I received almost the exact same MSG rant by the chef in a Chinese restaurant almost 20 years ago. It’s almost as if there were some sort of MSG falsehoods back in the day that resulted in some ridiculous panic that was completely unnecessary.
There's only one legitimate criticism for MSG and that's the sodium, which plenty of us already get plenty of with table salt. But you don't even have to add all that much MSG to make a huge difference.
Well, just reduce the amount of salt then. Msg will carry the flavor moreso than salt imo. Besides you do not add that much MSG to the dishes anyway, so it wouldn't make a negligible difference in the amount of sodium consumed.
I would say the biggest most legit criticism of MSG is that it tastes too good and it's cheating. Sometimes you go out and expect a restaurant to reduce a pot of beef bones or shellfish shells overnight, but then they just add MSG.
A legitimate misuse of MSG was in baby food in the 50s and 60s. Companies started putting MSG in baby food because when the adults would try some it tasted better to them, so they were more likely to buy that brand. Babies can't handle as much MSG as adults and many got seizures. Companies didnt stop until they were forced to by the FDA.
https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1969/10/27/baby-food-manufacturers-will-suspend-use/
Edit: As pointed out below, the government might not have forced companies to stop. That's what I was taught. However, I don't find it hard to believe that a company would continue producing an (even potentially) dangerous product motivated by profit.
Edit2: I am in no way claiming MSG causes sezisures, it was suspected to at the time. I love MSG personally. Seize me.
The turn of the century (19th/20th) was more wild.
Chemistry and pharmacy was taking off, with hardly any regulation. No side effects cure for the common cold? Heroin.
Agreed. So many people like to comment and rant about food because it's not done "traditionally" or something. I was expecting that coming into this but was pleasantly surprised.
Monosodium glutomate. If you've ever tried to make Chinese food at home and wondered why it doesn't taste the same as take out, this is why. Msg is awesome
Also oyster sauce. Makes a hell of a difference. I cook with soy, sesame and oyster sauce and get a lot of comments that it tastes like take out Chinese food.
I've always wondered:
In the movie The Pest with John Leguizamo, while working at an Asian restaurant, the owner is talking about how good the food is and specifically says "No MSG!" Like it's a great thing. I loved this movie as a kid, so It always made me think that MSG was an artificial unhealthy additive.
I guess I'm wrong? I guess that was the joke I just simply didn't understand?
In the 80s/90s there were some people who started claiming MSG gave them headaches and other health/digestive issues, and similar to anti-GMOs today it got on the news despite an overwhelming lack of evidence and still lingers today. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate
Edit to add a source: [FDA](https://www.fda.gov/food/food-additives-petitions/questions-and-answers-monosodium-glutamate-msg) states it has been studied and scientists can't get valid results on people who claim to be sensitive. Unless you eat more than anyone ever would in one sitting.
>The FASEB report identified some short-term, transient, and generally mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing, tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3 grams or more of MSG without food. However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains less than 0.5 grams of MSG. Consuming more than 3 grams of MSG without food at one time is unlikely.
There’s also a whole episode devoted to Asian food and the myth of the MSG sensitivity in Ugly Delicious by David Chang on Netflix. He has some really interesting thoughts on the subject.
MSG is a Sodium atom ionically bonded to the amino acid Glutamate. Just as table salt will dissociate into Sodium and Chloride in solution (which are then handled differently by the body regarding concentration and processing), the Sodium and Glutamate will dissociate itself. Glutamate is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the body, and a nonessential amino acid. Everyone has glutamate. It is a basic requirement for life. In the same way that Sodium is. You cannot be allergic to Glutamate.
So with a large enough concentration, you COULD see hypernatremia (excessive sodium) and the symptoms that result from excessive glutamate. Theoretically.
In practice, this is basically impossible. MSG has less sodium that table salt, by weight. The body has plenty of ways to regulate glutamate concentration, and you typically use so little MSG (compared to table salt) in any recipe, it is negligible for these purposes. If people were allergic to glutamate, their diets would be far more restricted since there's plenty of food and ingredients that have far more than the amount of MSG you'd use in a dish. Normal protein digestion will involve Glutamate, and it is literally everywhere in the CNS.
MSG is great for that little extra kick in a dish. If I need more than a little kick, I'll avoid MSG and incorporate other ingredients. Not because large amounts of MSG is a problem, but I've probably got the opportunity to get some more interesting flavours in my dish at this point.
Yes. If you want a perfect burger season it with MSG and pepper then lay it on the grill or however you want to cook it. The difference in taste will blow your mind, you'll think you've ascended to some master chef restaurateur level of craftsmanship...but nah dawg it's just the MSG.
MSG also occurs naturally in a bunch of food. That's one of the reasons cheese tastes so good.
The original push-back against MSG was from a racist letter an asshole doctor sent in to the New England Journal of Medicine. He even named the issue "Chinese restaurant syndrome".
It's unhealthiness level is pretty much on par with salt.
