Made some egg rice, and the method I used, makes my wife thinks it's unsafe and won't eat it. Is it?

Question

So I normally make my rice in the microwave in a big bowl, I wash the rice twice and have the water be twice the amount of rice. With it being 2 cups I microwave it for 8 minutes, check after 6, and microwave it for an additional 5 minutes. Turned out good, and really hot. I figure I can just crack some eggs in, mix it in with the rice and have the rice cook the eggs, and then mixed some butter in immediately after. I've done this before, with me not mixing enough and having the eggs completely solidify and being fully cooked. This time I mixed it more than usual and got it to be a bit of a mix rather than being able to see yolk and white separately. It's all yellow that looks a bit puree-ey and paste like. And then I decided to heat it up further after pouring in a bit of milk to further moisten. And heated for another 3 and then mixed in the sliced turkey bits. Mixed, and then poured a little bit more milk since it seemed a bit dry, and heated it an additional 5 minutes since I'll be honest I was worried about the eggs being a little undercooked. I get done and it looks great, like I said just a bit puree/paste like. It tastes fully cooked, and given the amount of heating and time sitting in very hot rice I think it's cooked well enough. My wife tries some and says it's great, but then asks how I cooked it. Told her, and she got extremely upset with me saying it's unsafe for her to eat. Next time I'm thinking of just taking the rice and mixing eggs in on the stove top instead to make her feel better and more safe, but I want to know for sure if this would be safe, or if I'm an idiot. EDIT: Looking into it with some further research it seems like it's very likely safe but it's not for sure. In the future I plan on doing it differently. Cooking the rice in the microwave like normal. But after fully cooking I would then dip it in a pre mixed egg bowl and then cook it off on the stove top

EDIT 2: Since I've been getting some comments, this'll be a bit of an FAQ I guess.

I know how to cook rice in the stove, and was originally taught how to cook rice this way. I only recently got a rice cooker since my wife bought it a few months ago.

I only cook the rice in the microwave because I wanted something quick. Normally if it's a smaller serving I only need to microwave for 8 minutes, larger servings 12 minutes. The only reason I microwaved more was due to my wife being worried about it being undercooked even though it would have been cooked plenty. So I threw it back in for another 8 or so minutes. Totalling a little over 20. Just know that normally it takes much less time. So please stop critiquing me for this.

I have a rice cooker as stated, and do own pots and pans to be able to cook it over the stove. I also know how to wash rice, my stepmom is Filipino and would be very disappointed if I didn't know how to wash them since she taught me.

Why did my wife worry? Because she's pregnant, and is trying to be super conscious of what she's eating and is trying to as safe as humanly possible. Hence why I decided to cook this longer.

The reason I didn't state all of this is because I didn't think people would judge, critique, and ask so many questions when I felt I provided everything I needed.

My wife and I both feel safe, and now know that this method is fine. However in the future I'll be cooking it differently for her.

I'll be doing it by having a separate bowl with beaten eggs, and dipping fully cooked rice in that, maybe soaking it a bit and then cooking that in a pan with the pan being buttered, essentially making egg fried rice. Any additional ingredients would be added as it's cooked over, such as cheese, meats, maybe some veggies and seasoning.

in cookingforbeginnersby Stealthybeef

62%

19d

18d

Creepy_Push8629

19d

Yes it's safe. The egg is cooked. This is a weird way to make it, but hey, you do you. Lol

5weetTooth

18d

It'll be safe.

I just don't think texturally it'll be as pleasant as egg fried rice cooked in a pan.

jhewitt127

19d

After mixing the egg into the hot rice it went back in the microwave for a total of 8 minutes? How could it possibly not be cooked and safe by then? That’s a LOT of time in the microwave.

echochilde

19d

Your method is weird as hell, but unless your microwave is only 80 watts (/s) there’s no way those eggs are undercooked.

Rashaen

19d

The risk of salmonella in eggs used to be something like 1 in 10,000. I haven't seen a number recently to dispute that, so it's a pretty small risk to begin with.

