Why does rice at restaurants taste so much better than it does at home? The quality of rice you're using at home could very well be inferior to that of the rice being used in the restaurant. There isn't just one variety of rice. For example, there is no such thing as just one variety of “white rice”.
IMPORTANT NOTE: if you want it to taste like true restaurant style, you need to put the rice only in a pot over high heat and stir it around for about 5 minutes or so before cooking. it helps the grains of rice to stay separate (more like restaurant style) and less sticky.
The answer: high heat, expert tosses, and something known as 'wok hei. ' As J. Kenji López-Alt writes for Serious Eats, expert cooking with a wok (and the gas range it requires) is one of the main reasons that fried rice from a Chinese restaurant tastes so much better than what you can make at home.
If you've ever been to a Chinese restaurant, you may have noticed that the rice is different than what you're used to eating at home. That's because most Chinese restaurants use short-grain rice, which has a higher starch content than long-grain rice.
Rice comes into play because it absorbs moisture even faster than salt. You're familiar with the lifesaver of putting your water-damaged phone in a bag of uncooked rice? It's the same concept. By adding just a few grains of rice to your salt shaker, restaurants can guarantee that your salt will pour with ease.
Fried Rice Ingredients
Butter: This is my secret ingredient! This is what they use at hibachi restaurants for their fried rice and has been a game changer ever since I started using it. It adds a lot more flavor and helps to brown the rice.
Japanese Rice Is Grown In Different Conditions
This method of growing results in a sweeter flavor and a stickier texture. Japanese rice is also grown in shorter, cooler seasons than other types of rice. This results in a higher starch content, which also contributes to the sticky texture.
Don't Bother It
Similarly, stirring your rice while it cooks will activate the starches and leave you with clumpy, mushy rice. Your rice only needs a quick fluff with a fork once it's finished cooking.
It must have wok hei (breath of the wok) fragrance to draw you in, the rice grains are individual and cooked to the right texture, and it cannot be too oily or dry. When done right, you don't even need many ingredients to improve the flavour of the dish.
The type of rice matters, too: “Many Chinese cooks add some American long-grain to traditional jasmine, which helps prevent clumping, because jasmine's so starchy in comparison.” (He recommends a ratio of a third long-grain to two-thirds jasmine.)
One of the main reasons of washing rice is to remove the starch from the surface of the grains. This is needed so that it removes the surface starches on the rice and does not create a gummy layer in the pot.
The celebrity chef revealed he lost exactly 3st 8lb by eating more meals than he used to. He explained: “I'm very good at eating five times a day, but small amounts as opposed to big breakfast, big lunch and big dinner.
Do not be tempted to leave your rice cooking in boiling water for the entire duration, simmering is much better - the steam helps to give you that fluffy txture. Gordon explained: "Always start off with cold water. "Then bring it up to the boil as quick as possible, then let it simmer for 8-10 minutes.
Add Sugar (Trust Us)
Takeout fried rice always has a hint of sweetness. You may not have noticed, but next time you open your takeout container, keep it in mind. A sprinkling of sugar adds depth in flavor and a slight color via caramelization. This is the game-changing touch you can use to impress your friends.
As Culinary Lore explains, freshly cooked rice is fluffy and hot and perfect for eating as is, but contains too much moisture. The texture of leftover rice (dried out), on the other hand, is the perfect texture for a dish like fried rice because of the reintroduction of moisture.