Sweet Rice and Rice Puddings
Cooking Skills: Rice 1
Chapter 8 · Sweet Rice and Rice Puddings
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
Sweet rice dishes use rice in two ways. In a pudding the rice cooks directly in milk, so the starch thickens the liquid into a creamy sauce. In sweet absorption rice (coconut rice, for instance) the rice cooks in a measured amount of liquid, so the grains stay separate and are served with fruit. Both are comforting, and both are a good place to practise stirring, heat control and patience.
| Rice | Used for | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Pudding rice (round, short-grain) | Rice pudding | Very starchy; swells and thickens the milk |
| Risotto rice | Rice pudding (a good substitute) | Also starchy, a little firmer |
| Jasmine or sushi rice | Coconut rice, sticky rice dishes | Soft and clingy; hold together |
| Long-grain rice | Quick porridge from leftovers | Already cooked, so just reheated |
Rice puddings are generally a treat, but they can be made lighter: semi-skimmed milk, less sugar, and fruit instead of jam or cream.
Try it
Stovetop rice pudding
Pudding rice is cooked directly in milk, so the starch thickens the milk as the grains swell. No rinsing: the starch is the point.
Ingredients (1 portion)
- 40 g pudding rice
- 300 ml semi-skimmed milk
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 pinch grated nutmeg
- Put the rice, milk and sugar in a small, heavy pan. Bring just to a simmer, stirring.
- Turn the heat to the lowest setting and cook for 30 to 35 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes so it doesn't catch, until the rice is soft and the milk has thickened to a creamy sauce.
- Stir in the vanilla. Serve hot with a grating of nutmeg, or a spoonful of fruit.
Coconut rice with mango
Sweet coconut rice with fruit is cooked by the absorption method from chapter 3, with coconut milk and a little sugar.
Ingredients (1 portion)
- 60 g jasmine or short-grain rice
- 120 ml light coconut milk
- 60 ml water
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 pinch salt
- ½ ripe mango, sliced
- 1 lime wedge
- Rinse the rice well and soak for 15 minutes if you have time. Drain.
- Put the rice, coconut milk, water, sugar and salt in a small pan. Bring to the boil, stir once, cover, and cook on the lowest heat for 12 minutes.
- Rest, covered, for 10 minutes. Spoon onto a plate with the mango and squeeze over a little lime.
Baked rice pudding with a skin
The pudding that many people grew up with, with its golden skin. A low oven cooks it slowly and gently, and nothing to stir.
Ingredients (2 portions)
- 50 g pudding rice
- 500 ml semi-skimmed milk
- 1 tbsp caster sugar
- 10 g butter, plus a little for the dish
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp grated nutmeg
- Heat the oven to 150°C fan (170°C conventional, gas 3). Butter a 1 litre ovenproof dish.
- Put the rice, sugar and vanilla in the dish. Pour over the milk, stir, then dot the butter on top and grate over the nutmeg.
- Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, stirring in the skin once after the first 30 minutes (leave it alone afterwards, so a golden skin forms).
- It is ready when the rice is tender, the skin is golden-brown and the pudding is creamy and wobbly under it.
Fruity rice porridge
Leftover rice makes a quick, warming breakfast. Because the rice is already cooked, it only needs reheating in the milk.
Ingredients (1 portion)
- 100 g leftover cooked rice (cooled and refrigerated within the hour, less than 24 hours old)
- 150 ml milk
- 1 small apple, grated
- 1 tbsp raisins
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp honey (optional)
- Put the rice, milk, apple, raisins and cinnamon in a small pan. Bring to a simmer, stirring.
- Cook gently for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring, until thick and the apple is soft. It must be steaming hot all the way through.
- Sweeten with honey if wanted and eat at once. Don't reheat it again.
Experiments
Pudding rice or risotto rice
Do you need pudding rice?
- Make the stovetop rice pudding twice, once with pudding rice and once with risotto rice, using the same milk and time.
- Compare how creamy and how tender each is.
Look for: Pudding rice breaks down more and gives a creamier result. Risotto rice keeps its shape longer. Both are fine.
Skimmed, semi-skimmed or whole milk
How much does the milk matter?
- Make three small stovetop puddings with 40 g rice and 300 ml of skimmed, semi-skimmed and whole milk.
- Taste them hot and again once cool.
Look for: Whole milk is richest, skimmed is thinner but still creamy thanks to the rice. Is the extra richness worth it?
Sugar early or late
Does the moment you add sugar matter?
- Make two stovetop puddings. Add the sugar at the start of one. In the other, stir it in at the end.
- Note how long each takes to soften, and compare the taste.
Look for: A lot of sugar at the start can slow the softening of the rice slightly. Adding it at the end lets you control how sweet it is.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stovetop rice pudding | ||||
| Coconut rice with mango | ||||
| Baked rice pudding | ||||
| Fruity rice porridge | ||||
| Pudding vs risotto rice | ||||
| Skimmed, semi, whole milk | ||||
| Sugar early vs late |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Milk catches on the base | Heat too high, or not stirred | Lowest heat; stir often; use a heavy pan |
| Pudding too thick | Cooked too long or too much rice | Stir in a splash of hot milk |
| Pudding too thin | Not cooked long enough | Cook a little longer; it also thickens as it cools |
| Hard rice in the baked pudding | Oven too cool or time too short | Bake longer; stir once and cover if the skin is browning too fast |
| No skin on baked pudding | Stirred it back in, or the dish was covered | Don't stir after the first 30 minutes; leave uncovered |
- I can cook rice directly in milk to make a pudding.
- I can use coconut milk to make a sweet rice dish.
- I know why pudding rice is different from long-grain.
- I can stop a milk pudding catching on the pan.
- I can use leftover rice for a quick breakfast.