Time: 15 minutes to cook and 10 minutes in the oven to dry
Left to its own devices, new-crop rice like oursrice that is milled and cooked within four months of harvestwill cook to a sticky finish. But it doesn't have to. This recipe method, a deep-water parboil and chill-down, produces pearly grains of great delicacy and superior mouthfeel. It's the rice Uncle Ben's longs to be. When it comes to cooking, however, translate delicate as "fragile." Don't beat this rice up in the colander or the pot, and take care not to overcook it. You will be rewarded with a dish of such simple refinement, it is known as "Charleston ice cream" around here.
Equipment Mise en Place
For this recipe you will need a heavy-bottomed 3 -quart saucepan, a wooden spoon, a rimmed sheet pan, and a spatula.
Ingredients
1 cup (7 ounces) Anson Mills Carolina Gold Rice
1 tablespoon fine sea salt plus additional to season
6 cups spring or filtered water
2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. Bring the spring water and salt to a boil in a heavy-bottomed 3 1/2-quart saucepan. Add the rice, stir once, and return to a boil. As soon as the water boils, reduce the heat. Simmer gently, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the rice is just tender with no hard starch at its center, about 15 minutes. Drain the rice through a fine, footed colander and rinse well with cool water. Shake the colander to shake off the excess water.
2. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spread the rice evenly over a rimmed sheet pan. Place it in the oven to dry, turning gently from time to time with a spatula, 5 minutes. Dot the rice with butter and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Continue turning the rice until the butter has melted and the rice is hot, about 5 minutes more. Transfer to a warm serving bowl and serve immediately.
Makes 4 cups
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