What’s the best method to store cooked rice? Simply freeze the rice in airtight containers and reheat to enjoy later on! This is by far the best approach to keep your rice fresh and moist.
I often get questions from readers about how I store cooked rice. I usually make extra rice so that we always have some extra cooked rice ready at hand. What’s the best way to store cooked rice?
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What’s the Best Way to Store Cooked Rice
When you end up with extra rice in your rice cooker after a meal, you have several options to store it.
- Option 1 – Keep in your rice cooker with “keep warm” function on
- Option 2 – Keep at room temperature
- Option 3 – Store in your refrigerator
- Option 4 – Store in your freezer
Which option do you normally use?
From my experience, freezing rice is the best way to store cooked rice, and I freeze cooked rice even if I plan to use it the next day. Here’s why.
3 Reasons Why You Should Freeze Rice
1. Stay moist, fresh, and delicious
There are many Japanese articles online that prove frozen then reheated rice tastes the best (by testing different storage methods).
You might have tried to refrigerate rice, but the texture becomes hard and dry. Unless you have plans to make fried rice the next few days, refrigerated leftover rice doesn’t taste good, even the next day!
With the freezing method, pack up the freshly cooked rice with steam (moisture) in an airtight container and close the lid immediately. So when you reheat the frozen rice, the rice is moist, fresh, and delicious just like freshly cooked rice!
2. Store for up to 1 month
The freezing method allows you to store the cooked rice for up to 1 month, so you don’t feel obligated to use it immediately or for 2-3 days.
Here’s how long the cooked rice last, compared to other storing options.
- Option 1 (rice cooker) – Up to 3 hours (best quality) to 1 day
- Option 2 (room temperature) – Up to 6 hours (summer) to 1 day (winter)
- Option 3 (refrigerator) – 3 days
- Option 4 (freezer) – Up to 1 month
3. Save money and time
If you need to cook rice for just 1 to 2 servings every day, cooking rice every day might not make sense. It’s great that you can eat freshly cooked rice, but it does not save your money and time. And rice tastes better when you cook (at least) 2 cups of rice.
Therefore, I highly recommend making extra rice and freezing it. That way, you can just cook rice when you are running out of frozen rice.
How to Freeze Cooked Rice
1. Pack immediately
Ideally, as soon as the rice is finished cooking, pack away the amount of rice you do not need or plan to keep. Make sure to pack the rice with steam and cover the lid immediately to trap the steam and moisture.
Sometimes, you didn’t plan to leave any leftover rice. In that case, just pack the leftover (you can add some water when you’re reheating).
2. Let cool completely
You do not want to spoil your food in the freezer with your hot/warm rice. So make sure to cool the rice containers first before storing them in the freezer.
3. Put in the freezer
The rice quality will stay well for up to 1 month!
Best Containers for Freezing Cooked Rice
Option 1: Glass container with a lid
I recommend a glass container with a lid such as Pyrex 4-Cup Round Dish Storage Container with a Cover. The 4-cup container fits 2 servings of cooked rice, which is perfect for my children’s lunchbox (2 lunch boxes). Pyrex 2 -Cup Round Dish Storage Container with Cover works great for a single rice bowl portion.
Option 2: Japanese rice container with air vent
In Japanese grocery stores, you might find these plastic containers that are specifically made for freezing and then microwaving rice.
Option 3: Microwave-safe plastic wrap or freezer Bag
This may not be the most environmentally-friendly method with so much plastic usage. However, if your freezer is tiny and cannot fit the glass containers (I used to live in a dormitory with a tiny freezer space), this might be your only option.
Here’s how you prepare the “frozen rice package”. You can use the same method when you use a freezer bag.
How to Reheat the Frozen Rice
1. Use the Microwave
>> To reheat the frozen rice in the glass container…
- Take out the frozen rice container from the freezer.
- Open the lid and loosely cover it with a paper towel.
