Permies Poll: Do you wash your rice?

Do you wash your rice before cooking it?

Why or why not?

I love rice; I have never washed it first.
My theory is it is in boiling water...  

I am not sure what the definition of “wash” is when it comes to rice.  I normally give it a quick rinse.  My views are similar to Thomas’s.  It goes in the Instapot.

Almost always or the rice cooker will froth and not cook properly. It's a pain to clean.

When I bought north american rice. I also washed it to try to get the added vitamin off as that hurt my stomach.

Risotto, nope.  It cooks better unwashed.

If I'm being a bit hurried, then I might cook up some Jasmine-type rice without washing it...
However, normally I take the time to wash it until the water isn't cloudy anymore - quite a lot of washing.
My online acquaintances I have from countries where rice is the primary staple seem to think washing the rice is essential.
One benefit is that it seems to keep the cooked rice from clumping and mushing as much.
Another benefit might be the washing away of stale starch powder and perhaps making it more digestible.
Although, actually soaking the rice a good while, and maybe even sprouting it if you can, would make it even more digestible.

I have to admit, I wash rice because that is how I was taught growing up. I'm on the fence if it is needed but washed rice tastes right to me if that makes sense?

I wash and rinse white rice multiple times to get rid of excess starch because it makes a better (in my opinion) finished product. Usually takes about 3 rounds of vigorous hand scuffing in cold water until the rinse water is clear as opposed to milky and slick.

Yes, wash (rinse), absolutely. I learned to cook in Asia and was taught the rice often has starch in it that needs to come out.
The number of rinses may vary-- unless there is some reason (like weevils) I usually rinse jasmine or basmati rice once, but short-grain white gets three rinses. Brown rice, of whatever type, usually only needs one rinse just for hygiene.
I don't use fortified rice that has anything added to it that I'd be concerned about eliminating.

That said, I do often buy organic or better products that may have the occasional weevil, husk, or some other random thingies. That is a sign, to me, that it is real food made by real people, and I rinse just to make sure I get any non-rice type stuff out before cooking.


(added bonus: don't dump that rinse water!! I was taught to hold it to soak my eggplants or potatoes, but I also occasionally use it as a bit of extra nutrition for potted plants. A friend of mine who grew up in Hong Kong told me that rinse water from white rice was often used to clean the sink, which I've never tried but has always intrigued me.)

I rinse white rice, but usually don't bother with brown... It occurs to me too that the rinse water might be useful if you are into Korean Natural Farming - isn't rice water a starting point for essential microorganisms?

Nancy Reading wrote: isn't rice water a starting point for essential microorganisms?

Absolutely!! I also use the rice water as the first step in my bokashi starter.

I buy organic brown rice and only rinse it if I happen to notice unsavory crud in it. Mostly I don't.

I never used to, but then found out about contaminants and started. Then, I decided I like the texture of the final product better, if washed first. So, I wash/rinse all white rice until the water runs clear, I only a quick rinse to brown rice on the rare occasions we use it. Similarly, wild rice only gets a quick rinse.

Steve rinses/washes rice when he cooks....I do not when it's my turn (every other lunch).
We only eat organic brown.

We do rinse beans, sometimes lentils.
Never wheat or oats or buckwheat....so why rice🤔

We have gone back to cooking the rice in a large amount of water and draining rather than an exact ratio of water to rice.

After many years of cooking rice, I read to wash it.

I voted no because that is how I do it.

I guess tradition out weight new knowledge.

What is a little dust?  Maybe a little added nutrients?

This is something that only occurred to me hours later, since it isn't a problem in my region, but I used to live in a place where it can be.
Arsenic contamination/accumulation tends to happen with rice. Research has shown that rinsing can remove some, although cooking rice in lots of water like pasta, as mentioned upthread, removes more.

I used to never rinse rice. Then one time I had some stomach issues after eating basmati rice and read somewhere that some funky things are often used in processing white rice. Titanium or something. Now I rinse white rice and then I "toast" it after.

