Properly Cooked Brown Rice

From Koda Farms, a Family History in Rice by Elizabeth Linhart Money

Excerpted from The Complete Tassajara Cookbook by Edward Espe Brown, © 2009. Published by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc., Boston. Shambhala.com

1 cup brown rice
2 cups water
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon butter or oil

Rinse and drain the rice, then soak it in the water for 1 hour (optional). Put both rice and water into a heavy saucepan. Add salt and butter and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat to its lowest setting and cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid. Cook the rice for 45 minutes undisturbed.

Watch TV, prepare other dishes for dinner, or do your yoga asanas, but don’t look at the pot. The rice needs seclusion to turn out properly. To tell when it’s done just listen to the pot: no more bubbling, but a subtle yet distinct crackling or popping sound. The rice on the bottom is becoming toasted. Leave the pot tightly covered. Just before serving, gently fluff the grains with a fork. If properly cooked and properly eaten (100 chews per mouthful), the brown rice will properly become you.