Brazilian Mom Style Garlic Rice

Before you start, gather the following and make a nicely arranged, aesthetic composition on a clean surface:

• 2 cups of parboiled rice

• If you're feeling healthy (and you should), add a ½ cup of quinoa to your rice

• 2 tablespoons of butter, OR enough olive oil to make a thin layer on the bottom of the pan you're using

• 3 medium-sized garlic teeth (is that how you call it in English?) clovers

• A nicely sized saucepan (3–4 quarts is good!) with a perforated lid (if the lid is not perforated, you're gonna have to place it slightly off for the vapor to go out)

• Around 1 liter water

• A chopping board

• A sharp knife

• A heat-safe silicon or wooden cooking spoon

Get your water on a kettle and leave it heating while you do the rest.

Peel the garlic like a professional would. That means you will use the side of your knife to press it against the chopping board and the peel will come off beautifully.

After you've peeled it, throw the peel away.

That's because you want to keep your cooking area always clean.

Look at how beautiful it is.

Use the side of your knife again to smash it into smaller pieces.

If it's not enough, chop it more. It should be tiny but not a paste.

Get your pan on the stove and put that butter or olive oil in.

If you put butter, add a drop of olive oil (that will prevent your butter from burning)

Turn on the stove to a medium-high temperature.

You will know when the pan is hot enough by shaking it gently: if the butter/oil flows easily from one side to the other, it's good to go.

Add your nicely, professionally chopped garlic, and shake the pan so that there is no garlic over garlic and all of it gets evenly fried.

When your garlic turns golden (but before it turns brown), put the rice (and quinoa if applicable) into the pan.

Use your cooking spoon to mix garlic and rice: you're frying the rice for about 2 minutes.

Turn the stove temperature down to medium.

Is the water boiling yet? I hope so. In your non-dominant hand, get the perforated lid. In your dominant hand, get the water kettle.

Pour just enough water to fill the pan above the rice line by about ¾ of an inch. Use the lid as you do it to prevent a huge mess.

Stir it a little with your cooking spoon to make sure there's no rice above water.

Cover the pan with the perforated lid, or if the lid is not perforated, put it in a way that the vapour comes off easily.

Wait for about 8 minutes, but every once in a while go back and check if the water is completely gone. You can use your spoon to do so — my mom knows it by feeling the vibrations on the panhandle.

When your rice sounds like it's frying, or the water level is low, add a second round of water in the same way you did before: just about ¾" above the rice line.

Wait for about 8 minutes again, but every once in a while go back and check if the water is completely gone.

When the water level gets really low, turn the stove off and remove the lid for a few minutes. That will make your rice texture really nice.

Look at this beautifully cooked rice! Time to place it on a serving dish and pair it with nearly anything you want.

Get all the dirty stuff and place them on the sink. You can deal with that after you've eaten your garlic rice.