Basmati has been my go to white rice but these days I usually mix quinoa and basmati 1 to 1 ratio for basmaquinoati. I rinse these well together to remove saponins and whatever else until the water drains at least mostly clear.

I wash rice so i can have some rice water to add to my fertilizer bin :-)

Yes. And then I sprout it, and sometimes ferment it. I just got a dehydrator so that I can do big batches of sprouted rice (and other grains) to have it on hand, since it’s a bother to have to anticipate 3 days ahead to have rice.

I do it for the nutrition.

Kimi Iszikala wrote:Yes. And then I sprout it, and sometimes ferment it. I just got a dehydrator so that I can do big batches of sprouted rice (and other grains) to have it on hand, since it’s a bother to have to anticipate 3 days ahead to have rice.

I do it for the nutrition.

Hi Kimi,

Can you explain the process a bit. Can white rice be sprouted? Do you cook it as normal after sprouting it and then ferment it(when you do ferment)?

Thanks!

I grew up not washing rice, but do now after a CBC Marketplace investigation tested the arsenic levels of rice and rice based products in grocery store. I eat a ton of rice and rice products because I am celiac.

Repeated studies have shown rice is high in arsenic due to the soil it is grown in and washing the rice has been shown to dramatically reduce the arsenic content. if I recall, brown rice often has even higher levels.

I suspect there's a reason that cultures that traditionally eat a lot of rice insist on washing their rice. I have to admit I've grown to like the less sticky texture of washed rice, too.

I wash rice in three changes of water.  I never used to, but then I got into Japanese cookery and started doing it.  I won't ever go back; the texture is so much better when it's washed.  And a rice cooker!  I don't like single-use appliances or nonstick anything, but my tiny 2c rice cooker makes a perfect amount and is so much easier to clean than my instant pot (and honestly, doesn't even take that much longer from start to finish).  Best $15 Aldi impulse purchase ever.

Nancy Reading wrote:I rinse white rice, but usually don't bother with brown... It occurs to me too that the rinse water might be useful if you are into Korean Natural Farming - isn't rice water a starting point for essential microorganisms?

I was my rice every time. I will use the milky colored water from the wash to make LAB (lacto bacillus). Once the rice water cools, down I eyeball some amount of powdered milk (usually past the expiration date because this is all I really use it for) and mix it thoroughly into the rice water about the ratio as you would use powdered milk normally. Then I cover it with a cloth and let it sit at room temp for about 5 days. Once you have a cottage cheese like substance that floats on the top layer, I skim the cheese out (and feed it to my dog and sometimes me) and the remaining yellow liquid is used to help get compost piles going, help with lactose intolerance (take a shot of it a bit before having dairy), or diluted and uses as a foiler type amendment. I don't have animals but it has been used to help reduce smell in bedding and manure. The liquid itself is almost like a fermented coconut taste. It stores well in the fridge for a few months and is fun to make!

Catie George wrote:I grew up not washing rice, but do now after a CBC Marketplace investigation tested the arsenic levels of rice and rice based products in grocery store. I eat a ton of rice and rice products because I am celiac.

Repeated studies have shown rice is high in arsenic due to the soil it is grown in and washing the rice has been shown to dramatically reduce the arsenic content. if I recall, brown rice often has even higher levels.

I suspect there's a reason that cultures that traditionally eat a lot of rice insist on washing their rice. I have to admit I've grown to like the less sticky texture of washed rice, too.

counter to my original post above, I might start washing my organic brown rice for this reason although I wouldn't use the wash water if I thought there was arsenic.
I will have to check on where this rice is grown and the likelihood of contamination.

Mine is measured straight out of the tub into the cooking pot. One cup rice, one cup lentils, one two-cup portion of frozen stock (if I've been organised this will have been put in the pot and left to thaw out overnight), two and a bit cups of water. Boil it up for a minute while I go and open the haybox up then shove it in and leave it for a couple of hours.

My energy comes in small doses and putting the rice on to cook takes a whole spoon's worth so I'm not going to risk running out of energy before I've got the pot in the haybox by spending extra time on my feet washing the rice and generating more stuff to wash up afterwards.

