Perfect Pudding, Please? Rice, that is...
I have been craving a really creamy version of rice pudding, and have tried several recipes over the years, never to have achieved the perfection I desired. What I am looking for is a rice pudding that is similar to the one they serve at the Greek restaurants, like Coney Island. Mine never turns out like the pudding that they have in those flat plastic containers . What I want is more white than the pale yellow that seems redolent of a custard. And of course it must have the requisite dusting of cinnamon on top. Raisins are optional.
When I was growing up, we always made the "baked" style, using several eggs and raisins. Mom would add a squeeze of lemon juice (I didn't understand it then), a pretty generous splash of vanilla and then nutmeg on top - never cinnamon! I didn't care if it was hot, warm or ice cold from the fridge. Don't get me wrong - I still love it baked that way - but I am on the search for the perfect stove-top cooked version.
Judging from over 30 responses to the post last December on how you like your rice pudding, I would have to assume some of you out there have great recipes. You know who you are! Would you be so kind as to share your secrets?
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14 Comments:
this is what i do.
i cook a cup of basmati rice in water until it's done, then let it cool. i add twice as much milk as rice to the pot, half a stick of sweet butter, salt, and about a quarter of a cup of brown sugar, then let it cook very slowly on a flame tamer until the milk is completely absorbed. i let it cool for a bit then add a couple of beaten eggs. when the pudding is cooled completely i add a big splash of vanilla.
cybercita at 12:11AM on 03/10/09
@cybercita - What's a flame tamer?
frederika at 11:30AM on 03/10/09
My sis and I are Kozy Shack freaks! She tried this recipe a couple months ago and said it's really good and tastes a lot like KS.
http://allrecipes-shop.albertsons.com/recipe/recipe.aspx?nprid=24059
caramel at 12:37PM on 03/10/09
@frederika, unless I'm mistaken, a flame tamer is a metal thing that you put over the burner so that you pot isn't sitting directly on the flame. The tamer sort of redistributes the heat so you don't get any hot spots, and it's a more gentle heating of that bottom of the pot.
Using a heavy-bottomed pot is the same idea. By the time the heat gets to the food, it has been diffused so there aren't (shouldn't be) any hot spots that would scorch.
dbcurrie at 12:53PM on 03/10/09
Custard Rice Pudding
Ingredients
1/4 C. of rice
1 egg and 1 yolk
1 C. of milk
1/3 C. of milk
1/3 C. of sugar
1/2 tsp. mace or nutmeg
1/4 C. of raisins or currants
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 F. Blanche the rice, then cook till tender in the cup of milk. Beat the egg and mix with the sugar. Add the egg mixture, the fruit, the spice and half-C. of milk to the rice. Mix thoroughly and turn into buttered-and-sugared molds. Bake at 325 for about an hour. Serve, turned from the molds, with wine, orange or currant jelly sauce.
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 1:20PM on 03/10/09
I have to second you here, I love a creamy, custardy rice pudding.
My mother always made it when we had leftover rice from dinner, usually a ratio of 2 eggs for every cup of milk and a couple of tablespoons of sugar was all she did. She'd mix the sugar and the rice to break up the grains, add the eggs and then add the milk. She often cooked it in the microwave, but I've found the stove top just as effective. Stirring constantly is a must though to prevent sticking.
She would put in raisins at the end and a couple of large swaths of lemon peel. Wonderful homey food.
Another thought if you want really creamy, cook your risotto with milk and sugar instead of stock, that should get you a very creamy result.
Peony at 1:40PM on 03/10/09
@dbcurrie - That's kind of what I gathered it was or something similar. Think it would work in a double boiler as well? I have a gas cook-top and heavy duty All-Clad pans that conduct very well.
frederika at 3:53PM on 03/10/09
I don't use egg yolks, but I do use whole milk for creaminess.
yankeesgal at 5:21PM on 03/10/09
this month's bon appetit had an article by molly wizenberg (aka orangette of the blog fame) all about rice pudding you might want to check out:
http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/03/sweet_memories
megannesta at 7:22PM on 03/10/09
i use all clad but for stuff like rice pudding, i still like the flame tamer. as dbcurrie says, it's a metal disc you put on top of the burner. you can often get them at the 99 cent store, or at bb and beyond for about 5 bucks.
cybercita at 7:25PM on 03/10/09
frederika, a double boiler would work fine, too.
cybercita at 7:26PM on 03/10/09
@megannesta - Duh!!! That was the first article I read in the magazine - primarily to check out the recipe. And I intended to make it! Thank you for refreshing my memory. I get way too many food/cooking magazines...:-(
frederika at 9:35PM on 03/10/09
half a gallon of milk. heat to "almost" boiling stirring constantly. add a cup of rice. cook. (taste the rice after 20 minutes and randomly there after.) add extras. (i like brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, and walnuts.) this is my indian rice pudding recipe. slightly brownish white because of the brown sugar and cinnamon.
blizcheetah at 12:47AM on 03/11/09
All great advice! My 2 cents: Part of the trick to that creamy consistency I think is not cooking it too long -- if too much of the liquid is absorbed, it gets really thick and goopy when refrigerated. Also, I use half milk and half half-and-half (the real stuff, not the fat-free chemical fest), just like it better with that bit of extra fat. Enjoy!
CookiePie at 10:25AM on 03/11/09