Preamble - cooking rice in the Cooking Class has been troublesome. Our advice is start early, let it be the first thing you do.
If rice is the only starch served (meaning no bread with meal) then figure on 1/4 cup of dry rice/person. To cook that rice, use a 1:1 2/3 rice:water ratio. If you must add salt, then add 1/4 tps per cup of dry rice.
Rice for 50 people:
13 cups of dry white rice. Use a quality rice like Thai, or Basmati.
22 cups of water. If you start with boiling water, the rice will cook quicker.
1/4 cup salt (if you must add salt).
Method:
Preheat oven to 375.
Dissolve salt in water. Measure rice into steamer pan (or pans) and pour water over it. Cover with lid or tinfoil. Place in oven for 45 minutes. Remove from oven (but do not open pans), leave covered so rice can steam. When the rice is cooked, fluff it with a fork to let the steam out. This is an important step because the built-up steam will continue cooking the rice. Find the balance about when to fluff, not too early, not too late.
Two pans of rice measurements:
pan 1
6 cups dry rice
10 cups water
2 TBS salt
Pan 2
7 cups of dry rice
12 cups water
2 TBS salt.
What we Learned
Don't open up rice right after pulling from oven, or much steam will escape and rice will be dry. If started early, trust the rice will be cooked, unless its brown rice...then you are on your own.
Its really best to under or not salt the rice. We added 1t/cup salt, and it was crazy salty.