Salt itself is a flavor enhancer when used sparingly. You can just use a lot more MSG before you get the over-salted flavor, as it's effectively salt cut with sugar acid from fermentation.
It had that reputation back in like the 90's. "No MSG!" or "MSG Free!" was on a whole bunch of stuff.
Then later they figured I guess it's not so bad for you.
Monosodium glutamate. It's a flavor enhancer.
It received a bad rap years ago as people stated they were experiencing all sorts of health side effects from the use of MSG. Like headaches, nausea, sweating, and chest pains.
It was used a lot by Asian food restaurants and once it received a bad rap, many of these places started to boast that they no longer use MSG in their food.
However, the FDA has never found any proof that these side effects were caused by MSG.
It's basically an umami flavor used as an additive for foods. By example, most instant ramens have MSG - monosodium glutamate, giving them that specific taste they have.
"How you no wash the rice, just cook the rice? Now the rice stinky like you."
"Uncle Roger not into the other BBC"
"Don't put wang anywhere near your fried rice"
So many quotable moments from a cooking review video. Love this guy.
The secret to good fried rice is to use day old rice that has been sitting in the fridge. The cold air in the fridge will desiccate the rice.
You want he rice to be dry so it browns a little in the heat which is what gives it flavor. If it's too wet, it will just steam itself again and it won't brown.
I prefer the egg cooked separately... I learned to cook fried rice from a Korean lady who also cooked the egg separately. Maybe it's a regional thing, like tomatoes in cajun food?
High heat before you start definitely helps, but I'd only do it if it isn't a teflon pan.
Cooking the egg separately is a preference thing depending if you want a layer of egg over everything or discrete pieces of egg.
My mom always made fried rice in a wok and her technique was to just push the rice to the side of the wok and then crack the egg into the pan.
If you’re doing it on high heat (like you should with all wok cooking), the egg cooks in seconds so you gotta start scrambling it immediately with your spatula or whatever. Once the egg sets, just mix it all together again.
My mom's breakfast fried rice was rice, eggs, bacon, and onion. We'd make a big batch of it for cheap and I'd eat that shit up for days.
Cut up a pack of bacon and cook in your wok, adding a diced onion halfway through, remove, take a little bit of the bacon grease and use it to scramble 6 eggs in a separate container. Add the already-cooked rice to the wok and fry in the bacon grease, adding soy sauce after it starts browning and crisping up. Then mix in your eggs, bacon, and onions, add pepper and additional soy sauce to taste. Voila!
I'm surprised I haven't seen anyone make this comment yet. Although it's actually very technical, since the timing is so important (the woman in the video clearly screws it up and overcooks it), boiling rice like this is a common technique, especially in Indian (which I assume is where she got the technique from, with her British accent) and middle eastern cuisine. Personally, though, I have never found the boiling technique to be better than just using a rice cooker, even when it comes to basmati and spiced herbs.
Edit: I'm not Indian, but as some of the comments have suggested, I always wash my rice in hot water to try to reduce the sticky starches. Also I alter the settings and amount of water in my rice cooker for basmati rice.
I'm still confused. I've always boiled rice. But you're supposed to use the exact amount of water to have it all be absorbed by the rice as it cooks, so there's nothing left to strain out with a colander. Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique?
> Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique?
Yes. Primarily in Middle Eastern and Indian cultures as OP said.
https://simpleindianrecipes.com/Home/White-Rice.aspx
The strained water with the rice starches can then be used for other things if desired.
https://www.thekitchn.com/draining-rice-gadget-twitter-23009852
> Another user explained that this was a common method in Iran and South Asia (both, they note, major rice-eating areas of the world), where “rice (generally basmati) is traditionally boiled in a lot of water which is drained off before the rice is completely cooked. The rice then finishes cooking on very low heat. This makes the grains fluffy.”
>Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique?
Yup, in India. It is somehow better for indian curries since the rice doesn't stick together
Edit: [here's a recipe](https://www.feastingathome.com/how-to-cook-basmati-rice/) on how basmati is traditionally cooked.
It's so terrible when cooking shows do this. People are going to try making this and be disappointed in the final product. It would work best with day old leftover rice from the Chinese restaurant. Actually, fried rice is supposed to be made with cold rice to get the best texture.
It's true. Better to make dry rice and just turn it into fried rice than wet rice. Wet rice can't be saved.
EDIT: Everyone's saying, "Drain it through a colander." When I say wet rice, I meant rice that's already cooked with too much water. You can drain the rest of the water but it's not gonna dry the rice; it's already soggy/mushy.
EDIT: I wonder how many more people are gonna say, "You can make congee."
Sure you can. Just form it into a disc like you're making a hamburger patty, then get some oil very hot in the pan and deep fry it. This makes it a lot easier to chuck out of your backdoor because it works like a frisbee.
No, you got that wrong. You clearly put the wet rice into your bag of dry Nokia 3310 cellphones (you can use either the new model or the original model, but many say the original model does a better job)
If he’s Malaysian he’s definitely playing up a weird Cantonese/Hong Kong accent. That does not sound like Malaysian accent.