- Microwave until the rice is hot all the way through.
This particular 4-cup container requires microwaving for 4 minutes (1100 w). You might want to experiment with your microwave to see how long it takes to defrost properly.
>> To reheat the frozen rice in the plastic wrap/bag…
- Defrost the rice package in the refrigerator or on the counter until the plastic wrap comes off.
- Transfer to a bowl/plate.
- Sprinkle a little bit of water to add some moisture.
- Loosely cover it with a paper towel.
- Microwave for 1 ½ to 2 minutes, or until hot all the way through.
2. Use the Steamer
When you need rice, here’s what you need to do:
- Take out the rice from the freezer and open the lid.
- Prepare the steamer using a large pot (See the pictures below).
- Bring the water to a boil and steam the frozen rice in the glass container until the rice is defrosted and warm.
Delicious Rice Recipes
Here are quick rice recipes you can make after defrosting the frozen rice.
Editor’s Note: The post was originally published on June 10, 2013. The post has been updated with new pictures and more detailed content in January 2020.
How to Store Leftover Rice and Best Way to Reheat It.
Materials
- leftover rice
Instructions
To Pack Leftover Rice
- Pack any leftover rice in a glass container. Spread it evenly and don't press it down. Ideally, you want to pack the rice with steam and cover it with the lid immediately to trap the steam and moisture.
- Let cool completely before storing them in the freezer. You do not want to spoil your food in the freezer with your hot/warm rice.
- Put in the freezer. The rice quality will stay well for up to 1 month!
To Reheat the Frozen Rice in a Microwave
- If you are using the glass container to store the leftover rice: Take out the frozen rice container from the freezer. Open the lid and loosely cover it with a paper towel. Microwave until the rice is hot all the way through. This particular 4-cup container requires microwaving for 4 minutes (1100 w). You might want to experiment with your microwave to see how long it takes to defrost properly.
- If you are using the plastic wrap/bag to store the leftover rice: Defrost the rice package in the refrigerator or on the counter until the plastic wrap comes off. Transfer to a bowl/plate. Sprinkle a little bit of water to add some moisture. Loosely cover it with a paper towel. Microwave for 1½ to 2 minutes, or until hot all the way through.
To Reheat the Frozen Rice on the Stove
- Take out the rice from the freezer and open the lid. Prepare the steamer using a large pot with aluminum foil balls. Add 1 inch (2.5 cm) of water.
- Place a plate on top or put the glass container that has leftover rice on top of the aluminum foil balls.
- Bring the water to a boil and steam the frozen rice in the glass container until the rice is defrosted and warm.
Excellent article, thank you! I have always wondered about freezing my leftover rice but have never tried it. Now that I know how easy it is to do and that it results in excellent quality rice, I will give it a try and will likely always keep some in the freezer ready to go.
Hello, Barcham. We’re delighted you enjoyed Nami’s post and gained some tips!
We hope you will enjoy wonderful rice whenever you wish from now on. Enjoy!🤗
My freezer usually has white rice (several types), brown rice, black rice, red rice
and wild rice (not really rice…). I make a bunch of each of them and plan on
1/2 cup dry –> 1 1/2 cup cooked per serving. I freeze most of the white rice
in 1 1/2 cup (cooked) servings. I also freeze some of it in 3/4 cup (cooked) quantities.
The other rices I freeze in 3/4 cup (cooked) quantities. To make a mixed rice dish (e.g.- white
and brown) grab a 3/4 cup quantity of each rice. This works great- one can steam each rice
as it is required (white rice and wild rice are on the far ends of the cook time and water ratios)
and then microwave a package of each, mix and serve.
Hello Greg! Thank you for reading Nami’s post and sharing your tips with us! 🤗
This is a hack I learned to reheat rice in the microwave. Put an ice cube in the center of the rice, put lid on loosely, or use wrap loosely with saranwrap and reheat for 2 minutes. (for 2 cups of rice). you can take out the ice that hasn’t melted and the rice comes out very moist.
