This Is How Long Rice Will Last In Your Rice Cooker

Rice is the common food staple for many people. It's the part of the meal that's indispensable when you are eating almost any Filipino dish!

• READ THESE: MORE ARTICLES ON COOKING RICE 
• This Is How You Can Cook an Entire Meal In A Rice Cooker
• WATCH: 3 Other Ways to Use a Rice Cooker

However, did you know that you shouldn't be leaving your cooked rice out? Rice that's been cooked should ideally be served immediately and if cooled, it should be refrigerated. Here's what you should know about storing cooked rice: 

Photo by Bianca Laxamana

1 Rice cookers should not be left plugged in overnight. 

If you cook rice in a rice cooker in the morning or even at lunch, you probably leave it on plugged for the rest of day. That's a good six to eight hours plugged in. According to a Midea rice cooker manual, holding time for its rice cookers is recommended at 5 hours. The Keep Warm function of a Tefal rice cooker is up to 24 hours.  

However, there are some models where it does not have an automatic shut off system and as long as it's plugged in, the rice cooker is keeping the rice warm. This isn't advisable. Not only is it a waste of electricity, but it will also dry out the rice the longer it is kept warm. (See trick below.) Despite these, for safety reasons, it's best to not keep most kitchen appliances plugged if unsupervised.   

Photo by ally j from Pixabay

2 Leftover rice should be stored, chilled, within 2 hours. 

Cooked rice is best when served within minutes when the water has completely evaporated and the steam has simmered down considerably. Once the meal is complete, however, it's best to transfer your cooked rice and store it in the refrigerator or keep your rice hot. 

That's because, if the temperature of the rice is within the dangerous temperature range of food where bacteria grow and thrive, it's a possibility that you are also keeping your rice warm enough to get you sick. The dangerous temperature zone is between 40 to 140 degrees F or 4 to 60 degrees C. That's warmer than your refrigerator so it's the best place for storing cooked rice. 

However, if you do keep your rice hot in the rice cooker, it's best to occasionally drizzle it with water since it is in danger of drying out. Add 1 tablespoon or two, replace the cover, and nobody needs to know it was in danger of drying out.  

Photo by Unsplash/Victor Lu

3 Reheat cooked rice completely. 

If you have leftover rice that you stored correctly, that's the perfect rice to use for your meal the next day! However, to stay safe, you have to properly heat the rice you use for your sinangag properly. This is where your wok comes in handy because the high heat is going to heat the rice beyond the indicated dangerous temperature of 140 degrees F or 60 degrees C.

• READ THESE: MORE ARTICLES ON COOKING RICE 
• This Is How You Can Cook an Entire Meal In A Rice Cooker
• WATCH: 3 Other Ways to Use a Rice Cooker

Now that you're more armed with knowledge on how to store your cooked rice, why not try any of these delicious fried rice recipes that we love: aligue fried rice, kimchi rice, yang chow fried rice, tuyo or bagoong fried rice, or one of our favorites, leftover adobo fried rice. 

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