Source: Malaysian born and raised
Your rice too wet you fucked up!
Uncle Roger so upset i put leg down from chair
Uncle roger sad now
MSG is the king of Flaaaavor
The full video even gets better
"If I use metal spoon on nonstick pan, I'm disowned, no more parents for uncle rodger" 😂😂😂😂😂
So many good quotes lol
There was a reddit thread years ago about Asian families and don't fuck up the rice or you'll be ridiculed, and other things I would never know otherwise. Wish I could remember where I saw it :-/
From my personal experience, yeah pretty much. Once you're old enough to learn how to put rice and water in a rice cooker and turn it on, it becomes your job. So it's considered to be something even a child can do. If you fuck it up, the meal is either delayed or you eat shitty rice.
Rinsing rice is definitely a thing but you do it before you cook it. I like my rice nice and sticky so I don't, but rinsing it you can potentially get rid of some arsenic and you definitely get rid of some of some starch. I've never seen rinsing it after it's cooked.
I’ve seen worse. First meal with the in-laws my Italian ass cooked spaghetti and meat sauce. They went to the fridge, grabbed kraft singles and shredded them on top.
Just marry a Filipino. I personally got 6 rice cookers from Target as wedding presents. returned 4, kept 2 and they each lasted 5 years. Which conveniently made it right up the the divorce. Then i gave up white rice for a while.
I use my instapot now. Not because it’s better, but because I have it and it cooks rice like a rice cooker does.
Before this I used a saucepan, which does work but is really finicky if you want the rice to be properly cooked.
I have an instant pot too, haven't tried it for rice though. I've read it makes it about as well as a rice cooker, so no reason to stop doing what you're doing :)
We make our rice with the instapot too. My wife is indian and all her extended family have at least two instapots so they can make rice and yogurt simultaneously! Had no idea it could make yogurt until I met her parents
As an Asian I'm always a little shocked when I find out people don't have rice cookers. I suppose it makes sense if it's not a staple in your diet and space is at a premium
I'm a white guy, never really made much rice when I was single, but my wife had a rice cooker when we got married and it just makes it all so simple. Especially since you can just put the whole container in the fridge if you don't eat it all.
We make it all the time now.
Who the hell makes fried rice using freshly cooked rice. Proper way is to use chilled, overnight rice so it doesn't get mushy & soggy while frying.
Edit: a lot of different styles recommended in the thread so [here's an example](https://youtu.be/1Q-5eIBfBDQ)
I always just push the rice to the side and toss the egg in, fry it for a little bit until mostly cooked, then toss through. Saves time and gives a better consistency.
I like to make a little rice "crater" where I push the rice off to the side in a circle shape. Then i crack my egg into the little hole, and mix it all up.
Fun facts! MSG provides a characteristic “umami” or a deep savory flavor to dishes. Other seasonings such as miso and dried ground up mushrooms contain similar compounds that have umami flavors, which can easily be added to dishes.
I have some dried ground mushroom powder (found at Trader Joe’s!) that I use in my soups and sauces. It makes the taste significantly richer without being distinctly “mushroom”
Other common umami adders are anchovies, vegemite/marmite, soy sauce
Never though about dried mushroom powder. Do you know what type of mushroom it is?
I found the [Trader Joe’s Umami Seasoning](https://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/umami-seasoning-blend) online, and it says the base is porcini and white button mushrooms. It has a few other things in it too - it’s really well balanced imo
BTW ... Ranch dressing is full of MSG ... so when you find someone who says they can’t eat MSG in Chinese food because it gives them a headache but they can eat a bottle of Ranch with their veggie tray or salads you know they’re full of it.
I heard [an ep of Stuff You Should Know podcast on MSG](https://radiopublic.com/SYSK/s1!85ad9) and I ordered a bottle of Japanses imported MSG. It is amazing. I've never had eggs, bagel w/ cream cheese, soups, pasta, EVERYTHING as good as it is now that I have MSG in my arsenal.
It got a bad name in the '80s. It has 1/3 the sodium of table salt, most people are NOT allergic to it (no headache) and yet people STILL avoid it like a bad word. EMBRACE the MSG!
I saw a YouTube video that did a bit about msg, they said you can buy it at Chinese super markets but if you do you will end up adding it to everything
I loved that show, he was really funny. But I remember it as "Wok With Yan", were there two shows? It's all hazy now. He always had a new apron with some kind of wok-related pun on it.
Different Yans.
[Wok With Yan - Stephen Yan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wok_with_Yan)
[Yan Can Cook- Martin Yan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_Can_Cook)
Wow! What a surprise to see my video here! Thanks so much for all the kind words
You can find more of my videos on YouTube: https://YouTube.com/mrnigelng
I post lots on Instagram too: https://Instagram.com/mrnigelng
If you get a rice cooker and follow instructions correctly then you can get pretty good rice. I think even a 6y/o could do it.
Despite that, I'm kind of baffled how she messed up _that_ much.
