Product Review: Rice-A-Roni

 

Rice-A-Roni...it was introduced in 1958, do we really need to talk about it? Yes. Yes we do. 

I remember the commercial from many years ago, it was on tv a LOT. The San Francisco Treat. Yeah.

Well, it is good. It is one of the food items I don't mind eating cold from the fridge if there are leftovers. 

I don't know how many flavors there are now, but I still like the chicken flavor the most. Second is the "pilaf," if it is still out there. All flavors are made with the pilaf method, but ok, we'll let it slide. 

I mostly want to talk about prep. How do you make yours? Do you follow the instructions on the package to a T? Years ago I started subtracting water and now I only use 1 1/2 cups instead of the recommended...what is it? 2 1/4? No, no, no. That's way too much. It gets too big and "wormy." Stick with less water. It is so much better that way. 

So try it out. I am in south central Texas, so the right amount where you are might be different, depending on the region you live in. 

It's also a good idea to use a 10" pan to make it, rather than a 2 quart pot. 

2 Tbsps. of butter, yeah, it works. You can use oil too, really, but butter kinda hits the spot. Use unsalted though, since it already has a lot of sodium. 

A homemade version of this is actually pretty good too, but you know how it is with nostalgia flavors. Sometimes you just have to have the original. 

Bring it to a rolling boil before you cover an reduce heat. A rolling boil...not a simmer, not a barely boil. A ROLLING boil. 😆 Yes, one day I will get a camera and post an example of a rolling boil. 

Then when it's done, fluff it, and tilt your lid so steam can escape & it dries out a little more. Then it's munchie-munch heaven. 

Here's another tidbit...I used to get the family size sometimes when we needed extra, but I stopped doing that long ago. The balance of the flavor packet vs. the rice is not the same. I haven't tried it again in a while, but I'm betting it's still the same way now. Just splurge and get 2 regular size. This is not the only product where this issue happens, by the way. 

So far they haven't done anything with it to change it, because why mess with perfection? Each time a company starts monkeying around with a flavor, thinking it has to be "updated" or whatever, it's no good anymore. I have to cite Coke and Wolf Brand Hot Dog Sauce as examples. 

If it's good, leave it alone! At least the Rice-A-Roni folks make different flavors instead of ruining the original one. I give them 40 thumbs up for that! 😆