Freezing Rice

In my constant search to make dinner easier, I've been reading up on preparing meals ahead of time (it also helps in my dinner business!).

Today, I had a quieter day than usual, so I thought I'd cook some brown rice ahead of time and freeze it for later use.

I searched on the internet under "Freezing Rice" and found several links for information, I used "How to Freeze Cooked Rice".

For my prep today, I used 4-1/2 cups brown rice (what I had left in my container), 8 + cups water and a toss of salt. 

For variety, you could use chicken stock instead of water and/or add frozen vegetables to the mix.

I cooked the rice according to directions -- it took a bit longer as the quantity was larger (I don't have a rice cooker).  I brought the water, rice and salt to a boil and then simmered on low heat for 15 minutes, covered (yes I set a timer).  After 15 minutes, I stirred it and there was still about 1/2 inch of water (liquid) on top of the rice, so I set the timer for another 5 minutes -- still on low heat simmer.  At the end of the 2nd time, there was just a bit of liquid left at the bottom, but not much. 

I stirred again, and made up Quart Freezer Ziploc bags marked "Brown Rice 2 C Microwave 3 minutes".  (these instructions are from the website above).  One site said bag at room temperature, another said bag while warm so the moisture stays in the bag.

4-1/2 cups uncooked rice made 6- 2 Cup bags of cooked rice (12 cups).  I assumed 1/2 cup serving size, so 4 servings a bag.

The instructions say to open the Ziploc bag a bit when microwaving so the steam vents; and microwave 3 minutes.  The instructions used 1 C bags, so microwave times may vary a bit.

Next time I'll add some frozen peas or mixed vegetables in the bag before freezing (not cooked with the rice).

Enjoy!