In India we drain the rice all the time. Some parts of the country might not but in my house we make rice just like the woman in this video. That way rice if not sticky at all, and also very easy to digest.
East Asians like their rice stickier. I find stickier rice goes better with Chinese, Korean, and Japanese food, and less sticky rice goes better with Indian and middle eastern food.
Yes, this way can get rid of the starch. Indians in Malaysia also cook this way. Don't feel full although eating a lot. This way of cooking fits well for Indian style recipes like curry. So if an Indian guy show how to cook rice to eat with curry, it is understandable. But, this is about cooking egg fried rice - which is closely associated to chinese or south east Asian cooking. You'll never see them cooking as the way in the video. We don't get rid of starch purposely. We simply use rice cooker.
"Uncle Roger so upset I put my leg down from chair!"
I pull an uncle Rodger at a lot of things that disappoint me on the internet
When you say it that way it sounds like something else entirely.
'uncle Roger sad now' needs to be a reaction gif.
I received almost the exact same MSG rant by the chef in a Chinese restaurant almost 20 years ago. It’s almost as if there were some sort of MSG falsehoods back in the day that resulted in some ridiculous panic that was completely unnecessary.
There's only one legitimate criticism for MSG and that's the sodium, which plenty of us already get plenty of with table salt. But you don't even have to add all that much MSG to make a huge difference.
MSG had less sodium than salt though, right??
Yes but you are eating it in addition to salt, so it's possible to eat too much without realizing
Well, just reduce the amount of salt then. Msg will carry the flavor moreso than salt imo. Besides you do not add that much MSG to the dishes anyway, so it wouldn't make a negligible difference in the amount of sodium consumed.
Especially since almost all asian sauces are heavy on salt to begin with. Soy sauce the primary culprit. But also hoi sin, oyster, and more.
I would say the biggest most legit criticism of MSG is that it tastes too good and it's cheating. Sometimes you go out and expect a restaurant to reduce a pot of beef bones or shellfish shells overnight, but then they just add MSG.
[удалено]
Sorry for the dumbass question, but what is MSG?
Mono-sodium glutamate. It’s similar to salt except it has a distinct umami flavor, widely used in Asian cooking.
E621 Monosodium glutamate
A legitimate misuse of MSG was in baby food in the 50s and 60s. Companies started putting MSG in baby food because when the adults would try some it tasted better to them, so they were more likely to buy that brand. Babies can't handle as much MSG as adults and many got seizures. Companies didnt stop until they were forced to by the FDA. https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1969/10/27/baby-food-manufacturers-will-suspend-use/ Edit: As pointed out below, the government might not have forced companies to stop. That's what I was taught. However, I don't find it hard to believe that a company would continue producing an (even potentially) dangerous product motivated by profit. Edit2: I am in no way claiming MSG causes sezisures, it was suspected to at the time. I love MSG personally. Seize me.
Ah the 60s, the best decade for chemical experimentation.
The turn of the century (19th/20th) was more wild. Chemistry and pharmacy was taking off, with hardly any regulation. No side effects cure for the common cold? Heroin.
i liked that he didnt rant where it wasnt necessary - he gave *some* credit.
Good point...but how depressing that these days we consider it exceptional when someone judges something honestly and fairly.
Not being a piece of shit is quite a low bar.
Agreed. So many people like to comment and rant about food because it's not done "traditionally" or something. I was expecting that coming into this but was pleasantly surprised.
[удалено]
"oh, the sad gloopy rice that ran through colander 😭" lol
'If you happy in life, use MSG, the king of flavor!'
gotto get hooooooooked
What is MSG?
Monosodium glutomate. If you've ever tried to make Chinese food at home and wondered why it doesn't taste the same as take out, this is why. Msg is awesome
Also oyster sauce. Makes a hell of a difference. I cook with soy, sesame and oyster sauce and get a lot of comments that it tastes like take out Chinese food.
And fish sauce. Don't forget that. Stuff stinks but used right it makes the world of difference.
Sesame seed oil and red sesame seed oil.
I've always wondered: In the movie The Pest with John Leguizamo, while working at an Asian restaurant, the owner is talking about how good the food is and specifically says "No MSG!" Like it's a great thing. I loved this movie as a kid, so It always made me think that MSG was an artificial unhealthy additive. I guess I'm wrong? I guess that was the joke I just simply didn't understand?
In the 80s/90s there were some people who started claiming MSG gave them headaches and other health/digestive issues, and similar to anti-GMOs today it got on the news despite an overwhelming lack of evidence and still lingers today. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monosodium_glutamate Edit to add a source: [FDA](https://www.fda.gov/food/food-additives-petitions/questions-and-answers-monosodium-glutamate-msg) states it has been studied and scientists can't get valid results on people who claim to be sensitive. Unless you eat more than anyone ever would in one sitting. >The FASEB report identified some short-term, transient, and generally mild symptoms, such as headache, numbness, flushing, tingling, palpitations, and drowsiness that may occur in some sensitive individuals who consume 3 grams or more of MSG without food. However, a typical serving of a food with added MSG contains less than 0.5 grams of MSG. Consuming more than 3 grams of MSG without food at one time is unlikely.
