1. Rice is filling, healthy and delicious and is a traditional side dish in almost all oriental dishes.. 2. If you can find THAI JASMINE OR THAI FRAGRANT RICE the better..unfortunately not all shops have it in store, alternatively, you can use the more common BASMATI RICE..why? Because these 2 varieties have a distinct aroma (as the name implies, it is indeed fragrant) and in cooking you have to satisfy the 3 senses..smell, sight and taste.. 3. If you have a rice cooker everything is easy .. ratio is usually 1:1, 1 cup of rice to 1 cup of water , press cook and voila! perfect steamed rice everytime! But of course we dont have it! We are students, we are skint duh!:) 4. So..using a traditional pan with lid (I know mismatched socks are cooooolll but mismatched pan and lid are soooo not! naggy? little bit yeah!) a. Measure the right amount of rice and water (1:1) b. Bring to boil c. Take off the lid (careful..dont burn your fingers) d. Lower the heat to the lowest possible temperature, when the froth has subsided, put the lid back on. e. Wait 10 mins or so without opening the lid and you get a rice cooker perfect steamed rice! 5. Contrary to the instructions usually found in the packet..where you have to boil rice until soft, use a colander to throw away the water, this method is traditionally done in most Oriental countries..sure a bit more complicated but I believe the logic behind this is to keep in more nutrients as possible (some is in the water that you have thrown away)..and plus you dont have to use a colander!! What do you reckon brilliant young minds? Is there logic in this method or plain old school? Your call..you are the one cooking and most importantly, you will be the one eating xxxxxx