Last summer, I had a research internship at the University of Texas at Austin, where I frequently found myself needing to eat something. Unfortunately, the nearest grocery store was a 20-minute bus ride from campus (assuming the bus came on time), and the route was pretty much not walkable. All that being said, I relied heavily on my handy rice cooker to get me through the summer.
Andrews is not quite so far from the nearest grocery store (although Apple Valley Market is still definitely a hike) and most undergraduates are required to have a cafeteria account, but sometimes things happen: The gazebo closes and you are stranded on campus with nothing to eat. Here are some basic principles of a good rice-cooker meal that you can always fall back on in times of need.
1. Keep a bag, any bag, of frozen vegetables
Pick whatever you like. Broccoli; a standard bag of mixed peas, corn and green beans; a pre-made stir-fry blend. If it grows out of the ground and you will eat it, keep a bag in your freezer. Not only do frozen vegetables make a great ice pack in a pinch, but they also help make your quick rice cooker meal more nutritious and substantive. After you have washed and added water to your rice, just add a tablespoon or so of more water than usual and dump however many vegetables are appropriate on top (this will make the rice a little softer. If you don’t mind slightly crunchier vegetables, add just a splash of water or no extra water at all). The steam from the rice will cook the vegetables while the rice is cooking.
2. Keep a protein source
This one is important. Your meal will not keep you full unless you have some protein with it. I am vegetarian, so my default proteins are eggs and tofu. When I eat eggs, I just crack two into the bottom of my rice cooker after I’ve removed the rice, turn the “cook” function on and scramble with chopsticks until they are cooked to my satisfaction. Be patient with it—for the first minute-and-a-half or so, it won’t look like anything is happening. Alternatively, since eggs go bad and tofu is forever, I will chop up or tear off some tofu from the block, throw it in the rice cooker and let it cook with the vegetables. A medium-firm to firm tofu is best here—avoid extra-firm and silken textures.
3. Add a source of flavor, ideally two
Your rice meal will be sad and lifeless unless you make it taste like something. I always replace around two tablespoons of the water I that cooks the rice with soy sauce, and I always have chili oil in my pantry, usually Lao Gan Ma. You could definitely also do this with soy sauce packets from the cafeteria (I promise I won’t tell on you). If you do happen to have chili oil or another kind of hot sauce, I wouldn’t recommend cooking with it—just put it on top of your food before you start eating.
4. Mix and enjoy!
Voilá! Behold your dinner. Keep these staples around (with the exception of eggs, everything will last for a long time in your fridge/freezer), and never again will you be trapped on a Friday or Saturday night with nothing to eat after everything has closed!
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