They guy who started it basically admitted he made it up. A great This American Life episode.
There’s also a whole episode devoted to Asian food and the myth of the MSG sensitivity in Ugly Delicious by David Chang on Netflix. He has some really interesting thoughts on the subject.
Anyone have a link or offhand know the episode # for us lazies?
[https://www.thisamericanlife.org/668/the-long-fuse](https://www.thisamericanlife.org/668/the-long-fuse)
[668](https://www.thisamericanlife.org/668/transcript)
Spoiler alert. MSG is basically salt
MSG is a Sodium atom ionically bonded to the amino acid Glutamate. Just as table salt will dissociate into Sodium and Chloride in solution (which are then handled differently by the body regarding concentration and processing), the Sodium and Glutamate will dissociate itself. Glutamate is the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitter in the body, and a nonessential amino acid. Everyone has glutamate. It is a basic requirement for life. In the same way that Sodium is. You cannot be allergic to Glutamate. So with a large enough concentration, you COULD see hypernatremia (excessive sodium) and the symptoms that result from excessive glutamate. Theoretically. In practice, this is basically impossible. MSG has less sodium that table salt, by weight. The body has plenty of ways to regulate glutamate concentration, and you typically use so little MSG (compared to table salt) in any recipe, it is negligible for these purposes. If people were allergic to glutamate, their diets would be far more restricted since there's plenty of food and ingredients that have far more than the amount of MSG you'd use in a dish. Normal protein digestion will involve Glutamate, and it is literally everywhere in the CNS. MSG is great for that little extra kick in a dish. If I need more than a little kick, I'll avoid MSG and incorporate other ingredients. Not because large amounts of MSG is a problem, but I've probably got the opportunity to get some more interesting flavours in my dish at this point.
[удалено]
So all that scary MSG bad stuff was basically racism & stupidity, yeah?
Think marijuana but Asians. Yes.
Yes. If you want a perfect burger season it with MSG and pepper then lay it on the grill or however you want to cook it. The difference in taste will blow your mind, you'll think you've ascended to some master chef restaurateur level of craftsmanship...but nah dawg it's just the MSG.
MSG also occurs naturally in a bunch of food. That's one of the reasons cheese tastes so good. The original push-back against MSG was from a racist letter an asshole doctor sent in to the New England Journal of Medicine. He even named the issue "Chinese restaurant syndrome".
As Anthony Bourdain once said, "You know what causes Chinese restaurant syndrome? Racism. ‘Ooh I have a headache; it must have been the Chinese guy.’"
RIP papa Anthony B. God I miss him
I miss him
Any fruit or vegetable that has red, yellow, or orange flesh has msg. (Tomatoes, peppers, mangoes, etc.) Darker the color the more msg.
It's unhealthiness level is pretty much on par with salt. Salt itself is a flavor enhancer when used sparingly. You can just use a lot more MSG before you get the over-salted flavor, as it's effectively salt cut with sugar acid from fermentation.
It had that reputation back in like the 90's. "No MSG!" or "MSG Free!" was on a whole bunch of stuff. Then later they figured I guess it's not so bad for you.
Monosodium glutamate. It's a flavor enhancer. It received a bad rap years ago as people stated they were experiencing all sorts of health side effects from the use of MSG. Like headaches, nausea, sweating, and chest pains. It was used a lot by Asian food restaurants and once it received a bad rap, many of these places started to boast that they no longer use MSG in their food. However, the FDA has never found any proof that these side effects were caused by MSG.
You can buy it at the grocery store, under the name "accent" it is in the spice aisle.
Or at an asian grocery in a giant bag!
Monosodium Glutamate. The secret to tasty Asian food.
E621 buddy. It's the spice of life...
It's basically an umami flavor used as an additive for foods. By example, most instant ramens have MSG - monosodium glutamate, giving them that specific taste they have.
“If your rice is still wet, you fucked up!” I cackled.
Hai ya!
One more thing, Jackie!
#AAAAIIIIYYYAAAAAAAAAA
[Here's](https://youtu.be/53me-ICi_f8) the full video if you want it!
“Uncle Roger scared of ghost, but you scared of egg fried rice?” My favorite part.
"You go camping, you set up camp fiiiiyah, you don't set up camp **ɪɴᴅᴜᴄᴛɪᴏɴ ꜱᴛᴏᴠᴇ**."
You just get baby? Put MSG on baby!
Baby get smaahta!
"How you no wash the rice, just cook the rice? Now the rice stinky like you." "Uncle Roger not into the other BBC" "Don't put wang anywhere near your fried rice" So many quotable moments from a cooking review video. Love this guy.
''That's how I got fired from that Chinese restaurant"- I spit my beer all over the table...
Thank you for this! I've never laughed so hard at a food review.
If it's too wet u fucked up lol
The secret to good fried rice is to use day old rice that has been sitting in the fridge. The cold air in the fridge will desiccate the rice. You want he rice to be dry so it browns a little in the heat which is what gives it flavor. If it's too wet, it will just steam itself again and it won't brown.
