Chef Juliette
Riz au Gras
Parboiled Carolina rice meets butter and rich white consommé, then finishes covered in the oven, each grain savory, separate, and gleaming. The consommé does the seasoning, so taste it first.
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Riz au Blanc (for Fowls and Eggs)
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 2251, Riz au Blanc (for Fowls and Eggs), from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
Riz au Blanc proves that plain rice is a technique, not an absence: parboil it in abundant salted water, drain it dry, then let butter and low oven heat separate every tender grain.
Side Dishes
French
Weeknight
Quick Meal
Budget Friendly
10 min
Active Time
40 min cook•50 min total
Yield4 side-dish servings
Riz au Blanc (plain white rice for fowl and eggs) teaches one true thing: separate grains depend on removing excess water before the butter goes in. Washing clears loose starch, parboiling cooks the grain evenly, and the covered oven finish leaves it tender, glossy, and loose enough to carry the sauce from a fowl or egg dish without becoming paste.
The original entry assumed a saucepan, a separate sauté pan, and a cook who understood a “moderate oven” without being given a temperature. Unlike grander preparations, it asks for no saucier, permanent stockpot, or salamander. The honest home translation is a saucepan, a shallow ovenproof skillet with a lid, and an oven set to 325°F (165°C). Its half-pound of rice already gives four generous side portions, so the proportions remain exactly as written. The measured oven temperature is what changed, because modern ovens permit precision where the old kitchen relied on instinct.
There is no brigade scaffolding to discard here. The transfer into a shallow pan is part of the dish, since it spreads the rice so butter and dry oven heat can reach every grain. Drain it thoroughly before that transfer. Wet rice clumps, but if moisture follows it into the skillet, ça se rattrape: dry it briefly over low heat before covering the pan.
Riz au blanc belongs to the French classical service table rather than to one region: it was prepared as a restrained garnish for poultry and egg dishes whose accompanying sauce supplied the stronger character. Classical kitchens treated rice by several distinct methods, and this one uses abundant water followed by buttered oven drying, not the absorbed-liquid method of a pilaf. Here blanc signals rice kept white and unseasoned beyond salt and butter, not rice without technique; the separate grain is the measure of the cook.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
Carolina Gold or regular long-grain white rice
Quantity
1¼ cups (300 ml / 227 g)
cold water
Quantity
8 cups (1.9 L / 1.9 kg)
fine salt
Quantity
2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g)
unsalted butter
Quantity
5 tablespoons (75 ml / 71 g)
cut into small pieces
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Carolina Gold or regular long-grain white rice | 1¼ cups (300 ml / 227 g) |
| cold water | 8 cups (1.9 L / 1.9 kg) |
| fine salt | 2 teaspoons (10 ml / 12 g) |
| unsalted buttercut into small pieces | 5 tablespoons (75 ml / 71 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •3-quart saucepan
- •Fine-mesh sieve or colander
- •10-inch ovenproof sauté pan with a tight lid, or shallow 2-quart covered casserole
- •Table fork
Instructions
- 1
Wash the rice
Heat the oven to 325°F (165°C), with a rack in the middle. Put the rice in a bowl, cover it with cold water, and move the grains gently through your fingers. Drain and repeat until the water is only lightly cloudy, usually three or four changes. Washing removes loose surface starch, which would otherwise bind the grains together during the oven finish.
Handle the wet rice gently. Grinding it between your hands breaks the grains and releases more of the starch you are trying to wash away. - 2
Parboil in water
Put the washed rice in a 3-quart saucepan with the cold water and salt. Bring it to a boil uncovered over high heat, then lower the heat enough to maintain a steady but not violent boil. Parboil for 15 minutes, stirring once near the beginning to release any grains caught on the bottom. At the end, the outside of a grain should be tender while its center retains a faint point of firmness.
- 3
Drain it thoroughly
Pour the rice into a fine-mesh sieve or colander and let it drain for 2 full minutes, shaking the sieve gently once or twice. Do not rinse it again. This is the step that decides the dish: water left among the grains turns to a starchy film under the lid. If the rice still drips when you shake it, wait another minute. Patience, not squeezing.
- 4
Fork in butter
Transfer the drained rice to a 10-inch ovenproof sauté pan or shallow 2-quart casserole. Scatter the small pieces of butter over and through it, then mix lightly with a fork, lifting from beneath instead of stirring in circles. The butter should coat the grains without crushing them. If moisture pools in the pan, set it over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes and lift the rice gently with the fork until the liquid disappears. Ça se rattrape.
- 5
Finish in oven
Cover the pan tightly and place it in the oven for 15 minutes. Lift the lid and run a fork lightly through the rice. The grains should be tender, separate, and ivory-white, with a fine butter sheen but no browning. If a grain remains chalky at its center, sprinkle over 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 15 g) hot water, cover, and return the pan to the oven for 5 minutes. Serve at once beside sauced fowl or eggs. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Carolina Gold most closely answers the source recipe's Carolina rice, but an ordinary long-grain white rice cooks honestly by the same method. Avoid instant or converted rice, since its treatment changes both the timing and the way it accepts butter.
- •Keep the full 5 tablespoons of butter. It is not a garnish added for show; it coats the drained grains, carries the accompanying sauce, and keeps the rice supple. We don't apologize for butter.
- •A shallow pan matters more than a handsome one. Spreading the rice gives moisture room to move and lets the butter reach it evenly; a deep crowded casserole encourages clumps.
- •This rice takes its wine cue from what accompanies it. Pour a light red with roasted fowl, a dry white with poached chicken or fish, and something crisp beside eggs in a cream sauce.
Advance Preparation
- •The raw rice may be washed up to 1 hour ahead. Leave it draining in the sieve, then begin the recipe with cold water as directed.
- •The finished rice can wait covered in the switched-off oven for about 15 minutes. Fluff it once before serving; a longer hold softens the grains and dulls their separation.
- •Cool leftovers promptly in a shallow container, refrigerate for up to 3 days, and reheat thoroughly with a spoonful of water and a small piece of butter.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 180g)
Calories
335 calories
Total Fat
15 g
Saturated Fat
9 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
5 g
Cholesterol
38 mg
Sodium
260 mg
Total Carbohydrates
45 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
0 g
Protein
4 g
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