Chinese Take-Out Rice-Presevation & Uses

[RaleighRocker]

Since I missed my "last day before my diet starts" due to a family situation, I treated myself to some chinese take-out tonight. Not only do I have enough for a million people, but I have a container of rice I am certain I will not touch since I have a noodle dish (I've never been of the entree over rice school of eaters).

I am single, broke & loathe to be wasteful. I want to save the rice for tomorrow or the day after. I am currently without a microwave, and basically I want to know is there a secret to reheating it so it does not taste like pebbles? I have tried the adding a bit of water to the pot, but that never seems to work.

Also, besides fried rice, and suggestions for uses of said rice are welcome!

Thank you in advance.

[theSauce]

Add a can of cream of chicken and chopped veggies in a casserole pan. Top with breadcrumbs and cheese to make a rice casserole.

[anita_cocktail]

rice cakes - Mix in raw egg, salt and lots of sliced scallion. Form patties and fry in oil for crispy rice cakes.

congee (chinese breakfast porridge) - boil leftover rice with chicken stock (2 stock:1 rice ratio), and lots of ginger. When it is a glutenous goo (you may need more liquid and/or time), serve with sliced scallions, fresh grated ginger, and swirl in some soy sauce.

stuffed peppers - blend with veggies and diced chorizo to make a stuffing for baked peppers or tomatoes.

[wleatherette]

i wouldn't keep it more than a day. several friends of mine have become ill from leftover rice. it's surprisingly deadly!

[RiJaAr]

i have eaten leftover rice on the second or third day all the time, i have never gotten sick on it.

The only thing is how long it was sitting out before you refrigerated it. Rice grows bacteria really fast if its not refrigerated right away.

[choctastic]

you can freeze it too and then use it exactly the same way. it's better insurance. i freeze extra rice because i don't know if i can use it the next day.

[C. Hamster]

Rice is associated with Bacillus food poisoning and let me tell you (from unfortunate personal experience with fried rice left unrefrigerated)-- it is nasty.

ALWAYS get cooked rice into a fridge as soon as possible and reheat it propoerly.

[wleatherette]

i have, too. in fact, i've eaten stuff that's been left out overnight with no problem resulting. however, i thought it was worth pointing out because once a few friends of mine got sick from leftover rice, i did some google research and found out that it's far from uncommon.

[RiJaAr]

Rice Pudding, just cook it with milk, some sugar (or brown sugar) cinnamon, and maybe a tiny pinch of nutmeg if you want, and raisins.

OOR add it to some broth and add some veggies or some cooked chicken breast (or both) for a good soup

[ballulah]

Even though you asked for no fried rice recipes, I have one that is quite spectacular. It's a Thai recipe, and you fry the rice with finely chopped cilantro stems (JUST the stems, use the leaves for something else) and a little nam pla/fish sauce. Use a wok, if you can, on high heat, and saute the stems with garlic - before adding the rice - until they are nearly translucent. Good stuff.

[Querencia]

This is kind of a peripheral answer. When you eat in a Chinese restaurant (also applies to other Asian such as Thai, Vietnamese) if you have a significant amount left of a dish you probably take it home for tomorrow's lunch, but if there's just a dab left, you don't. However, even if there is just a spoonful or so left, you can also take it home and add it to a can of chicken broth to make a good Asian-type soup.

Anybody interested in freezing cooked rice as a convenience may have better success with parboiled rice (also sold in ethnic stores as "golden rice"). For some reason, the grains remain separate and soft when frozen and the rice warms nicely in the microwave without either turning to hard pellets or forming a gluey glob. You can cook a large batch in the rice cooker then freeze it in plastic sandwich bags for individual portions. My rice cooker will do about 16 such freezer portions, a very great convenience.

[Cheese Boy]

That's right -- do not waste a grain of that! I refrigerate mine and later combine it with a bunch of other ingredients to make stuffed peppers with it soon after. Frugal, and delicious idea. : )

[chef chicklet]

Keep it in the container, and put the whole thing in the top of a steamer. The steam should reheat and rehydrate the rice.

[scrapple]

add water and make porridge

[AnneInMpls]

I always use left-over Chinese take-out rice when I make Avgolemono soup. My quickie version uses 2 cups of canned chicken broth (actually, I use the organic stuff in a box), a beaten egg, juice from half a lemon, and a cup of leftover white rice. The official recipe and technique is on the web, including this version at Epicurious:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/rec...

I also make rice pudding with leftover rice. It doesn't have to be high-calorie; my version uses skim milk, an egg or two, a tablespoon of sugar, and lots of cinnamon. Yum!

Anne

[Procrastibaker]

What about rice pudding? Just cook it with milk and sugar, a dash of salt, and voila. Creamy deliciousness.

[QueenB]

Ok, because of your suggestion, I'm making a pot of rice pudding with leftover basmati. Do you think it would be good with some shredded coconut or candied ginger, or should I just leave it alone. I don't like raisins, so I'm not sure what to add.

[kobetobiko]

Get a pint of chicken soup from your favorite takeout or even canned one, heat it up and rice to it. Then you will have some yummy chicken and rice soup.

[ElizabethZ]

Rice Balls! Great for take-out rice, especially if it's dried up a bit. Bake (or fry) with egg, salt, pepper, and cheese.

[Fleur]

The rice from Chinese restaurants is made in a rice cooker without salt. It spoils very very quickly.

[uptown jimmy]

It's all about the fried rice.

[vsoy]

Some people freeze cooked rice until they need it for fried rice, good for you so you don't get sick of fried rice.

[Pei]

Old rice is best for fried rice and porridge.