Over 2 million people watched BBC Food chef make amends for her viral rice-washing fiasco

A few weeks since BBC Food presenter Hersha Patel became the subject of blistering online backlash for a… questionable method in cooking rice, the British cook has made amends for the fiasco. 

Though the BBC Food video was uploaded last year, it was only recently that netizens found out about her rice-cooking technique that was gravely unfamiliar to Asians. 

Raw rice grains and water were tossed into a pot and put on boil immediately. The rice was only halfway done when Hersha took it off the heat and used a colander to drain the water. The undercooked rice was then rinsed under tap water (to wash off excess starch, she says) before getting fried together with eggs, onions, peppers, garlic, ginger, spring onions, and peas. 

The outrage-inducing recipe got amplified thanks to UK-based Malaysian standup comedian Nigel Ng, who put on a parodic persona called Uncle Roger and reacted to Hersha’s cooking process. 

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53me-ICi_f8[/embed]

Following the massive response and multiple parodies across social media, the two parties got together and made an announcement that they were going to do a follow-up video, featuring the way Hersha actually cooks rice at home (and not according to BBC Food’s recipe). 

“I was doing a job for BBC presenting their recipe — I know how to cook rice… and that’s all I’m saying about that,” Hersha explained. 

On Sunday (Aug 9), Nigel premiered the video he did with Hersha at her home, where she showcased the recognised technique of cooking rice and the conventional way of making egg-fried rice. All while being badgered by Uncle Roger, which at this point in time, has become a bit of a tiresome shtick. Still, folks seem to be liking it — there are over 2.8 million views on the video as of writing.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGtR3l_JeUo[/embed]

Some things that Hersha did correctly: washing the basmati rice properly before cooking, letting the rice cook fully without any draining, using a wok, using day-old cold rice to make fried rice, and most importantly, no colander. She could make things a lot easier with a rice cooker though. 

Hersha did go above and beyond to horrify her co-host though at the end when she tossed in more than a few additional ingredients to make her own fusion fried rice. Which actually looks and sounds pretty good... if you're an adventurous vegetarian.  

ilyas@asiaone.com