More than a famous breakfast cereal, puffed rice can be used for a number of different meal ideas from on-the-go morning items all the way to puffed rice snack cakes and desserts. While you might be able to get it at the supermarket, you may be surprised to learn that it’s not actually that difficult to make yourself.
To prepare your own homemade puffed rice all you need is a stove and some ingredients along with your favorite rice variety. Using Mahatma® Rice, we’ll be showing you how along with some tasty recipe ideas that incorporate puffed rice.
What Rice Can I Use to Make Puffed Rice
Although some may say that basmati or white rice is the best rice for making puffed rice, you can actually use a wide variety of different rice types like aromatic jasmine rice, whole grain brown rice or even sushi rice! The great thing about making your own is that you can experiment with different types to find the texture and flavor that really works for you.
How to Make Puffed Rice – Step by Step
Starting with our signature Puffed Rice recipe, start with your preferred option, or what you have on hand at home. You will need the following ingredients:
- 1 cup of the Mahatma® Rice of your choice
- 1 3/4 cups of water
- Pinch of Salt
- Sunflower, Vegetable or Canola oil for Frying
Start by taking a look at this simple video recipe with a delicious cinnamon and sugar coating:
Step 1: Start by rinsing your rice. First, place your chosen rice into a bowl filled with water and mix it around. Then pour the rice into a strainer to drain the water. Once you have done this, pour the rice back into the bowl and fill it with fresh water and drain once again. Repeat this process until the water being drained runs clear. By properly rinsing your rice you will remove any excess starch meaning that your rice won’t clump together while you’re cooking it.
Step 2: Pour the water into a pot and bring it to the boil. Once the water is boiling add the salt along with the rinsed rice.
Rice Cooker Note: if you have a rice cooker, you can put the rinsed rice, water and salt into the bowl of the cooker and simply heat the rice according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Step 3: Now turn the heat down and simmer the rice until it goes soft. The time it takes will depend on the type of rice you are using.
Step 4: Once the rice has been cooked, you can spread it out onto a baking sheet and allow it to dry.
Step 5: Preheat your oven to 250 °F and put the baking tray with rice in once it is hot. You can then leave the rice to cook for 2 hours. Once all the moisture from the grains has been removed and the rice is dry, you can remove it from the oven.
Step 6: Pour the oil into a pot and heat over a medium/high flame. Once the oil is ready you can add the rice and it should puff up within 5-10 seconds.
Note: To check if the oil is ready try placing a few grains of rice in first, if they take longer than 10-15 seconds then you will probably want to leave the oil to heat a little longer.
Step 7: Once the rice has all puffed up, transfer it to a baking sheet lined with paper towels so that the excess oil can be absorbed.
Step 8: Wait for a few minutes for the puffed rice to cool before serving it or adding to a recipe.
Puffed Rice Recipes
Now that you have your puffed rice, it’s time to get creative in the kitchen and experiment! There are a number of different recipes that can be made using puffed rice.
- If you have a sweet tooth, try these delicious Puffed Rice Chocolate Bars. This dairy-free puffed rice cake recipe only has 5 ingredients and works perfectly for breakfasts, desserts or snacks.
- For another sweet breakfast treat that uses puffed rice, you can make this Churros Puffed Rice Cereal using Mahatma® Jasmine Rice. If you really want to treat yourself, try it with whipped cream and dulce de leche!
- You can even use it for savory recipes as a crunchy topping addition for rice bowls like this Spicy Salmon Rice Bowl.
The options are endless when it comes to cooking with Mahatma® Rice. For more handy cooking tips and tricks along with recipes like this coconut jasmine rice recipe or this Puerto Rican rice pudding recipe, browse our cooking section.
