Inexpensive and readily available, rice makes up a very important part of our diets.

As you walk through the aisle of the grocery store, you’d come across many different varieties of rice. 

You may also find easy-to-cook rice products such as boil in bag rice and instant rice.

These products are commercially processed to shorten the time it takes to prepare rice, and to make them more shelf stable. 

The boil-in-bag rice is typically contained in a ready to cook bag, and the bag is immersed in boiling water for shorter duration compared to regular rice for it cook.

Instant rice is precooked, and it is also much quicker to prepare than regular rice. Instant rice could also come packaged in ready to cook bags just as the boil in bag rice

However, despite their similarities, boil in bag rice and instant rice are not exactly the same product. 

Continue reading to learn more about the difference between boil-in-bag rice and instant rice as well as how they make preparing rice easier

What is boil-in-bag rice

The Boil in bad rice is a rice product that is typically eaten as a Convenience food.  

Rice is contained in a ready-to-cook bag which is immersed in boiling water. 

The bag has small holes that allow for water to enter the bag and cook the rice 

The boil-in-bag rice doesn’t have to be washed before it is cooked. The excessive starch and other things that you might have been concerned about have already been removed when the product was manufactured.

This makes rice easy to prepare; all you have to do is simply dip the bag in boiling water. The rice absorbs some amount of water during that duration and the rest is drained off 

Using this method, there is a lesser chance for the rice to become soggy provided that the instructions on the label are followed properly.

Once the rice is ready, the bag is opened, and the rice can be served  

This product can be found in grocery stores, and it takes less cooking time compared to regular rice.

What type of rice is boil in bag rice

Boil in bag rice consists of rice in a vacuum sealed bag. The aim is convenience, as this rice is quicker and easier to cook.

Most of the time, the rice contained in boil in bag rice is parboiled rice that is sealed in the plastic bag.

Parboiled rice is partially cooked rice. For parboiled rice, the rice is precooked but in its husk. 

Since this rice is partially cooked, it still has to be cooked before it is eaten.

However, compared to regular rice, parboiled rice takes less time to cook.  

Some brands of boil in bag rice also make use of instant rice, which is different from parboiled rice  

Instant rice

Instant rice is a fast-cooking rice 

It is made from regular rice that is precooked and dehydrated  

This rice has low moisture content.

The process of producing instant rice leads to the formation of cracks in the kernels of the rice which allows for water to penetrate and cook the rice.

This makes it easier for boiling water to soften the grains of the rice

Water is needed to reconstitute the dehydrated grains; however, it is a much faster process than cooking rice from scratch.

Compared to raw rice, this rice cooks faster. Instant rice is cooked for only a few minutes.

Instant rice can also be added to soups.

The process of precooking instant rice can drain the grains of some of the nutrients, however, brands often enrich the grains of instant rice with nutrients.

Parboiled rice vs instant rice

Instant rice is different from parboiled rice  

Instant rice is precooked after milling while parboiled rice is precooked before milling 

Parboiled rice is partially cooked while instant rice is completely cooked and also dehydrated, 

The process of parboiling the rice enriches the grains with some of the nutrients from the husks, while precooking instant rice drains the nutrients.

Instant rice cooks faster. Parboiled rice takes about 10 minutes to cook while Instant rice takes about 5 minutes. 

In conclusion

Traditional white rice takes some time to prepare 

Products like Instant rice, parboiled rice and boiled rice in bag rice makes cooking rice easier and faster. 

Boil-in-a-bag rice is easy to prepare. There’s no fear of overcooking the rice  

The amount of water and the time needed to Cook the rice would be indicated on the label  

It can be used on a stove or the microwave  

The grains of rice are vacuum sealed in plastic bags. These bags are also perforated, and the perforations on the bag allow the rice to boil while it is still in the bag.

Once the bag is removed from the pot, the water also drains from the perforations.