How to cook brown rice

Recipe video above. The best method and cook time for truly fluffy, perfectly cooked brown rice depends on what type of brown rice you have. Did you know that basmati rice cooks in less than half the time as long grain brown rice?BEFORE YOU START: Determine what rice you have and read the "Before You Start" in the notes below.BIGGEST TIP - skip the absorption method (high risk of gluey) and ignore the packet directions!! Servings: 1 cup uncooked brown rice makes 3 cups cooked rice which will serve 3 people.

Prep time: PT1M

Cook time: PT30M

Rating

4.92 stars (60 reviews)

Keywords

brown basmati rice, brown rice, brown short grain rice, how to cook brown rice, long grain brown rice

Ingredients

1 cup brown rice - medium grain, long grain or basmati
8 cups water ((Note 1))
1 1/2 cups short grain brown rice ((medium grain ok too))
2 1/2 cups BOILING water ((Note 2))
Quick cooking rice (ie par boiled) (- will not work)
Brown jasmine (- not yet tested)

Cuisine

Asian
Indian
Western

Steps

Rinsing rice: only required if you purchased from bulk bins. If you rinse, reduce water by 1/4 cup for baked version.
Boil and Drain:
- Boil water: Bring water to a boil in a small pot or large saucepan over high heat.
- Boil rice: Add rice, then boil rice until just cooked, a tiny bit firmer than you want (it gets softer during Rest step). Use these times as a guide (Note 3):- Medium and long grain rice: 30 minutes- Basmati rice: 12 minutes (1st check) to 14 minutes
- Drain VERY well (key tip! Note 4): Drain rice in a colander, shaking the pot well to remove as much water as you can, and shaking the colander to remove excess water from the rice. Pot should steam dry from residual heat.
- Rest: Return rice to now-dry pot. Put lid on and put it back on the turned off stove. Leave for 10 minutes.
- Fluff and serce: Fluff rice with fork and serve.
Baked Rice:
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (all oven types).
- Combine rice and water: Pour rice and boiling water into a 20cm/8" square pan or round casserole pot. Cover with lid or foil.
- Bake 1 hour 15 minutes.
- Rest, fluff & serve: Remove from oven, stand 10 minutes then fluff with fork and serve.

Nutitrion

Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 229 kcal
Carbohydrates: 48 g
Protein: 5 g
Fat: 2 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Sodium: 10 mg