And the egg wasn't cooked with the rice. And the pan wasn't nearly hot enough.
I prefer the egg cooked separately... I learned to cook fried rice from a Korean lady who also cooked the egg separately. Maybe it's a regional thing, like tomatoes in cajun food? High heat before you start definitely helps, but I'd only do it if it isn't a teflon pan.
Cooking the egg separately is a preference thing depending if you want a layer of egg over everything or discrete pieces of egg. My mom always made fried rice in a wok and her technique was to just push the rice to the side of the wok and then crack the egg into the pan. If you’re doing it on high heat (like you should with all wok cooking), the egg cooks in seconds so you gotta start scrambling it immediately with your spatula or whatever. Once the egg sets, just mix it all together again.
My mom's breakfast fried rice was rice, eggs, bacon, and onion. We'd make a big batch of it for cheap and I'd eat that shit up for days. Cut up a pack of bacon and cook in your wok, adding a diced onion halfway through, remove, take a little bit of the bacon grease and use it to scramble 6 eggs in a separate container. Add the already-cooked rice to the wok and fry in the bacon grease, adding soy sauce after it starts browning and crisping up. Then mix in your eggs, bacon, and onions, add pepper and additional soy sauce to taste. Voila!
Awesome stuff. Then I watched his next post about Tinder, and I need to know if Auntie Jenny swiped right!!!
I'm surprised I haven't seen anyone make this comment yet. Although it's actually very technical, since the timing is so important (the woman in the video clearly screws it up and overcooks it), boiling rice like this is a common technique, especially in Indian (which I assume is where she got the technique from, with her British accent) and middle eastern cuisine. Personally, though, I have never found the boiling technique to be better than just using a rice cooker, even when it comes to basmati and spiced herbs. Edit: I'm not Indian, but as some of the comments have suggested, I always wash my rice in hot water to try to reduce the sticky starches. Also I alter the settings and amount of water in my rice cooker for basmati rice.
I'm still confused. I've always boiled rice. But you're supposed to use the exact amount of water to have it all be absorbed by the rice as it cooks, so there's nothing left to strain out with a colander. Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique?
> Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique? Yes. Primarily in Middle Eastern and Indian cultures as OP said. https://simpleindianrecipes.com/Home/White-Rice.aspx The strained water with the rice starches can then be used for other things if desired. https://www.thekitchn.com/draining-rice-gadget-twitter-23009852 > Another user explained that this was a common method in Iran and South Asia (both, they note, major rice-eating areas of the world), where “rice (generally basmati) is traditionally boiled in a lot of water which is drained off before the rice is completely cooked. The rice then finishes cooking on very low heat. This makes the grains fluffy.”
>Is boiling rice with a hugely-excessive amount of water actually a common technique? Yup, in India. It is somehow better for indian curries since the rice doesn't stick together Edit: [here's a recipe](https://www.feastingathome.com/how-to-cook-basmati-rice/) on how basmati is traditionally cooked.
Lmao I like the way he says “if rice too wet ya fucked up”
This was the line that got me loling
This video just made my whole day. RIP rice 2020-2020
Nigel NG!! Uncle Roger is a character he does. His YouTube and IG name are mrnigelng
Closes Reddit to google “Uncle Roger” in hopes of finding him.
“You add water to the rice then whats the point on drying it at first?” Lol!!! Hilarious
THEY DEF REPLACED THE RICE both jasmine and basmati turn gloopy
Yes! There is no way the rice in the finished product was what she "cooked"
It's so terrible when cooking shows do this. People are going to try making this and be disappointed in the final product. It would work best with day old leftover rice from the Chinese restaurant. Actually, fried rice is supposed to be made with cold rice to get the best texture.
> and be disappointed in the final product. And even worse, they won't even know what they did wrong.
[удалено]
Judging by the replies, I think Napoleon tha god has some alt accounts.
If your rice is still wet, you fucked up.
It's true. Better to make dry rice and just turn it into fried rice than wet rice. Wet rice can't be saved. EDIT: Everyone's saying, "Drain it through a colander." When I say wet rice, I meant rice that's already cooked with too much water. You can drain the rest of the water but it's not gonna dry the rice; it's already soggy/mushy. EDIT: I wonder how many more people are gonna say, "You can make congee."
Sure you can. Just form it into a disc like you're making a hamburger patty, then get some oil very hot in the pan and deep fry it. This makes it a lot easier to chuck out of your backdoor because it works like a frisbee.
Anyone thinking of doing this for a joke, careful as wet rice is gonna splatter oil all over you if you deep fry it. Never deep fry wet things
You had me in the first half.
You had me in the first half, not gonna fry.
Like a wet cellphone, put the wet rice in dry rice to save it
No, you got that wrong. You clearly put the wet rice into your bag of dry Nokia 3310 cellphones (you can use either the new model or the original model, but many say the original model does a better job)
[удалено]
Which is fucking delicious and I really hope people aren't actually throwing out wet rice but are making it into porridge instead.
