How to read a grain of basmati
Length, colour, smell, snap. Four things to check before you buy a bag.
Length: true basmati is slender and long, at least 6.6 mm uncooked and often over 8 mm in the premium grades. Short, fat grains are a different variety.
Colour: aged basmati is a pale cream or light gold, never bright white. Chalky white grains are either unaged or polished with talc.
Smell: rub a few grains between your palms. You should catch a faint popcorn-like sweetness even before cooking.
Snap: a properly dried grain breaks cleanly with a click. A grain that bends has too much moisture and will cook up soft.