Hi there! Thank you for reading Nami’s post and sharing your tip!
One of the great things about the methods of storing rice featured here is that cooling/freezing rice creates resistant starch which has many beneficial effects on your digestive tract and blood sugar:
https://hopkinsdiabetesinfo.org/what-is-resistant-starch/
Hi Edward! Thank you so much for reading Nami’s post and sharing this information! 😃
Always ended up with dried out leftover rice. Now freezing it in single servings with ziplock bags. I can lay them flat in the freezer and pop the bag in the microwave when needed. Great article on keeping leftover rice that tastes and feels good.
Hi Greg! Thank you for reading Nami’s post and for your kind feedback!
We are glad to hear that this post was helpful!
Thank you for this thorough guide! I was wondering about bacteria growth when cooling rice in room temperature. For how long can I keep it in the kitchen counter before putting the rice in the freezer? Can I use the fridge for cooling or is your experience that it’ll ruin other foods? Many many thanks!
Bacillus cereus when googling 😅
Hello Juana, Thank you for taking the time to read Nami’s post and for your thoughtful feedback.
While cooked rice can be left at room temperature for a few hours, it is best to store it within 15 to 20 minutes. But it is not advisable to put hot rice directly in the fridge, as this can cause the temperature inside the fridge to rise.
We hope this helps!
I do this because I live alone and the rice would go bad if I didn’t freeze it but it’s so convenient, plus freezing lowers the glycemic index of rice.
Hi Lynne! Thank you so much for reading Nami’s post and sharing the information!
Yes, it creates resistant starch: https://hopkinsdiabetesinfo.org/what-is-resistant-starch/
I found this incredibly helpful! Thank you so much for all the detailed information and photos.
Hi Roxanne! Aww.🥰 Nami and all of us at JOC are so happy to hear that this post, including the photo, was helpful.
Thank you for taking the time to read Nami’s post and providing feedback.
Hey,
When making rice for lunchboxes, do I have to heat it up or defrost before putting in a lunchbox or can I just pack it right from the freezer? I’m going to microwave it later during the day. Also, is it necessary to keep the lunchbox in the fridge until meal time or can I leave in the backpack?
Thank you all for this precious blog!
Hi Lena, Thank you for reading Nami’s post!
If you have a microwave during lunchtime, you can pack the frozen rice with ice packs and warm it up right before your meal. The rice tastes better when it is just warmed up.
You can also warm it up and pack it with other dishes.🙂
Here is how to pack your lunch box and food safety tips for Bento:
https://www.justonecookbook.com/bento-faq/
https://www.justonecookbook.com/food-safety-tips-for-bento/
We hope this is helpful.
Hi. I’ve been wondering what a serving size of rice is in Japan ? I see that 5- 7 serves are recommended by the Japanese health ministry. per day but don’t know the portion sizes are. Or the servings of other components… what size are your rice bowls?
Hi Patrice, Thank you very much for reading Nami’s post!
A typical Japanese rice bowl holds 150 g of steamed rice, and it’s a one-serving amount.
We hope this helps!
I have been freezing all kinds of rice for many years so it’s cool to see that it’s a “Japanese-approved” method, haha! I actually portion my rice into a mini loaf pan, the kind with multiple cavities (mine has nine), and freeze it, then once it’s frozen turn the pan upside down onto a cookie sheet and briefly run warm water over the back. The frozen portions drop out onto the cookie sheet and then I wrap them with aluminum foil – it’s recyclable where I live and as far as I understand is one of the easier materials to recycle. You could keep them in a plastic bag too to prevent freezer burn. When I need one I run a bit of water over the foil and I can unwrap it easily and rinse off the foil for recycling.
Thank you for all the recipes on the site, they’re fantastic!
Hi Elle! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed Nami’s post and all the recipes that she shared.
Thank you for sharing your experience with us! 😊