Tamago Kake Gohan and carbonara both cook eggs by mixing them into hot starches, so it's a pretty time-honored cooking technique.

If that doesn't mollify your wife, you could also see if a local grocery store sells pasteurized eggs or even pasteurize them yourself if you own a sous vide.

[deleted]

19d

Here in Japan people just mix a raw egg into the rice, it's not specially heated at all after that. I'm guessing there are probably 100,000s of bowls of tamago kake gohan served this way in any given week and next to 0 cases of salmonella from it.

orleans_e_braganca

18d

Japan is a place where the quality of food is much higher than the rest of the world. You guys eat raw fish and it is safe there. I wouldn't chance making sashimi at home in Brazil. There is no way I can trust raw fish without a lot more knowledge than what I currently have. I do trust sushi chefs and love sashimi at tried and true restaurants here.

Stealthybeef

19d

Thanks for this, I figured I was onto something. Not gonna lie though, had no idea either dish was cooked that way. Just really new to cooking as a whole honestly, hence the post here. I do have experience baking though, but not super applicable for this lol

EDIT: Also can say this did alleviate both me and her

impliedapathy

18d

Japanese eggs don’t have the same salmonella risk as US eggs. Not sure where you’re from though.

According-Ad-5946

18d

Alton Brown did something on salmonella in "undercooked" eggs, i don't remember how long ago. but he said the same thing the chances are very low.

raznov1

19d

food Safe - probably yes. depressing way to cook? absolutely

mrcatboy

19d

That's an unusual recipe TBH but then again I never cook with a microwave like that. Still, it somewhat resembles a carbonara, where you let the residual heat cook the eggs through somewhat. And raw egg is used as a dipping sauce in hot pot pretty frequently.

There's certainly a small risk of salmonella when it comes to eating raw or semi-raw eggs (depends on where you are) but it's also not uncommon. If your eggs are well sourced and pasteurized, you minimize those risks.

That said, regardless of whether you use the stovetop or the microwave, so long as the food is heated through sufficiently, it should kill any lingering pathogens that might pose a risk.

EWCM

19d

It’s a super common breakfast in Japan, but it’s also really common to eat totally raw eggs, too.

Stealthybeef

19d

It is odd, pretty sure I was high when I thought of it.

I've cooked this quite a few times in the past, with it being fine since I could see the white of the egg and yolk being fully cooked with no doubt.

With it being this paste though it made me question hence the post.

I wasn't too worried, but wanted to make sure. Right now I'm cooking my wife's portions on the stove top, so she'll be fine

mrcatboy

19d

It is odd, pretty sure I was high when I thought of it.

Nice. Some of my best and worst ideas I've had come after a couple edibles.

yepperoniP

19d

With the amount of time microwaved, I can’t see that being undercooked at all, especially after mixing everything multiple times to evenly distribute the heat.

Was it steaming hot? That would support the idea of being well over the temp to kill any salmonella in there. It’s a weird recipe but if you had a food thermometer you could poke it and if it was 160 or over it would definitely be fully cooked.

Stealthybeef

19d

Yes, lol. We couldn't stick our fingers in due to it being so hot and steamy. So I mean, worst case the eggs come out steamed I guess right?

I guess the worry is just due to it being cooked so differently is all

Creepy_Push8629

19d

Yes it's safe. The egg is cooked. This is a weird way to make it, but hey, you do you. Lol

Bellsar_Ringing

18d

I don't see anything that would be unsafe there. The hot rice alone would be sufficient to cook the egg. And I've made "microwave fried rice" many, many times.

motherfudgersob

19d

Yeah those eggs w r e cooked unless incredibly cold. And congratulations...add a tad of milk and sugar and you've got rice pudding!!!

Stealthybeef

19d

Awesome, had no idea! I think I could have actually made it with how mushy the eggs turned out.

