16.3 Buying, storing and cooking grains

Grains recipes →

Buying

Good grains look plump and fresh, with an even, bright color. Pass over any that are shriveled or crumbly, or that smell musty or sour. Grains are sold by weight, in bags or boxes from 1 to 100 pounds; 10, 25 and 50 pounds are the common sizes.

Storing

Keep every grain in an airtight container in a place that is dark, cool and dry. Each condition does a job:

• The airtight lid keeps out dust and insects.
• The lid and the dark together slow the loss of nutrients to air and light.
• Cool air holds insects back.
• Dry air stops mold.

Vacuum-sealed packs last a long time. Whole grains still have their oily germ, so they can be kept in the refrigerator to stop them going rancid.

A dry store runs by a few plain rules:

• Keep it cool and dry; the best range is between 10°C and 15°C (50°F and 59°F).
• Shelves stand at least 15 cm (6 in.) off the floor.
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• Nothing is stored on the floor itself.
• Stock is rotated first in, first out (FIFO): the oldest goes out first.
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Once a grain is cooked, it is no longer a dry good. Cooked rice and other cooked starches are potentially hazardous foods. To cool a batch fast:

• spread it in shallow pans, no more than 5 cm (2 in.) deep;
• leave the pans loosely covered or open while they cool, since a tight cover traps the heat;
• keep the pans unstacked so cold air reaches every one;
• use metal pans, stainless steel or aluminum, which pass heat better than plastic.

After cooling:

• Cover the food tightly.
• Food that will sit in the cooler longer than 24 hours carries the date it was made and a "serve by" date.
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• As a general rule, potentially hazardous foods not used within three days are thrown out.
• Reheat leftovers once only; if they are not eaten, throw them away.

Three ways to cook a grain

Grains are cooked in one of three basic ways: simmering, the pilaf method and the risotto method. For pilaf and risotto the raw grains are first coated in hot fat; simmered grains are not. Pilaf and risotto differ in how the liquid goes in. A grain bound for a pudding, a bread, a stuffing or a baked casserole is usually cooked first by one of the three.

What a simmer looks like, and how hot it is, is covered with the other temperature words. see chapter 7: Temperature words

Simmering is the most common method. The grains are stirred into boiling salted water, measured first, or into stock for more flavor, with any herbs and spices. The pot is covered and the heat turned down, and the grains are left alone, without stirring, until they are tender.

• Bring the liquid to a boil.
• Stir in the grains and any herbs or spices.
• When it boils again, cover it and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook until the grains are tender and most of the liquid is gone, then take the pot off the heat.
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• Drain the grains if the recipe calls for it, or leave the lid on for about 5 minutes so the last moisture steams off. Fluff with a fork and serve.
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The pilaf method starts with a light sauté. The raw grains are stirred in oil or butter, usually with onion or other flavorings. Then hot liquid, often stock, goes in all at once, and the covered pan simmers on the stove or in the oven until the grains have drunk it up.

• Bring the water or stock to a boil.
• Warm the fat over moderate heat in a heavy saucepan. Cook any onion, garlic or other flavorings in it for 1 to 2 minutes without letting them brown.
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• Stir in the grains until each one is coated with fat. Do not let them brown.
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• Pour in all the hot liquid at once, bring it back to a boil, then turn it down to a simmer and cover.
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• Simmer until the liquid is absorbed.
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For a rice pilaf, cook the rice in butter until it looks glassy, about 2 minutes, before the stock goes in. After cooking, let it rest, covered and unstirred, for 15 minutes before fluffing it.

Sautéing is taught in full with the dry-heat methods. see chapter 8: Sauté and pan-frying

The risotto method comes from northern Italy. The grains stay firm in the middle but blend with the liquid into something creamy, close to a pudding. True risotto uses a starchy short-grain rice such as Arborio, but barley and oats can be cooked the same way. Do not rinse the rice; rinsing washes off the starch that makes it creamy. The liquid should be a rich, well-flavored stock, kept hot and added a little at a time so the pot stays at a steady simmer. Unlike the other two methods, risotto needs stirring often, sometimes all the time.

