How Long After Rice Can You Eat (And Why)?

Exact Answer: 1 Hour

People have a lot of things to do in their life. They have office work, parenting work, housework, etc. They need a lot of energy to do all this work. Sometimes works can even become stressful which is harmful to the mental as well as the physical state of the body. To cope up with so many energy losses, they need to consume food. Food provides them with the energy they need to work.

Different parts of the world have a form of staple food. The Asian countries prefer rice while other places prefer wheat. Rice is easy to cook and has a lot of carbohydrates that keep the body running. It hardly takes about an hour to have it after cooking it. It can be served with a lot of dishes which include lentils, fish, chicken, vegetables, etc.

How Long After Rice Can You Eat?

The making of rice is a very easy process. It hardly requires any time. After one hour of cooking, people can consume it. The process of making rice includes a large pan filled with water and then the rice grains are added. In this stage, the grains are very hard. After adding the grains, the pan is covered and kept on the fire for some time. It is important to open the lid and check the rice grains.

If it is still hard then it needs some more time but if it has become soft, the cooking is finished. It is important to not let the grains become too soft as they might disintegrate in the water. After cooking, the excess water is drained out and the rice is kept for a bit to cool down. Then it is served. Rice is the staple food for several countries like India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Japan, etc. Not only in Asia but a few Latin American countries also prefers it.

There are different varieties of rice available in the market. The number exceeds more than forty thousand. But the most common ones are Calrose rice, Japonica rice, Indica rice, etc. The procedure for making each of these rice is almost the same. The only thing that differs is the time taken to cook it. After cooking, the rice should be steaming hot all over, it knows that it is properly cooked.

It is ideal to have rice the same day it is cooked but if it is to be stored then it should not be stored for more than a day. Storing it more than a day increases the chances of having food poisoning after consuming that rice.

Why Does It Take Long To Eat After Rice?

It does not take long to eat rice after cooking. The one-hour gap is given for precautionary purposes. The rice will be very hot after cooking and having it at that time might be harmful to the person as it may cause severe burns. So it is better to have it after the rice has reached room temperature. More than that, it takes some time to drain the rice water after cooking it. The one-hour gap is ideal after cooking rice.

It is important to cook rice properly. Uncooked rice sometimes contains a bacteria known as Bacillus cereus. It may cause serious food poisoning. Leaving the rice at room temperature accelerates the spore growth which releases toxins that lead to diarrhea. The bacteria and the toxins will keep on increasing as long as the rice is left uncooked at room temperature. There are a few basic rules for serving rice that should be kept in mind.

Those rules include the rice to be served within the hour gap after cooking as it will be good then. If the rice is still hot, it should be cooled down within a few minutes. Reheating rice after keeping it in the refrigerator may sound like an easy process but in reality, it is not. The rice should be heated in one go and reheating should be avoided as it may alter the taste. The heat should be distributed properly at all corners of the pan.

Conclusion

As mentioned above, rice forms the staple diet of many countries in the world. Each one has developed their way of preparation using the type of rice that is abundantly available in their area. Japanese people like to have sticky rice which is easier to pick with their chopsticks, while people in South East Asian countries prefer non-sticky rice as they prefer to eat with their bare hands.

Everything has rules which are needed to be followed to get the perfect result but in this case, the rules are followed to get the perfect taste and energy to do work.

References

1. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fJi0FxyM7pQC&oi=fnd&pg=PA15&dq=rice+grain&ots=Fy3gBOtc0h&sig=DCR3A2jvfn1kpGIJc_W3_Wva8xw
2. https://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publication/?seqNo115=150448