I don't eat rice that often because every brand out there has arsenic in it as well as heavy metals. If I do buy any its from the tested list that has the least amount and I definitely  soak it and rinse it 4 times to lessen the load of toxins

Susan Boyce wrote:I don't eat rice that often because every brand out there has arsenic in it as well as heavy metals. If I do buy any its from the tested list that has the least amount and I definitely  soak it and rinse it 4 times to lessen the load of toxins

So, soak and rinse well and then cook in a lot of water?
This is one of those things that has not come to my notice...natural arsenic take up in any rice, organic or not.

I suppose just rinsing would not wash away arsenic since it wouldn't be sitting on the surface anyway?

worth reading more.....

There seems to be a bunch of info out there from pretty much any source you want to listen too. I can't really choose one over the another to link to here.

What I gathered from some reading around is...
Brown rice has much higher levels of heavy metals. Up to 98% more than white rice.
Rice grown in California and some Indian basmati is about 30% lower in arsenic and other heavy metals than rice grown elsewhere.
Rinsing can reduce the heavy metals significantly.
This is all for rice that was purchased in the United States specifically.

Everything in moderation is my main take away. More reading to do as well I think.

I am amazed that I had to read more than 20 articles, including university studies, to get concrete information. The high majority of articles talk in terms of %.  Percent has no meaning unless there is a hard figure to know what the % is of.  I still haven’t found enough info, but I have found some.

It seems that the FDA has a recommended arsenic limit for children of 100 parts per billion.  Even if we believe this, we still have to consider other sources of arsenic in our diet…such as the radish we pulled out of the ground, brushed off, and ate.  Arsenic is a naturally occurring trace element.

Brown rice appears to have 154 parts per million. So there is substantially more arsenic than the FDA would like.  

If washing can reduce arsenic 60%, then that takes the levels down to under the FDA threshold….in terms of parts per billion.

What I don’t know are the limits for an adult. And, I don’t know how much rice I would have to eat for that 154 parts per billion to amount to a problem.  Do I need to eat a cup of rice for there to be a problem … or do I need to eat a 55 gallon barrel of rice?

Right now, to me, this is looking like the Cranberry findings of the late 1950s.   I am sure I would rather than less arsenic than more. Other than that I can find very little out there.

This...

"We commissioned a nationally recognized laboratory with
expertise in heavy metal analysis, Brooks Applied Labs in Seattle
Washington, to test for four toxic heavy metals — arsenic,
lead, cadmium and mercury — in the 211 grains included in
this study: 145 rice samples and 66 samples of other grains,
including quinoa, couscous, barley, farro, and others. We also
commissioned this lab to test all rice samples for inorganic
arsenic — the most toxic form of arsenic commonly found in
rice. Non-rice samples contained lower arsenic amounts and did
not require this follow-up testing."

Is from here. Page 11...
https://hbbf.org/sites/default/files/2025-05/Arsenic-in-Rice-Report_May2025_R5_SECURED.pdf

It's the only lab study I've found so far. It says many of the same things I've read elsewhere.

"An improved rice cooking approach to maximise arsenic removal while preserving nutrient elements
In 2020, scientists assessed multiple preparation procedures of rice for their capacity to reduce arsenic content and preserve nutrients, recommending a procedure involving parboiling and water-absorption."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsenic

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Improved_rice_cooking_approach_to_maximise_arsenic_removal_while_preserving_nutrient_elements.jpg

Well I have learned a TON from the posts on this thread!!  I'm going to start rinsing my rice.  I don't eat rice frequently. A few times a month at most. I love it, I just don't cook it that often. But I am definitely going to start rinsing!  LOVE perusing the threads & posts for new insight & information!  Thanks - Tess

and this seemed like such an innocent simple question when you first asked it Timothy 🫤

I'm totally rethinking my view of preparing rice.

The rice that we buy from Azure is grown in Louisiana here in the USA and it is one of the worst for arsenic in rice I see.

soak overnight, drain, parboil, drain and cook in fresh water?

