Why it works: Rice and clove are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,982 recipes. Both carry ethyl caproate, which smells fruity, apple peel. The science ↓
Rice Water
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Wash the rice in cold water.
Soak the rice in 1 quart of tepid water for 3 hours.
Cook and serve
Boil the rice slowly for 1 hour.
Strain the rice and serve.
Flavor with cloves or other spices if desired.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Rice + clovetop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,982 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Rice
- Its starch softens as it cooks and thickens the water, giving the liquid body.
- Water
- Hydrates the grains so they soften evenly and carries flavor during cooking.
The step that matters
Boil the rice slowly for 1 hour. A gentle simmer lets the grains soften evenly without breaking apart or scorching on the bottom of the pot. A hard boil can break grains and cook the surface faster than the centre.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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