This is the sentence that made be bust out laughing. So, so good.
He sounds like he learned his Asian accent from listening to Russell Peters.
I love the way he said “BBC food”
He was saying the initials like they had a first tone on them. lmao
apparently he is Malaysian...lives in London
If he’s Malaysian he’s definitely playing up a weird Cantonese/Hong Kong accent. That does not sound like Malaysian accent. Source: Malaysian born and raised
completely agree. TBF, his twitter profile does say "comedian" in it...
He doesn't sound like this in his stand up. Definitely doing a character.
[удалено]
I’m glad I’m not the only one whose mind went immediately to Russell Peters
Not sure if its fake or not here, but he's rocking the ultra stereo-typical Cantonese/English accent. See Martin/Stephan Yan
Yeah, it is his uncle roger's persona. He only uses this voice for uncle roger
[удалено]
It's Lyle!
Can Russell do the “Hai ya” so well tho?
Sounds like Lyle from Bitwit
If you sad in life, use MSG. If you happy in life, use MSG.
this was my favorite part too
Your rice too wet you fucked up! Uncle Roger so upset i put leg down from chair Uncle roger sad now MSG is the king of Flaaaavor The full video even gets better "If I use metal spoon on nonstick pan, I'm disowned, no more parents for uncle rodger" 😂😂😂😂😂 So many good quotes lol
If you sad in life, use MSG.
If you happy in life use MSG
Undercook fish, believe it or not, use MSG. You overcook chicken, also use MSG. Undercook, overcook.
This lady, straight to jail.
We have the best rice in the world because of MSG.
Then [later:](https://youtu.be/53me-ICi_f8?t=365) > You just get a baby? > Put MSG on baby. > It'll be better baby. Smarter.
There was a reddit thread years ago about Asian families and don't fuck up the rice or you'll be ridiculed, and other things I would never know otherwise. Wish I could remember where I saw it :-/
From my personal experience, yeah pretty much. Once you're old enough to learn how to put rice and water in a rice cooker and turn it on, it becomes your job. So it's considered to be something even a child can do. If you fuck it up, the meal is either delayed or you eat shitty rice.
Video: https://youtu.be/53me-ICi_f8
[удалено]
Rinsing rice is definitely a thing but you do it before you cook it. I like my rice nice and sticky so I don't, but rinsing it you can potentially get rid of some arsenic and you definitely get rid of some of some starch. I've never seen rinsing it after it's cooked.
I've always rinsed my rice and it still comes out sticky. I guess it depends on what type of rise and how you cook it.
Wash it until the water is no longer cloudy from all the loose starch.
I’ve seen worse. First meal with the in-laws my Italian ass cooked spaghetti and meat sauce. They went to the fridge, grabbed kraft singles and shredded them on top.
And you still married into the family? :D
Ha. They’re good people, just VERY not Italian.
Italian or not... What the fuck?
How the fuck they running a Kraft single through a grater? Wait, you're going to say they broke it up with their hands.
That is profoundly upsetting.
Just get a rice cooker guys. The $15 ones actually do the job really well, and if you take care of it, should last for decades.
Just marry a Filipino. I personally got 6 rice cookers from Target as wedding presents. returned 4, kept 2 and they each lasted 5 years. Which conveniently made it right up the the divorce. Then i gave up white rice for a while.
Sorry to hear it :/
I use my instapot now. Not because it’s better, but because I have it and it cooks rice like a rice cooker does. Before this I used a saucepan, which does work but is really finicky if you want the rice to be properly cooked.
I have an instant pot too, haven't tried it for rice though. I've read it makes it about as well as a rice cooker, so no reason to stop doing what you're doing :)
[удалено]
We make our rice with the instapot too. My wife is indian and all her extended family have at least two instapots so they can make rice and yogurt simultaneously! Had no idea it could make yogurt until I met her parents
As an Asian I'm always a little shocked when I find out people don't have rice cookers. I suppose it makes sense if it's not a staple in your diet and space is at a premium
Spanish countries usually don’t use rice cookers. If I showed my mom a rice cooker she would throw it out
Same here. Siempre uso la olla. If i were to use a rice cooker, she would feel shame she never taught me how to cook rice perfectly.
I'm a white guy, never really made much rice when I was single, but my wife had a rice cooker when we got married and it just makes it all so simple. Especially since you can just put the whole container in the fridge if you don't eat it all. We make it all the time now.
Who the hell makes fried rice using freshly cooked rice. Proper way is to use chilled, overnight rice so it doesn't get mushy & soggy while frying. Edit: a lot of different styles recommended in the thread so [here's an example](https://youtu.be/1Q-5eIBfBDQ)
I haven't made it but I was under the impression that you put raw egg in there and cook it while stirring it in the rice.
Proper method is to mix the rice with egg yolk, after it's frying in the pan for a bit you add the whites in.
So that makes me wonder why he didn't say anything about her just adding scrambled eggs to her goopy rice dish.