Due to my wife's complaint I took a serving and just cooked that on stove top. Didn't really change anything aside from charring a bit of the outside, so turns out it's fine. My wife likes the char more tho lol

Mental-Freedom3929

18d

Leaves more for you to eat. Nuff said

DreadHeadedDummy

19d

Why are you cooking a full meal with a microwave?

Stealthybeef

19d

Idk, just because it's easier? I cooked the sliced turkey on the stove top.

I had ground turkey, but it went bad and didn't wanna run to the store so I just used some pre sliced turkey for sandwich meat and cooked that a while on a pan.

Best_Duck9118

18d

Turkey would have made sense to heat in the microwave though. Still not sure why you didn't use the stove for other steps though.

DreadHeadedDummy

19d

I swear try to make the rice it tastes so much better, you already got the quantities figured out for water/rice ratio. What i do is :

•rinse off the rice until the water is clear. •boil the water •Drop the rice in the water •add a teaspoon of salt&butter •stir it once to make sure nothing is stuck on the bottom •leave on a medium high temperature for a 2-3 minutes/until you can see the rice absorbed most of the water. •Reduce heat to minimum, put the lid on and leave it there for 20 minutes do not stir!

Perfect rice every time!

Stealthybeef

19d

I agree it's better this way, I've made it this way quite a few times. The only reason I did it in the microwave was just to save time.

I initially was just making this for myself. My wife wanted to make something for herself prior (bowl of cereal, didn't wanna cook or anything) and just wanted to try mine.

If I cooked for her, I'd do this. I didn't do it exactly like this and just eyeballed everything, so I'm gonna save this comment just because I'll probably forget what timing is required and all next time.

So thank you

HeyyyKoolAid

19d

I did it in the microwave was just to save time.

You spent 21 minutes according to your cooking time. Rice in a pot on the stove takes 20 minutes...

Stealthybeef

18d

Realistically I'd normally only do it for 12 minutes max. Did the additional 8 for my wife's sake since she was so worried. So normally it does save time

chock72

19d

This plus, you already got a plan out to cook turkey. Cut up turkey, fry, add egg, scramble, add to your rice per Dreadheadeddummy’s recipe.

RemarkablyQuiet434

19d

They work for beginner cooks for rice and such.

Please don't gatekeep and ridicule on a sub for entry level shit.

DreadHeadedDummy

19d

I dont see how im gatekeeping or ridiculing, just asked the obvious question as the microwave is mentionned multiple times. Some people dont know how to do it any other ways.

RemarkablyQuiet434

19d

Yes, you ignored his question to infer he was cooking poorly.

raznov1

19d

he is. every tool has a purpose. making fried rice is not generally the purpose of a microwave. it works, but it sucks.

RemarkablyQuiet434

-1

18d

Yes, and the question was "is it safe." Not "is it efficient."

raznov1

18d

efficiency has little to do with it. it just makes bad quality food. whether or not it is safe, noone here can answer for sure, though it probably is.

RemarkablyQuiet434

-1

18d

Quality is a component of efficiency.

Microwave rice isn't really that shitty compared to stove top...

We most certainly can tell if a process used daily by many is safe or not.

raznov1

18d

No, efficiency can be a component of quality. You've got it reversed.

Microwave rice ain't that bad, but microwave rice with microwave egg and microwave turkey? That's gonna suck.

And no, we can only guesstimate that it's safe. We don't know his volume or microwave.

RemarkablyQuiet434

18d

If you can make something very quickly but it doesn't pass quality control, it's not efficient. Quality itself doesn't care how long or little time it takes to complete a task. Quality cares about the finished product regardless of efficiency. Nobody is going to say somethings quality is poor because it took a while.

Microwave egg is basic. If it's more or less scrabled eggs, won't be too much of a difference. He pan fried the the turkey.

And again, this is a conversation about safety. Not quality.

We know it's hot enoigh to cook rice. That's also hot enough to cook egg.

At this point youre just being argumentative because I said you were shitting on him and not not answering the question asked.

Continue thread...

