I grew up in a home where rice was on the table every single night, and I have been cooking rice my entire adult life, often multiple times a week. And each time, I make it the exact same way: I wash the grains in water until it runs clear, strain the rice, then place it in a pot. I touch the top of the rice using my pointer finger and add just enough water to reach my first knuckle. This technique is widely referred to as the “knuckle method,” which many home cooks—particularly those of Asian descent, including myself—swear will yield the perfect ratio of water to rice, regardless of batch size, owner of finger, or size of pot. Every time. “The knuckle method has always been foolproof,” food writer Jess Eng tells me. “I picked it up from my mom who picked it up from her mom.” Eng grew up watching her parents make rice using the knuckle method, and today she prepares rice the exact same way, though she’s unable to offer an explanation of why she thinks it works.…