Carla Burke wrote:I never used to, but then found out about contaminants and started. Then, I decided I like the texture of the final product better, if washed first. So, I wash/rinse all white rice until the water runs clear, I only a quick rinse to brown rice on the rare occasions we use it. Similarly, wild rice only gets a quick rinse.

With all the added info in this thread, I think I'm just going to leave the brown rice out of our kitchen, going forward. It's never been one we've loved anyway, so it's an easy 'change'. I'm going to share more of this with John, too. Hopefully, he'll decide it's worth switching 100% to organic, and either grown in India or the USA.

I thought wild rice probably wouldn't have the same issue but not according to this abstract...

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10696727/

Hi Les,

My understanding is that Wild Rice is more closely associated with wheat.

John F Dean wrote:Hi Les,

My understanding is that Wild Rice is more closely associated with wheat.

Hi John,

That was my understanding as well and why I thought it could be less of an issue. Seems like something good to be aware of but not high up on a worry list.

Judith Browning wrote:

Susan Boyce wrote:I don't eat rice that often because every brand out there has arsenic in it as well as heavy metals. If I do buy any its from the tested list that has the least amount and I definitely  soak it and rinse it 4 times to lessen the load of toxins

So, soak and rinse well and then cook in a lot of water?
This is one of those things that has not come to my notice...natural arsenic take up in any rice, organic or not.

I suppose just rinsing would not wash away arsenic since it wouldn't be sitting on the surface anyway?

worth reading more.....

It only lessons it. You can go to mamavation.com to see the results they test all sorts of foods and kitchen appliances

I once heard, "Always wash your rice!" So I do, I never use parboiled so that is not a question - but it would probably be fine.
As for arsenic - you may be adding it, depending on your well water anyway. A quick search says that rice absorbs 10x more arsenic that wheat, and it accumulates more in the bran layer. Basmati and Jasmine rice consistently test with lower levels. Brown Basmati grown in India, and brown Jasmine grown in Thailand test with, "moderate" levels, but brown rice grown in the USA test, "high" which is just likely due to the amount of arsenic in the soil and ground water where the rice is grown.  Simple rinsing removes surface starches and a small amount of arsenic. Using a 6:1 water-to-rice ratio and draining can remove 40–60% of inorganic arsenic - like we do with pasta. Soaking rice overnight helps draw out water‑soluble arsenic before cooking, but that is assuming that your well water doesn't contain arsenic.
I am also concerned about how strict rodent control is, from the company or location that the rice came from. It's so easy  to just wash it a few time.

Tereza Okava wrote:This is something that only occurred to me hours later, since it isn't a problem in my region, but I used to live in a place where it can be.
Arsenic contamination/accumulation tends to happen with rice. Research has shown that rinsing can remove some, although cooking rice in lots of water like pasta, as mentioned upthread, removes more.

I've read the same thing, and so I've been washing and boiling in lots of water, but I'm skeptical of the efficacy of the practice. I figure I'm either washing out a whole lot of stuff and not just arsenic, or I'm just washing out a measure of starch. The arsenic is not a surface contamination, it's taken up naturally in the growing process and if I've understood correctly, it's in the cells of the rice.

Knowing what we know about processing plants, it would be wise to rinse the rice in any case. No idea what it's been dusted with in its long journey to your cupboard.

I didn’t vote yet.  When making risotto, I was taught not to wash the rice because there’s starch that you don’t want to wash away.

But after I learned about phytic acid, I soak all my grains, including rice.

So that would be a no and a yes.🤷🏻‍♀️.

Very intrigued to hear of sprouting rice.  Would love to know more about that

Arsenic is poison for sure, though if you read crime novels from the early 1900s, a plot line says you can eat small amounts of arsenic daily, and build up a tolerance for it.  Then when you put arsenic in the dinner you share with a “friend”, they die and you don’t…

I think tuna contains high levels of arsenic— or maybe that’s mercury.  No, that’s both!  “Tuna contains high enough levels (of arsenic and mercury) that consumption should be limited.”  Just saying, for those who have reason to be vigilant.