Remediation Methods for Rice Contaminated with Broken Glass
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I dropped a glass jar filled with rice. I've picked up the macro-sized pieces of glass, but am wondering if there is any way on earth to make the rice safe to eat, given that I am sure it contains small fragments and shards of glass. I could, naturally, go through it grain-by-grain, but this is only a couple of bucks worth of rice, and I don't think it warrants the time.
Does anyone have any suggestions? (Or is this too localized?) I would also welcome suggestions for a better tag than "rice."
Best Answer
I would throw it out. The rice doesn't cost as much as a new digestive system. Sure, it's a waste. And I'm sure you would look very carefully. But the risk of one glass splinter still in it is existent. Therefore, I wouldn't try it.
Good luck with cleaning that up though. :)
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How do you get broken glass out of rice?
Here is a quick recipe from "PDT". Pour the water over the rice and let stand for 12 hours (most recipes suggest using a blender to bust up the rice a bit, in your case I would not put it in the blender, and let it steep for a longer period of time). Strain the rice water out (with a very fine cloth, in your case).How do you get broken glass out of food?
What you do: First, carefully pick up large glass pieces by hand. Then for the smaller, hard-to-get ones, place the soft part of the bread on top of the shards and gently press down. How does it work? The porous surface acts like a sponge for any and all splinters and fragments.How do you separate broken glass?
Fold a few pieces of paper towel, dampen, and then gently press down on the pile of broken glass. The broken glass should all stick to the damp paper towel that's protecting your hand. Simply dispose of the paper towel, and the job is done!How do visualizations of environmental contamination help clean them up faster?
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Answer 2
Purely academic (because I wouldn't even use the rice for blind baking) but just dissolve salt into the water until the rice starts to float. The glass will remain at the bottom. Give a good stir to avoid surface tension and glass-stuck-to-rice problems. Rice farmers used to do this (and probably still do in some countries) to separate out little stones and even damaged grains.
If the solution saturates before the rice starts floating (i.e. salt no longer dissolves), try warm-water instead or another food-safe salt like Epsom salts which lead to a greater specific density of the solution).
Answer 3
While "toss it" is probably the most reasonable answer, if you were intent on using it, I would recommend making a batch of Horchata (the delicious Mexican beverage), since you just soak the rice - no cooking, and a very fine strain of the rice water is necessary either way.
Here is a quick recipe from "PDT".
- 40 oz. water
- 10 oz. whole milk
- 8 oz. uncooked white long-grain rice
- 3 Tbs raw sugar
- 0.5 tsp vanilla
- 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
Pour the water over the rice and let stand for 12 hours (most recipes suggest using a blender to bust up the rice a bit, in your case I would not put it in the blender, and let it steep for a longer period of time). Strain the rice water out (with a very fine cloth, in your case). Half the water will be absorbed the rice. Add the rest of the ingredients, chill, and enjoy!
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Images: Karolina Grabowska, Mike van Schoonderwalt, Ella Olsson, Artyom Kulakov