I cook my rice in the microwave. Not because the microwave makes it taste extra special, but because it is one of the most convenient ways to achieve consistently well-cooked rice. The microwave can ...

Food & Wine / Photo Illustration by Doan Nguyen / Photo by Robby Lozano / Food Styling by Renu Dhar With that in mind we tasked our test kitchen with identifying the best way to cook basmati rice.

We tested six methods for cooking rice and this one was the surprising winner. All six methods started with the same prep — rinsing and soaking the rice for 30 minutes — to remove surface starch and ...