Rice To Water Calculator (For Absorption Method)

On this page, you can quickly calculate how much water you will need to cook rice (for any serving size)

I’ll also show you how to cook perfect rice using the absorption method, including some top tips to ensure you get great results every time.

Rice To Water Calculator

The calculator below will help you determine how much water you need to ensure the rice is fully cooked and not too wet or dry. This will work for most kinds of white rice, including long grain, basmati, and jasmine.

Input the total weight value of the rice you’re cooking and select your weight preference (grams, ounces, or cups) to get started.

If you measure in ounces or cups, use a decimal figure rather than a fraction, for example, 1.5 cups, not 1 1/2 cups).

For more information on the ratio used for this calculator and how we know how much water rice will absorb during cooking, take a look at the information further down this page.

More Rice Calculators And Resources

This page is part of a series of helpful articles related to rice weights, servings, and conversions, the links below will take you to the other articles in this series, depending on what you’re looking for:

Uncooked to cooked rice weight calculator
Rice portion calculator (to help you work out how much rice you need for any number of people)
Rice calorie calculator (for various types and any serving)
Rice to water calculator (for the absorption method)
Rice weights and conversions (including charts with before and after cooking weights)

Cooking Instructions – Absorption Method

Once you know the correct rice-to-water ratio for your portion size, you can cook it using the absorption method. Below are the instructions which will help you produce perfect rice every time.

Use the calculator (above) to determine how much water you need, and then pour it into a heavy-based saucepan.
Season with salt to taste and bring the water to a boil.
Rinse the rice with water in a sieve and shake off any excess.
Add the rice to the boiling water and reduce the heat so the rice can simmer (slow boil).
Place the lid on the pan and leave it for around 16-18 minutes (or check pack instructions for cooking time).
Once it’s cooked and all the water is absorbed, stir and serve.

Top Tips – For Perfect Rice

I was given a tip a few years ago that has helped me get perfectly cooked rice that doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan. The advice was to turn the heat off around 4 or 5 minutes before the end of the cooking time, while the rice is still damp, but most of the water is absorbed.

Doing this allows the rice to gently absorb the last of the water without drying too much at the base, which can lead to it sticking to the pan or burning.

The next tip is to add a drop of olive oil (or similar) to the water; this helps to keep the rice silky and not too sticky.

Troubleshooting

Although the water-to-rice ratio should work well, some rice will absorb water more easily than others or might not need so much water to cook through fully.

Here are a few things you can do if things go wrong:

If it’s getting to the end of the cooking time and you feel there’s too much water remaining, pour it away and then cook for a few more minutes to eliminate any excess.
If the rice looks too dry or at risk of burning, but it’s not yet cooked, add a little boiled water from a kettle.
If you’re having problems with the rice burning at the bottom of the pan or the rice drying too quickly, your heat might be too high.
Try not to lift the lid of the pan until the end of the cooking time because this will let the steam out of the pan and could lead to dry rice.
If water is bubbling out of the lid or overspilling, this is a sign of either the pan being too small or the heat is too high.

What Is The Rice To Water Ratio?

The rice to water ratio used for this calculator is two parts water to one part rice (2:1). For example, two cups of water to one cup of rice or 100g of rice to 200ml of water.

This ratio works for any measurement, so you can measure your rice without scales and use a cup instead.

It’s important to note that the amount of water that rice will absorb can vary slightly depending on how long it’s cooked and the type of rice, but generally, this ratio will work well to produce rice that is cooked to perfection.

Rice Calorie Calculator (Various Types)

Water Or Milk For Oatmeal (Which Is Best?)

Oatmeal Calorie Calculator (For Various Types Of Milk)