Guardian Service Basics: Rice

Though I love rice, it didn't appear in regular rotation in our diet until we looked to it for economy, nutrition and body building. I lack the knack, the Rice Touch. A product of Russian/German and Swedish/Yankee Puritan ancestry, rice rarely featured in my families' menus and though my mother attempted to produce "Chinese Restaurant" rice at my request, it was never her signature dish. Despite various methods promising consistent perfection, I often wound up with a gooey mass.

Enter Guardian Service. I've written about a couple of other staple foods that, prepared the "Guardian Service Way" won us over to the waterless cooking method, potatoes and coffee in particular. When we discovered how easily Guardian Service produces flawless rice (brown, white, basmati, long and short grain), we experimented with other neglected cereals and grains with equal success: grits, barley, buckwheat, wild rice*, quinoa, kamut, spelt, amaranth...

While the mid-century recipe below calls for washing and rinsing the rice until the water runs clear, domestically-processed rice has already been cleaned and rinsed of excess starch prior to packaging. You may wish to rinse to remove any packaging dust, but beware over-rinsing: one of the tenets of waterless cooking is the retention of nutrients which are otherwise rinsed or boiled away. "The general rule is to wash imported rices and not to wash domestic rices, which are well cleaned and dried before packaging. Imported rices have plenty of clinging starch left over from the processing." (The Ultimate Rice Cooker Cookbook, Hensperger/Kaufmann, Harvard Common Press, 2003)

FLUFFY RICE
(from Betty Gay's Guardian Service Tested Recipes)
Time: About 20 Minutes (Serves 6-8)

2 cups rice
3 1/2 cups cold water
1 tsp. salt

Wash rice thoroughly in warm water, washing several times until water is clear. Drain, place in unit, add cold water and salt. Start over medium heat until boiling point is reached. Cover, reduce heat to very low until rice kernels are tender. (Do not stir.) Rice may be unmolded from unit by running a knife blade around edge. (Every grain will be tender and separate—no sticking—no soaking required—no waste of rice.) Serve it buttered as a substitute for potatoes—as cereal—as an accompaniment for chop suey or shrimp creole—or use as a basis for nourishing desserts.

Companion Recipe: Rice Pudding—What better way to use up two cups of leftover cooked rice? Note: While the Guardian Service Tested Recipes cookbook does have a recipe for Rice Pudding (which I'll experiment with and blog about soon), it calls for a cup of uncooked rice... and we had plenty of leftover cooked rice.

(Also Note: 1 cup of uncooked rice yields 3 cups cooked rice).

MODERN RICE PUDDING
(Adapted for the Guardian Service Casserole/Tureen
from The Betty Crocker Picture Cookbook, First Edition, 1950)

2 large eggs (or 4 egg yolks)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
nutmeg for flavoring
NOTE: Add vanilla, if desired.

Beat all ingredients slightly to mix and add:

     2 cups cooked rice
     1/2 cup seedless raisins (or chopped dates—a handful of chopped candied ginger added to the mix is especially good).

Pour mixture into the Guardian Service Casserole Unit and set into Tureen Unit over medium flame and cover. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until sides begin to brown.

*UPDATE: Wild Rice. Soon after posting this blog, we received an email from Goose Valley, a grower of certified organic and natural wild rice in the Cascade Mountains in Shasta County, California. The farm and ranch at Goose Valley work in tandem, reducing the amount of external inputs each operation requires in an effort to farm with a minimum impact on the environment. Nicole, in their Boston Sales Office, asked if we'd like to try some of their wild rice and sent a trio of their packaged rices. 

We started with their spectacular Organic Wild Rice, which has a rich, nutty flavor and couldn't be easier to prepare the Guardian Service way (we used an Economy Trio cooker and prepared vegetables and chicken in the other two cookers, all over one flame for added fuel economy). Simply add 1 cup wild rice to 3 cups water or stock, bring to boil, cover and simmer on low heat for almost an hour, until the kernels become fluffy and tender.

Thanks so much, Nicole!

Coffee, the Guardian Service Way

We found the coffee pot, caked with dust, in one of those about-to-close antique shops that seem to fade in and out of existence. The stacked shelves and darkened aisles were laden with a lifetime's acquisitions (or its remaining shards) and the stepdaughter of the dead proprietress was anxious to part with anything for about ten bucks.

I picked up the weighty-looking urn, surprised by how relatively light it was, turned it over and saw the embossed logo: a knight's helmet and the words "Guardian Service." We brought it home, polished it up and Aladdin-like, the djinni of our mid-century cookware obsession was unleashed, inspiring a deeper food philosophy and eventually this blog.


While passionate about savoring a proper cup of coffee brewed the Guardian Service Way, I admit that most mornings I grope my way to the kitchen and switch on the automatic Krups, more interested in hastening its effect than enjoying its flavor. But on slow mornings or with "farmhouse breakfasts," this method brings out a deep range of scents and flavors and makes one toothsome cup of Joe.

The complete Coffee Maker/Beverage Urn has five pieces total: the Beverage Urn and lid (as with all Guardian Service ware, the pre-War models had metal lids which were later replaced by glass) and the "Dripper" unit (with filter and water distributor). You'll also need a separate kettle in which to boil the water.

From Betty Gay's "Guardian Service Tested Recipes," the proper method for making coffee in the Guardian Service Ware Coffee Maker:

Guardian Coffee
"Served piping hot to the last delicious drop... a happy ending to any meal."


"You've heard the one about coffee—How one morning it's strong enough to stand alone and the next morning too weak to get up. Not so, when prepared the Guardian Way, for coffee clear, sparkling and full of the natural aroma of the roasted bean will be yours every time. Your Guardian Service Coffee Maker and Beverage Urn prepares coffee by a method that science is proving most satisfactory for flavor, health and economy. It is graceful in design and so convenient for service coffee, as well as other hot and cold beverages at the table."

"Guardian Consistently Good Coffee"

1. Heat the beverage urn by rinsing with hot water.
2. Place dripper in top of urn and put filter disc with seam side down in bottom of dripper.
3. Measure into dripper, 2 teaspoons (1 level tablespoon, if a richer flavor is desired) of standard or drip grind coffee per cup. Do not use pulverized coffee*.
4. Place water distributor over coffee, pressing down firmly but not tight.
5. Pour in actively boiling water to desired measure. Use fresh cold water brought to a rolling boil. (Dripper is marked 2–4–6–8 cups.) For ten cups, measure proper amount of coffee in dripper, add eight cups of boiling water and when filtered thru, add 2 cups clear boiling water and mix.
6. Cover and place over very low heat or on warm part of stove. Allow about 1 minute per cup for coffee to drip.
7. When coffee has dripped thru, remove dripper, place cover on urn, adjusting cover with long flange in front of spout to retain heat.

Note: When using urn for table service, place a mat or table tile underneath to protect table from heat. Use Guardian Urn for various iced drinks. During the summer weather especially, the Guardian Urn will do double duty as a beverage pitcher. It acts as a "thermos" container for cold drinks as well as hot.

Iced Coffee: Prepare coffee double strength, cool to room temperature, Fill tall glasses half full of cracked ice or use 2 ice cubes. Pour coffee into glasses. Serve with cream, pass sugar syrup in a pitcher for sweetening (a spoon of whipped cream or a scoop of ice cream in each glass is a welcome addition).

*Some espresso grinds may work, but pulverized varieties like Turkish or Greek coffee may leave a gritty finish.