Is risotto or paella rice a better substitute for my Japanese dish?
My supermarket has stopped stocking Japanese ingredients, just as I decided to make a Katsu Curry for my dinner party tonight!
I have Paella rice and Risotto rice (Arborio) - both by Sainsbury's and I know that they should both be ok substitutes as they are traditionally short grain white rice (although the box of arborio lists it as medium), but I want to know which is better.
I am planning to cook according to this BBC recipe.
Which rice is my better bet and are there any considerations/changes to the recipe?
Best Answer
There is a QA about the differences between paella and risotto rice on this very site, but it doesn't really answer your question.
For your purposes any arborio rice will do, the secret is to make it sticky using technique. Firstly, don't rinse the rice, you want to keep the starch, not wash it off. Next this you want to first put the rice and water into a pot and let it sit for a couple of hours, this will loosen up the starch on the outside of the rice. Then cook the rice as normal in the same water you soaked it in, letting it sit for 10 minutes after it is done. Don't stir, you want to keep the starch on the outside of the grain as much as you can.
Pictures about "Is risotto or paella rice a better substitute for my Japanese dish?"
Can you use risotto rice instead of Japanese rice?
You can make sushi with risotto rice (specifically Arborio rice) if genuine short-grain sushi rice, known as japonica, isn't available since it's also short-grain. However, it's slightly larger than sushi rice, has a firmer texture, and isn't quite as sticky, but it can work.Can you swap risotto rice for paella?
Providing that it is minimally stirred and not too much stock is added, risotto rice is perfectly adequate for Paella.Is there any difference between risotto rice and paella rice?
The difference between paella rice and risotto rice is mainly the way they are used in the dishes. A good risotto has a creamy, somewhat viscous structure, while good paella should be slightly dry and even a little crispy.What can I use instead of Japanese rice?
How Can I Substitute Japanese Rice? Some people recommend arborio rice, the Italian short-grain rice, as a substitute due to its similar sticky character. The long-grain Jasmine or basmati rice will not go well with Japanese meals.The Perfect Rice Recipe (Spanish Paella)
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Answer 2
As it looks like this won't get an answer (presumably because they are as good as one another/no one has tried side by side) I thought I'd update with what I did.
I used the Paella rice because it had a shorter grain and Japanese rice also has a very short grain.
All the recipes I found online (I browsed about 5/6 of the top results) said to rinse until the water is clear so (sorry GdD) but I ignored the advice above for the most part. I needed to wash about 8 times before I gave up - the water wasn't completely clear but it was better than it had been.
I then soaked the rice for a couple of hours (because I had time) but most recipes agree that you should for at least 30 minutes. I then drained and added cold water at a ratio of 1:1.7.
I put the rice on the stove with a lid on and brought it to the boil.
I boiled for 10 minutes and removed from the heat and let it sit for another 15 minutes. It's apparently important that you don't remove the lid.
I added a tbsp of mirin per 300g of rice and 'fluffed-up' the rice with a plastic rice spoon.
The rice was definitely sticky and there is no way I would have wanted it more so (in fact it was probably slightly too sticky) so I am very glad I washed the rice and will probably try rinsing a couple more times in the future.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Pixabay, Chevanon Photography, Ryutaro Tsukata, Ivan Samkov