Rinsing the rice

I bought a rice cooker in the January sales.

The instructions told me to rinse the rice for the best results, so I did. And it was a bloody nightmare: clogged sieves, rice on the floor, and water everywhere.

One brave day, I skipped the rinsing and cooked the rice straight from the packet.

Guess what? There was no difference. At all.

It made me think – where else am I metaphorically rinsing the rice because someone said I should?