Mmmbap

July 6, 2009 8:47 AM

How do I get my bebimbap rice crispy?

I recently purchased a stone dolsot and have started making bebimbap at home. All good, except I can't get my rice to crisp up in the pot. I'm currently cooking my rice in a separate pot, heating the dolsot in the oven to about 450°F, lining the inside of the dolsot with oil, and scooping the rice in. I can hear it sizzling, but it never seems to get crispy at all.

Is there something wrong with my technique, or is my oven simply not going to get the dolsot as hot as I need to?

posted by mkultra to food & drink (5 comments total)

Don't use oil. I always thought the rice got crispy as you eat the rest of the meal, which take about ten minutes at the table, plenty of time for the rice to get nice and crispy.
posted by KokuRyu at 9:26 AM on July 6

Are you using Korean sticky rice or Japanese "sushi" rice? With the correct amount of water? Nurongi, the crispy, chewy rice layer, needs rice cooked with the right amount of water to form - if the rice is too dry, it takes longer (if at all) and can end up *too* crispy. If it's too wet/mushy, you run the risk of burning the rice. The right amount of moisture gives you that perfect layer of golden, crispy, chewy rice awesomeness (mmmmm).

I've never used an actual dolsot at home, but since your problem is getting nurongi to form, I'd suggest heating the dolsot in the oven for a longer period, putting the rice in, then putting the dolsot back into the oven to let the rice cook (this is why at restaurants, the dolsot is sizzling when it arrives at your table). Or, reheat the dolsot on the stove until you're ready to eat. The key here is to keep the dolsot hot long enough for the nurongi to form.

I believe you can also cook the rice from scratch in the dolsot on the stovetop. This is simliar to the way I and my mom make nurongi - boiling rice in a regular saucepan or pot on the stove. It's very easy and along with a pot of cooked rice, you get yummy nurongi on the bottom. My mom also makes sheets of nurongi with leftover rice, sesame oil and a frying pan.

Now I'm hungry.

Good luck!
posted by yeoja at 9:33 AM on July 6

Cook the rice in a rice cooker. Heat up the stone bowl on the range, add some sesame oil, and then toss the rice in. You can leave it on the range until you get the desired crispyness. I sometimes peek to see if the rice is getting brown.

Also, I like to use an enameled cast iron pot (like Cruset) for this. You can make one big batch for the whole family.
posted by stchang at 11:17 AM on July 6

The key thing you're doing wrong is heating the dolsot in the oven - you need to heat it on a direct heat source, e.g. your stove or a hot plate. That's the only way you are going to get the pot hot enough to toast the rice on the bottom. (And you do spread a bit of oil on the bottom, to help the rice and to prevent sticking. Can be sesame oil for extra flavor, or any plain oil.) The usual way is to heat it on a hot plate or tabletop gas cooker at the table. Be very careful since that pot gets hot and retains the heat too!

(Also, it is advised to let the dolsot cool thoroughly after you're done before plunging it in water to wash or such)
posted by thread_makimaki at 1:10 PM on July 6

(also, for people who want to get crispy rice but don't have a stone pot, a good old cast iron pan or pot would do the job, enameled or not. Actualy you can even fake it in a regular old nonstick frying pan - just put rice in a hot lightly oiled pan, press down a bit and let it toast.)
posted by thread_makimaki at 1:15 PM on July 6