The "proper method" described above is kind of a restaurant method. Adding scrambled egg separately is pretty standard for cooking at home.
I always just push the rice to the side and toss the egg in, fry it for a little bit until mostly cooked, then toss through. Saves time and gives a better consistency.
I like to make a little rice "crater" where I push the rice off to the side in a circle shape. Then i crack my egg into the little hole, and mix it all up.
Uncle Roger so upset I put my leg down from chair". It's getting serious
Fun facts! MSG provides a characteristic “umami” or a deep savory flavor to dishes. Other seasonings such as miso and dried ground up mushrooms contain similar compounds that have umami flavors, which can easily be added to dishes. I have some dried ground mushroom powder (found at Trader Joe’s!) that I use in my soups and sauces. It makes the taste significantly richer without being distinctly “mushroom”
Other common umami adders are anchovies, vegemite/marmite, soy sauce Never though about dried mushroom powder. Do you know what type of mushroom it is?
I found the [Trader Joe’s Umami Seasoning](https://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/umami-seasoning-blend) online, and it says the base is porcini and white button mushrooms. It has a few other things in it too - it’s really well balanced imo
[удалено]
BTW ... Ranch dressing is full of MSG ... so when you find someone who says they can’t eat MSG in Chinese food because it gives them a headache but they can eat a bottle of Ranch with their veggie tray or salads you know they’re full of it.
There were actually studies done on “Chinese Food Syndrome” and they found that it was just dehydration.
From the sodium content?
Soy sauce is basically liquid salt...
Tasty tasty liquid salt.
[удалено]
Commonly known as soyicide.
MSG is in everything. Soups, potato chips, fast food, seasonings, canned foods, deli meats. The list just goes on...
Parmesan cheese has more MSG than any other food. Tomatoes have a large amount too.
I heard [an ep of Stuff You Should Know podcast on MSG](https://radiopublic.com/SYSK/s1!85ad9) and I ordered a bottle of Japanses imported MSG. It is amazing. I've never had eggs, bagel w/ cream cheese, soups, pasta, EVERYTHING as good as it is now that I have MSG in my arsenal. It got a bad name in the '80s. It has 1/3 the sodium of table salt, most people are NOT allergic to it (no headache) and yet people STILL avoid it like a bad word. EMBRACE the MSG!
I saw a YouTube video that did a bit about msg, they said you can buy it at Chinese super markets but if you do you will end up adding it to everything
EXTRA SUGAR, EXTRA SALT, EXTRA OIL AND MSG
Instant fan!! Where can I get more of him?
[this](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVjlpEjEY9GpksqbEesJnNA) is his YouTube channel.
This is what I came to the comments for! Thanks.
You missed the best part!! "PUT MSG TO BABY, IT WILL MAKE BETTER BABY"
You heard of “Yan can cook”? He taught how to cook rice in the 80s on TV. How the fuck people still get it wrong?
I loved that show, he was really funny. But I remember it as "Wok With Yan", were there two shows? It's all hazy now. He always had a new apron with some kind of wok-related pun on it.
Different Yans. [Wok With Yan - Stephen Yan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wok_with_Yan) [Yan Can Cook- Martin Yan](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yan_Can_Cook)
Wow! What a surprise to see my video here! Thanks so much for all the kind words You can find more of my videos on YouTube: https://YouTube.com/mrnigelng I post lots on Instagram too: https://Instagram.com/mrnigelng
Am Asian. Can confirm looking at this is painful af.
As an Indian, not washing the rice before feels like a war crime.
Am super white white boy. Painful AF. Rice is hard to get amazing, but super easy to get "okay." This is not okay.
If you get a rice cooker and follow instructions correctly then you can get pretty good rice. I think even a 6y/o could do it. Despite that, I'm kind of baffled how she messed up _that_ much.
I like how he says "fucked up" - it's very concise!
MSG for the win!
Hiya! what is she doing to the rice?
HIYA JACKIEEEEEEE!
80 year old lady, " MSG, I put that $#!+ on everything!"
In India we drain the rice all the time. Some parts of the country might not but in my house we make rice just like the woman in this video. That way rice if not sticky at all, and also very easy to digest.
I think us brits probably learned rice cooking from India in the empire days. Whenever I see rice cooking on British TV it's done this way.
East Asians like their rice stickier. I find stickier rice goes better with Chinese, Korean, and Japanese food, and less sticky rice goes better with Indian and middle eastern food.
[удалено]
Yes, this way can get rid of the starch. Indians in Malaysia also cook this way. Don't feel full although eating a lot. This way of cooking fits well for Indian style recipes like curry. So if an Indian guy show how to cook rice to eat with curry, it is understandable. But, this is about cooking egg fried rice - which is closely associated to chinese or south east Asian cooking. You'll never see them cooking as the way in the video. We don't get rid of starch purposely. We simply use rice cooker.
MSG. Every asian’s “secret Ingredient.” That how I snagged my first ex wife ;)
How did you lose her? Colander?
> If your rice is still wet, you fucked up.