The Our Place Flipping Platter is a flat, ceramic platter that’s 12.6 inches in diameter, perfectly sized so that its rim fits inside the lip of the Always Pan, the cult hit, multi-use pan that comes in 11 Pinterest-ready colors, like Blue Salt and Sage. While I don’t own an Always Pan, I wanted to give the flipping platter a try, anyway, since I’m skeptical of any kitchen tool that’s not versatile enough to work with every other pot and pan. The maker sells this platter by saying it’s designed for flipping tahdig, maqluba, concon and more, which sound great to me except—I didn’t know what any of these dishes were, exactly. But when I learned they are all pretty much international variations on rice dishes, I was sold.
See, rice is my go-to for a meal. Easy to prepare (especially with my Japanese automatic rice cooker), always left over from takeout, I’m forever saving rice and not eating it because re-heating it yields a dried-out mouthful of blah. But with a flipping platter, any old rice can be turned into crispy rice, a technique that’s currently trending on TikTok that makes cooked rice into rice balls, patties or, if you’re using a flipping platter, an upside-down casserole of delicious, steaming rice and potatoes, added protein or whatever you like.
My 10-Minute Leftover Rice Dinner Hack
What I’ve been doing is putting a thin coating of oil in frying pan over medium heat, layering in a half-inch of leftover white rice on the bottom of the pan and up the sides a bit, then topping with a mix of more rice plus rotisserie chicken and some roasted or steamed veggies like onion, peas and broccoli. Then, I’ll leave it to cook over medium heat with a tight lid for 10 minutes. I get better, crispier results when I remember to wrap a dish towel around the lid of the frying pan so that it absorbs the steam that’s coming off the rice, but that part’s not essential.
Then, I’ll take the pan off the heat and let it rest for a few minutes before I do the presto-changeover part that involves the flipping platter. I’ll take the lid off, quickly put the platter face-down on the dish, then support the platter with one hand while I flip the two pieces upside-down together. The flipping platter is quite heavy, which means it won’t crack in the microwave, though it makes it hard to easily flip over, especially if you’re using it with a heavy cast iron pan. The best part of the pan is the rim around the edge, which keeps any rice flakes from spilling when you’re flipping or serving, and keeps any juices from dribbling off if you’re using it to serve beef or juicy chicken.
Frankly, this isn’t a perfect science, my flipping leftover surprise. At first, I didn’t cook the rice enough, so it didn’t crisp, which is the whole point of it, and next I set the smoke alarm off when the dish got a little too crispy. But now I’ve got my sweet spot of timing worked out, and after trying the platter with a few different pans, I’ve learned that a smaller, lighter pan makes for easier flipping.
Next, I’m looking forward to trying layered ground beef and veggies and seafood scallion pancakes. And my family favorite pineapple upside down cake (except maybe, with strawberries)? It’s going to be prettier than ever with my flipping platter.
