Necro time, but talking about rice and Bobby Flay failing at it.
Anyways, rice is really easy to make, but it's so versatile that it's one of my favorite grains (almost....almost more than wheat.....but not quite). Basically, the only thing you need to do to make sure you don't screw up is not open the lid. At all. Never open the lid during cooking. This is one of the most basic things cooks know about anything with cooking. What does one of the most prominent and famous chefs in the world do during a rice dish cook off? He opens the lid. All the time. And he wonders why his rice went undercooked. Another basic thing about rice: bring it to a boil, then kill the heat. Little or no direct heat when cooking rice. What does he do? Cranks it to finish it fast.
For those who don't know, rice cooking is incredibly easy: 1 part rice to 2 parts water (it takes less water at higher rice amounts, note), bring to boil, then lower heat to minimum and cover. That simple. When it's done, THEN you open. It takes time, just experiment. There's no real set way to do it, it's, well, it's rice.
Anyways, rice I made tonight: rice/water as normal, add in spices as follows: paprika, turmeric, cayenne, cumin. I eyeball, but it's about a teaspoon each. Chop carrots fine (about 1/4 cup), add to pot. This is all as it starts heating. When done cooking, kill heat completely and add about 1/3 cup peas, stir in. Let sit for not too long, peas will be heated through, and dish will be a little spicy, a little sweet, and delicious. I should probably add onions next time, I think about 1/4 cup, sweated before you add the rice and water.