DreadHeadedDummy

19d

The question is "is it safe" while describing how he cooked in a microwave... But sure i had these evil intentions ill admit it if that makes you happy.

RemarkablyQuiet434

19d

The answer to is it safe when cooked in the microwave is more likely "yes" or "no" than it is "why are you cooking in the microwave."

Do you see how one of those answers the question, and the other just sort of doesn't.

DreadHeadedDummy

17d

Well, seems like you have the unpopular opinion, its okay to be wrong, lets say you misinterpreted my comment. Its okay to be wrong, you'll live.

outofsiberia

19d

Was the turkey cooked or raw? Eggs solidify at 172F. All known pathogens common to eggs are dead at 170F. Hard cooked eggs are safe. Can't answer about the turkey.

Stealthybeef

18d

Turkey is pre sliced and pre cooked in packaging. I just cooked it in the pan because I like a bit of charring on it.

Sawathingonce

19d

Well, I wouldn't eat it. This is fried rice for 6 year olds mate.

ImaginaryCandidate57

19d

No man just learn how to cook rice. NOT a microwave. Use a simple rice pot or rice steamer machine. Any Latino market will have cheap rice pots available. Or buy online. Or a machine. Second you have a partner. Out some effort into it. Learn to make a decent fried rice from videos and watch a few times to understand the basics. No celebrity TV chefs. Avoid those.

orleans_e_braganca

18d

I just don't see any ease on cooking the rice on the microwave.

I do make rice and eggs frequently, but I do it in a non stick pan (to prevent the eggs from sticking), add the rice and the water, let cook for 10 minutes, crack the eggs on top, don't mix it in and let cook for 10 more minutes with the lid on. The eggs end up cooked through.

pensaha

18d

A cup of dry rice, 15 minutes once rice added. I like to turn heat off and wait 5 minutes. And a good 3 cups of cooked rice made. Siding with pregnant wife. Not worth the chance. Some people cook grits and break eggs on top to cook. But must get actually cooked. Pasteurized eggs maybe use? Sous vide can pasteurize eggs. As long as safe, great, even better if yummy.

Oh when i have fried rice, my favorite fat grease is bacon grease. Adding cooked rice to it and getting it stirred in good after onions sautéed. Then some soy sauce. Last making room in the center and pouring the mixed egg in to cook last. Topping with chopped bacon. Haven’t made it in awhile. Best way is actually what works your way. What you like and the wife.

Cold rice makes the best fried rice. When i make broccoli cheese rice i allow the rice to get cold as hot rice makes it gummy.

theeggplant42

17d

It's safe and cooked, but also explain to your wife that you can Also just eat eggs raw. It's not dangerous at all as long as you're not pregnant or immunocompromised

Any_Contract_1016

15d

Depending on where you get your eggs and how they're stored you can maybe eat them raw. Undercooked eggs are the lowest health risk in any kitchen ever.

ToastetteEgg

19d

As long as the egg rice is over 160° it’s safe.

goatjugsoup

19d

Cooking the whole thing in the microwave seems really off to me.

At a minimum cook the eggs separate in a pan

Megamax_X

19d

IN THE MICROWAVE?! FUY YHUOO

tubular1845

18d

The risk of salmonella in eggs is 1 in 20,000. Your wife is being ridiculous.

sammisamantha

19d

I would buy a $20 rice cooker and slap it all in there. One stop shop.

Idk how I feel about microwaving to cook one whole meal..

Special-Investigator

-8

19d

idk why everyone is hating, it's quicker right?

newtothis1102

19d

At least 20 minutes in the microwave if I’m counting correctly… and he used the stove too. So… just about exactly the same amount of time as making it all on the stove

Stealthybeef

18d

Probably because I stuck it back in the microwave, which takes longer than on stove top. Normally I only microwave for 12 minutes for multiple servings but if it's less, 8 minutes. It saves quite a bit of time. The only reason it didn't this time was due to texture being different and wife being worried about eggs not being cooked fully.

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