How To Make Microwave Rice Pudding [Easy Recipe]

Last Updated on 20th June 2023 by

When you think of rice, the first images that spring to mind are usually spicy and savoury dishes. But my favourite rice based dish as always been rice pudding.

I used to enjoy making this with my mum and then passing the recipe on to my children. Because they was always in a hurry to eat the yummy rice pudding with a big dollop of strawberry jelly (Jam) then I needed to come up with a version that could be done in the microwave but that tasted just as good as the oven or stove cooked rice version. And here it is.

Table of Contents

My Version of Microwave Rice Pudding

If you want to turn rice into a dessert, rice pudding is the way to go. It’s healthy and comforting, and so easy to make that you can cook it up in the microwave. It doesn’t have to be a dessert, but I think that’s what most people know this dish as.

Rice pudding is often made as a leftover dish, taking what is left from a meal with rice and mixing it with a few ingredients from the refrigerator to make a portion of rice pudding.

If you have a bit of rice left in your fridge that you aren’t sure what to do with and you don’t feel like having it with your dinner, try turning it into rice pudding using a simple microwave rice pudding recipe I have for you.

There are tons of recipes for rice pudding, and since it is served just about everywhere in the world, there are going to be a lot of local versions no matter where you go.

The rice pudding made in China, for example, will be different from rice pudding form India. The Indian one tends to be spicier, clashing with the sweetness to create a very interesting dish but probably not one that most people are going to be familiar with.

Let’s stick with the old fashioned rice pudding microwave recipe here that most people in the West know of. Microwave rice pudding recipes are typically made using short grain rice, but you could even use basmati for it if you wanted to. It just wouldn’t be the traditional way to make it.

Any short-grained rice will work for this dish, but there is actually a special kind of rice known as pudding rice that is ideal. It’s shorter and rounder than your typical rice grain, and when you cook it, it becomes perfectly creamy so that it works very well for rice pudding. You can try our puffed rice recipe by following the guide here and maybe test how this works too.

Rice Pudding Microwave Recipe

Print Recipe

3.76 from 37 votes

Rice Pudding Microwave Recipe

Prep Time5

Cook Time40

Keyword: rice pudding

Ingredients

3 eggs
2 cups rice cooked
⅓ sugar
2 cups milk
½ cup raisins
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Beat the eggs for about 30 seconds.
Mix together eggs, sugar, milk, and salt in a microwavable bowl.
Add in raisins, rice, and vanilla, stirring them together.
In the microwave, cook uncovered for 8-10 minutes. Open the microwave and stir every two minutes.
Garnish with cinnamon (nutmeg works as well). Let cool and do not stir in your garnish.

You can serve microwave rice pudding hot or allow it to chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes before serving cold.

How Long to Cook Rice for Pudding?

The recipe calls for cooked rice to be used, but how do you cook the rice for this dish and can you make microwave rice pudding with uncooked rice?

First of all, your rice always needs to be cooked before you make this dish. The recipe calls for microwave rice pudding with cooked rice because you can’t cook the rice with the other ingredients used here. They would have to be cooked separately from one another. If you have a rice cooker then this should give you the perfect rice for pudding you can follow my guide to cooking rice with a rice cooker here.

If you are making rice from scratch in order to make rice pudding in microwave, then put a pot of water on the stove and turn on medium heat until it boils.

You should have a cup and a half of water for every cup of rice. Once the water boils, then you can add your rice and cover the pot, turning the heat down to low.

Let the rice cook for about 20 minutes, if you are using about three cups of rice. Check it occasionally to see if it is done cooking, as heating intensity may vary from one stove to another.

You don’t want this rice to dry out which is why it is best to use previously made, overcooked rice that is a little bit mushy. Once the water has cooked out of the rice, it is done. You do not need to drain or wash it. You can add salt to your rice while it is cooking to enhance the flavour.

Most people don’t make up fresh rice for this dish and will just make rice pudding with leftover rice microwave-style. If you want to make a lot of rice pudding, though, it would make sense to whip up a fresh batch of rice and use that.

Traditionally, you would make microwave rice pudding with leftover rice, but there is nothing wrong with making the rice up just to create this dish.

Making Microwave Rice Pudding for One

What if you don’t feel like sharing your rice pudding and you want a smaller portion size and an individual recipe?

This is good to have if you are needing a late night snack for just yourself and don’t want to have any rice pudding left for the next day. You can make what is called mug rice pudding in microwave, and it’s just as simple and fast as the recipe up above.

Now you know how to microwave rice pudding with leftover rice (how to reheat leftover rice)and make rice for yourself. As you can see, this is a really quick and easy dish, as long as you have some rice made up. Next time you have some leftover rice, you will have something interesting to make from it.

How To Cook Rice For Rice Pudding

Prep Time: 2 minutes

Active Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 22 minutes

Difficulty: Easy

Estimated Cost: $2

Instructions

Add 3 cups of rice to a large pan
Add 6 cups of water to the pan
Bring to a rolling boil
Cover pan with lid
Leave untouched for 20 mins
Gentle stir rice to check all water has been soaked up
Rice should be fluffy and not stuck together.

Notes

Leave the rice to cool in a sealed container and then refrigerate until you are ready to make your preferred dish. Your precooked rice should last 3-4 days. Please ensure that your clearly label rice with the expiry date.

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FAQs About Making Microwave Rice Pudding

What rice should you use for making rice pudding?

We find that the best rice for making rice pudding is know as “pudding rice”. However, you can use any kind of rice, unflavoured rice results in a cleaner taste but experiment and find out which rice works best for you.

Do you need to pre-cook the rice beforehand?

If you are making the recipe using the microwave method then you will need to pre cook your rice according to the methods in our how to cook rice guide.

Can you make rice pudding with basmati rice?

Yes. Almost any kind of unflavoured organic rice will work.

Can you make rice pudding in an air fryer?

Yes you can make rice pudding in an airfryer we will have a guide coming soon on this site.

Can you make rice pudding in a rice cooker?

This is not ideal. We recommend that you pre-cook your rice first using a rice cooker and then follow the microwave, stove or oven method for making rice pudding.

Can you make rice pudding with condensed milk?

You can use condensed milk but this will create a thicker much richer version and may become a little stodgy, my advice is to add a few spoonfuls alongside the whole milk.

Resources:

The Complete Guide To Rice – https://www.seriouseats.com/guide-to-rice

Rice Variations – https://www.finecooking.com/article/guide-to-rice-varieties

4.6/5 - (17 votes)

Pauline

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I'm Pauline, a mother of four grown children, my passion for cooking stemmed from the joy i get cooking for my family. I love to try new dishes, especially when dining out but creating and sharing my own recipes is my favourite thing to do!