7 cereals that do not need to be rinsed before cooking

When preparing porridge or a side dish of cereals, you may encounter an awkward moment. What should you do with the cereal that has been removed from the package: rinse it or send it straight to the pot? On the one hand, the tradition of rinsing has existed for a long time, but on the other hand, not all products require this procedure. Let's look at whether or not you should abandon the usual action with grains and cereals in this article.

Why do you wash and soak cereals?

It is advisable to rinse cereals, though not all of them and not always. Some products are better to soak rather than rinse. To understand when this or that action is appropriate, let's look at the nuances.

Rinse the cereal:

• to remove debris and dust;
• to remove small particles of the shell and plant residues;
• reduce phytic acid (this element interferes with the absorption of cereals by the body and also gives the products a bitter taste);
• partially leach starch (in this case, no foam will form during cooking, and the grains will not stick to each other)

In addition, some producers may spray cereals with special solutions that repel pests and protect the crop from weather vagaries. By rinsing the products, we remove these protective coatings.

Read also: Does milk sour quickly? Try these 7 secret life hacks

What cereals do not need to be rinsed

There is a list of cereals that need to be rinsed before cooking. You can simply pour them into the pot. They include:

• bulgur - it has already been preheated, so it only needs boiling water to make a delicious porridge;
• semolina, oatmeal, and Hercules flakes - they absorb liquid very quickly, so after rinsing, they will become unfit for consumption;
• couscous - to prepare this cereal, you only need boiling water, and you can sort it out by hand;
• barley and corn groats - they can be easily cleaned of debris by hand, and therefore do not need to be washed.

As a reminder, if you don't have time to cook a classic Kyiv cutlets recipe, try its "lazy" version. They don't take much time to prepare, and the taste is virtually indistinguishable from the original recipe.

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