Reviews

Julie Breland on 2026-03-24 (5 stars):
Believe it!!! The rice came out so delicious and non-sticky!
Ethel A.Angelo on 2026-02-28 (5 stars):
Learned so much ! Thanks for sharing how ill cook my brown rice no rinsing cooking over boiling water jst pour the brown rice in a pot over direct stove ! Tnx mucho!
Frances on 2026-02-19 (5 stars):
boy do I agree with you, she has saved me from buying a rice cooker or just giving up and buying premade rice.
Frances on 2026-02-19 (5 stars):
Your are my go to for how to cook any rice, this worked perfectly. Had carolina brown rice, stopped it short of 30 minutes --then continued as you outlined. Very good instructions. Thank you
Kim on 2026-01-03 (5 stars):
I agree and I was in the same boat! All of Nagi’s rice recipes work perfectly.
Kathleen Howell on 2025-12-26 (5 stars):
I used the bake method for 12 servings of salsa rice, using brown jasmine rice, for a potluck. I didn’t salt, expecting the salsa to be salty enough, it wasn’t. Other than that, the texture was good and the baking time let me work on other things. I’ll use this method again, with salt.
Tae on 2025-11-26 (4 stars):
Thank you! So far this has worked but also creates an immense amount of foam so I find myself standing there to stir it the entire time. I didn’t see any foam in your video. How do you prevent this?
Lisa on 2025-09-10 (5 stars):
This worked super well for Long Grain Brown rice! I used a small pot with a lid (my usual one for rice) and kept an eye on it while it simmered. 30 mins in a simmering boil, and 10 mins to rest on the element worked nicely. The grains of rice stayed apart, instead of mushy rice for once!!
Kathy on 2025-08-09 (5 stars):
Nagi - you are like a rice cooking angel .. from someone who wasn't able to cook rice and wondering how much I would have to spend on a rice cooker that wasn't non-stick or plastic and now I can cook my own white and brown rice .. can't thank you enough .. blessings to you and your family.
Kathryn Hutchings on 2025-08-09 (5 stars):
Nagi - you are like a rice cooking angel .. from someone who wasn't able to cook rice and wondering how much I would have to spend on a rice cooker that wasn't non-stick or plastic and now I can cook my own white and brown rice .. can't thank you enough .. blessings to you and your family. Kathy x
Andi on 2025-07-28 (5 stars):
I grew up eating long grain white rice and my mom would use the 1st line of the pinky finger to measure water and it always worked. I needed rice for a stew recipe, went to 3 stores and there was only extra long grain so I settled for long grain brown rice. Searched for how to cook it, Nagi’s site popped up and I didn’t need to look further. I cooked this rice to perfection! White rice is still my favorite but now that I know how to cook brown rice I’ll slowly wean myself from white rice. Thank you again and again for the research and for the perfect brown rice recipe.
SF on 2025-07-15 (5 stars):
I used store-brand long-grain (looks more medium grain though) brown rice and the boil and drain method worked great. I do agree with checking times early when you first use this method for your particular rice. I checked every 12 minutes and drained by rice at about the 25 minute mark which ended up working well. Thank you for the great recipe. I had gotten so tired of mushy and gummy brown rice!
Ron, Brisbane on 2025-02-27 (5 stars):
Wanted to make a salad I saw on another Oz cookery website - looked delicious! - but required cooked brown rice… Uh-oh. I’ve never been able to get brown rice right. White rice - using absorption method - perfect! Brown rice? A gluggy, awful, unappealing mess. I could never understand how it was so good in restaurants and cafes - and so horrible when I made it…. But this salad looked soooo nice! So I turned to Nagi. And the result (with some brown long grain/basmati rice) - boiled like pasta, then strained and rested! - was perfect. And the salad? (Belinda Jeffery’s lemony tuna, egg, celery and brown rice salad) was divine. Thanks again Nagi! I consider myself a pretty reasonable home cook - but brown rice has always been my nemesis. No longer! Mwah!
Quicky BD on 2025-02-04 (5 stars):
This is a fantastic guide to cooking perfect brown rice! I love how simple and foolproof the method is, making it easy for anyone to achieve fluffy, delicious results. The tip about rinsing the rice to remove excess starch is a game changer! Brown rice is such a versatile and healthy staple, and this method ensures it turns out great every time. Thanks for sharing! Also, check out https://quickybd.com/ for more food tips!
Nics on 2025-02-02 (5 stars):
I came straight to Nagi to make brown rice for the first time ever. I made the right decision in doing so! The only thing in unsure of is my electric stove plate is still hot when I return rice to stove in a dry pot, so it scorched a little. Maybe I should just leave it on the turned-off plate for 5 mins and continue resting off-plate?
Steve H on 2024-12-30 (5 stars):
Finally, decent brown rice. I used to just boil the hell out of all rice, probably why I prefer potatoes, but using Nagi's methods - it works - still prefer potatoes tho. Trying to improve my diet, fluked into buying brown Basmati, used Nagi's method and used leftover Cacciatore sauce over the top . and yet another great RTEats meal. Excellent work Nagi, Lost count of the number of people I've recommended you to.
Anthony Wilson on 2024-12-02 (5 stars):
Boil 1 cup brown rice in plenty of water. Keep tasting until just about ready. - for basmati 12-15 min Tip into the pot of a microwave cooker.. Allow to drain completely with some shaking.. 3 min full power - taste after 2. Always perfect
Melinda on 2024-07-30 (5 stars):
I used the boil, drain, steam method for brown rice twice. Brown rice perfection each time. Nagi, thank you so much for taking the guess work out of preparing the basics. I deeply appreciate the cooking lessons you put together for all your recipes. I learn so much and don’t have to waste ingredients experimenting. Thank you!