• Bring the stock to a simmer and keep it there.
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• Warm the fat over moderate heat in a heavy saucepan and cook any onion, garlic or other flavorings for 1 to 2 minutes without browning.
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• Add the grains and stir until they are coated with fat. Do not let them brown.
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• Add any wine and cook until the grains have taken it all in.
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• Add the hot stock 4 fluid ounces (120 ml) at a time, stirring often. Let each addition be almost absorbed before the next.
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• Start testing after about 18 to 20 minutes.
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• Take the pan off the heat. Stir in butter, grated cheese, herbs or any other flavoring. Garnish and serve straight away.
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Finished risotto is creamy and tender but still al dente, firm to the bite, at the center. Grated cheese, heavy cream, herbs, vegetables, and cooked meat, poultry, fish or shellfish can all go in, so a risotto can be a side dish or a whole meal. Another way is to add hot broth half a cup at a time and stir almost constantly for about 20 minutes.

Knowing when a grain is done

Most grains are cooked until tender, though some recipes want them chewier, or al dente. Cooking time and the liquid left in the pan are the usual guides. Wild rice is done when the grains puff open.

When almost all the liquid has gone, small holes like tunnels open up between the grains. That is the sign. You can take the pot off the heat at that point and let it stand, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes; the grains take up the last of the water without catching on the bottom.

Rice is done when a grain squeezed between your fingers is soft all the way through. If the pan runs dry before then, add a little water so the rice does not scorch. To keep cooked rice hot, set it in a strainer over a pan of boiling water.

Plain rice on the stove

Most rice takes two cups of water for each cup of rice; check the packet, because some kinds want a little more or less. Rinsing first is not essential, but a quick rinse in a strainer takes off dusty surface starch and any stray bits of chaff.

• Put the rice, the water, half a teaspoon of salt and, if you like, a tablespoon of butter or oil in the pan.
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• Bring it to a boil, turn the heat to medium-low and put the lid on.
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• Leave the lid alone. Lifting it lets steam out and throws off the timing. Cook until the water is gone, 18 to 20 minutes.
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• Take it off the heat, let it sit a few minutes, then fluff it with a fork.
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Rice swells as it cooks, so give it room: a 2-quart saucepan suits one or two cups of raw rice.

Grain by grain

For one cup of each grain:

Grains on the menu

Polenta is cornmeal, coarse or fine, yellow or white, boiled in water or stock. The name is Italian and goes back to a Latin word for hulled, crushed grain. Polenta can be eaten soft, or set and then baked, fried or grilled.

To make it creamy:

• Bring the stock to a boil.
• Turn the heat down to medium-low and whisk the cornmeal in very slowly so it cannot form lumps.
• Keep stirring with a wooden spoon, scraping the bottom so nothing sticks, until it thickens, 8 to 10 minutes.
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• Off the heat, stir in Parmesan, butter and crème fraîche, a soured cream of about 28% butterfat.

For a baked polenta, simmer it for about 10 minutes, then layer it with Parmesan and Swiss cheese and bake it at 350°F until hot and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes.

Other ways the grains reach the plate:

• Barley: quick pearl barley sautéed with onion and mushrooms in butter, then baked with stock in a tightly covered dish at 350°F for about an hour; or quick barley simmered about 40 minutes and stirred into a succotash of squash and corn.
• Millet: boiled with water in a covered pan until the water is gone, about 35 minutes, then served under a lemon and egg sauce.
• Fried rice: rice cooked first, then fried in a little oil until hot, with green onion, ham, soy sauce and egg stirred through.
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• Rice pilafs: brown rice and wild rice sautéed with onion and celery, then gently boiled about 45 minutes; or broken vermicelli browned in butter before the rice goes in, as in an Armenian pilaf.
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• Wild rice with white rice: the wild rice is boiled alone for 25 minutes before converted rice joins it for another 25 to 30.
• Baked rice: rice and onion sautéed in butter, then baked with boiling water in a covered dish at 350°F until the liquid is gone, 25 to 30 minutes.
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• Gnocchi from farina: farina (Cream of Wheat) cooked in milk with butter until very thick, cooled, mixed with egg and cheese, chilled, rolled into balls and baked at 425°F.
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• Bulgur for tabbouleh: covered with just enough boiling water and left 30 minutes, then drained and mixed with herbs, tomato, oil and lemon. It can also soak in lemon juice and water at room temperature for about 45 minutes.
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• Couscous: stirred into boiling water and left 2 to 3 minutes until the water is taken up; or cooked in hot broth in a double boiler for 10 to 15 minutes.
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• Quinoa: rinsed, then simmered in twice its volume of water until the water is gone and the seeds look clear, 10 to 15 minutes.
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