This may be a weird tip, but it never fails to get perfectly steamed or cooked rice. It’s a simple technique we learned from our mom, who of course learned it from her mother. Our grandmother was Javanese so it must be an Indonesian thing.
Perfectly moist rice. Measure the quantity of rice in the pot with your index finger (straight) from the bottom to the surface. The rice may cover the top part of your finger, or you can use a ruler too if you can find one at that moment :). Add as much water as the level of rice, measuring the water in the same way. So if the rice level gets to the first part of your finger, the water level should be the same, measured from the surface of the rice to the surface of the water. I know, it’s a little bit weird, but your rice will never be too dry or soggy.
We normally use a rice cooker, but don’t panic if you don’t have one because you can still cook rice in a regular pot without burning it. That is, as long as you don’t walk away from the kitchen during the first part.
Cooking rice in a regular pot. Using the same technique to measure your rice and water, put the pot on the stove using the highest setting. Once the water starts boiling, you have to monitor the liquid level, so don’t go anywhere! When the water is almost completely evaporated (10-15 minutes), cover the pot with the lid and turn the heat to the lowest setting so the rice can finish cooking for another 15-20 minutes. Of course the cooking time depends on the quantity of rice.
Rice’s done! Here’s another tip to let you know that the rice is completely cooked and not half done (or “al dente” like they do with pasta). Remove the lid and quickly press one finger on the surface of the cooked rice. If some grains stick to your finger the rice is only half done, because fully cooked rice will not stick to your fingers when you do this test. The key not to burn your fingers is to do it quickly.
There! Now you can cook perfect rice too!