The Reason Reddit Says You Should Avoid This $3 Aldi Pantry Staple

We're of the opinion that every kitchen should have rice on hand, as this typically cheap staple can make a meal out of pretty much any protein or veggie. However, between the boiling and simmering, spending a half hour or longer cooking it is time most of us don't have. It's understandable why someone would want to turn to time-saving instant rice that you can pop in the microwave and have ready in a couple minutes. But in the case of of Aldi's Earthly Grains Microwavable Rice, some shoppers say saving time loses edibility.

In multiple Reddit threads, customers who bought the 90-second cooking jasmine rice say the rice barely resembles what it's supposed to when it's done, and looks more like a pile of goopy sludge with a chemical smell. Even worse than the appearance is the taste. Shoppers' comments range from saying it tastes like everything from "an aquarium" to a "box of old crackers" to "burnt hair," in the case of the Roasted Chicken variety. Shoppers muse that Earthly Grains may have changed the ingredients, making what was once a pantry staple for them into something that they will avoid at all costs going forward.

If you want rice on the table fast, there are better options. It's worth checking out Trader Joe's frozen rice, which costs similarly to Earthly Grains at around $3 to $4 for a package of three separate servings. Pop one in the microwave and it's steaming and ready to go in three minutes. Varieties include jasmine, brown, and Spanish-style, and we are personal fans of all them. For cooking so fast, the rice still tastes like it was simmered on the stove and the texture is just right; not too hard and not too soft, with no effort on your part other than pushing the microwave button.

If you're willing to spend more than five minutes but less than the time of boiling up uncooked rice, a rice cooker might be better than using a pot on the stove, especially since you don't need to watch it. Plus, it's multipurpose, as you can even use your rice cooker to make quinoa or other grains. Look for a rice cooker that cooks up a batch in 15 minutes, such as this Mini Rice Cooker, which has a one-button design. Aldi's Ambiano is a cheaper dupe of this classic rice cooker, and at $14, it's basically the cost of buying half a dozen packages of ready-to-go rice, but it can be used over and over instead.