaller package of rice. Rice tastes better right after milling. 🙂
Thank you for all these wonderful recipes. Please tell us how to cook rice in a Donabe with double lid.
Hi Francoise! I’ll share it one day! Thank you for your request. 🙂
I just want to say that after screwing up my Japanese rice so many times, using many different recipes, this is the only one that is 100% perfect every time. THANK YOU.
Hi Lexie! Wow! Thank you so much for your kind feedback. I’m so happy to hear your rice comes out well now! Rice is so important in Japanese cuisine. It’s a must to make nice fluffy rice. 🙂 Thank you for writing! xo
I think the video makes it more clear that you should soak the rice for 20-30 minutes after washing and before draining and the cooking. The written direction are kind of vague about that part..#2 and #3. The recipe is great though because I don’t have a rice cooker but I love Japanese rice. Actually I have made a few of the recipes on this site and they have always been a success.
Hi Janice! This video is quite old (2013, when we first started making the video) and I actually have updated my recipe since then. After trial and retesting and researching, I’ve concluded that water should be measured first and then let the rice absorb the water. So that’s already incarceration for the ingredients. Anyway, I apologize the video method and the written recipe does not match the soaking step (in a bowl vs in a pot). One day I’ll have to update this whole page with a new video and new images. I apologize for the inconsistency and it’s been on our to do list. 🙂
This has been a game changer! We got a new rice cooker but I haven’t been able to figure out the right settings….stumbled on this when we wanted to try and make onigiri and it’s kept our rice fluffy and consistently the same texture 🙂
Hi Jean! Nice! I’m glad you even made Onigiri too! Hope you enjoy your new rice cooker! 😀
I lived in Tokyo for a few months and love Japanese food. These recipes are easy to follow and delicious. I would highly recommend the recipes and I am buying the book.
Hi Jacqueline! Thank you so much for your kind words about my website! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy cooking Japanese food at home! 🙂
Absolutely delicious! I’ve always loved Japanese rice, but never tried to make it. I’m really happy that I found this recipe.
Hi Deb! Thank you so much for your kind words! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