I absolutely adore Japanese food and one of the staples is their short grain steamed rice (sushi rice). The only issue is that I do not have a rice cooker and I easily eat rice daily. But have no fear! For all you rice lovers it is easy to cook rice in a pot you just need the right ratio of rice to water. Making rice in a pot compared to a rice cooker honestly there is very little difference in flavour and it is easy and quick too!!

Step 1: Ingredients and Equipment

Ingredients:

- 1 Cup short grain sushi rice (white)

- 1 1/4 water (plus extra for washing the rice)

- 'Optional' seasoning like salt, rice wine vinegar (1 Tbsp rice wine vinegar and 2 tsp sugar)

Equipment

- 1 Medium pot with lid

- 1 Sieve

- 1 Tea towel

Step 2: Wash the Rice

The first and most important part is to wash the rice thoroughly. Wash the rice by covering it in cold water and rubbing the excess starch off of it (this makes the water white and opaque). Then remove the water and repeat until the water remains clear when you move the rice around.

Drain all the water out of the pot and put to the side.

This is a really important step so that you get fluffy rice that just sticks together.

Step 3: Cook the Rice

Now to your 1 cup of washed rice add 1 and 1/4 cup of water (you can easily double this recipe to 2 cups rice to 2 1/2 cups water) and put it on high heat until you get a rolling boil. Stir continuously so that the rice does not stick on the bottom.

Once the water is boiling turn the heat onto low, cover the pot with the lid and let the rice cook for about 10 minutes.

Step 4: Serve

Once the rice has been cooking for 10 minutes remove the lid and place a kitchen tea towel over the top of the pot and let the rice rest for a few minutes (this gets rid of any excess water on the rice).

Then serve up with your favourite dishes!!

IF USING FOR SUSHI

This is the point you would add your seasoning such as rice wine vinegar or salt then allow it to cool before using for sushi.