Fermented Rice Water

[ChloeDharma]

I saw this mentioned recently and thought I'd post here asking if anyone has tried it.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po0LM1cTIV8&feature=youtu.be

[lapushka]

I'd think you'd need to boil the rice, and use *that* water, not any other way.

[parkmikii]

I am going to try this next wash!
I have seen it at Steph Arizona as well and it seems really tempting lol
I'd like to see if it works for me or not :)

[parkmikii]

I'd think you'd need to boil the rice, and use *that* water, not any other way.

Actually I've seen people rinsing the rice a few times and then putting about 3 cups of water over half a cup of rice and let it rest overnight and use that water for a prepoo rinse.

[lapushka]

Actually I've seen people rinsing the rice a few times and then putting about 3 cups of water over half a cup of rice and let it rest overnight and use that water for a prepoo rinse.

Maybe it's just me, but I would not trust that if it wasn't boiled. But if it's just for hair, there probably is no harm to it. :shrug:

[ChloeDharma]

I'd think you'd need to boil the rice, and use *that* water, not any other way.

The idea is to let the water ferment which causes certain things I can't remember the names of lol to develop in the water. You can apparently then heat the water after say 24 hours to stop it fermenting further.
I have seen suggestions for using water that rice has been cooked in to wash the hair which also sounds great but for this treatment apparently it's the fermenting that does the trick.

[ChloeDharma]

I am going to try this next wash!
I have seen it at Steph Arizona as well and it seems really tempting lol
I'd like to see if it works for me or not :)

You're going to try this? Oh fab :) I hope you report back to let us know how it turns out?

[parkmikii]

You're going to try this? Oh fab :) I hope you report back to let us know how it turns out?

I will :) (characters)

[sumidha]

I remember someone several years ago posting on the board about washing her hair with the water left over from washing rice...

[jarlofthebogfey]

Total duh moment...

So I do this regularly.

And I buy "the cheap rice", because it's for my hair (I feed four kids on a mostly organic diet... :rolleyes: our food costs aren't cheap... so I'm cheap elsewhere). And when I heard her talk about rinsing it a couple of times for pesticides, etc. I was all :knuckle:. DUH! Why have I never thought about that before? Here I am totally uptight about the water that touches my hair, and that no known synthetics come near it, and so on and so on, but I completely skimp on things like this. :confused:

Live and learn.

[jarlofthebogfey]

Also, I love that I saw this post, while I was listening "girl crush" on my music rotation. :rollin: SO true.

My girl crushes read like this:

#1. Lagertha
#2. beautyklove

:laugh:

[littlestarface]

I looked at a few websites about this method and im going to be trying it alot about once a week or whenever i wash my hair. It says the the old chinese recipe tells you to soak it for 24 to 48 hours until its fermented an then boil it to stop fermenting apparently its a must do and then the women used to wash their hair with it but they say you can just rinse your hair with it and it stays in the strands apparently. I'm thinking to actually wash with it see how that goes, maybe when i'm lazy i'll just rinse after my shampoo with it.

[Platzhalter]

I've only tried it once but it definitely is something that seems to suit me as a semi-wash. Not as harsh or cleansing as my usual methods, but much better than WO.

[Hairkay]

I think I'd be too lazy to try this because it requires both leaving the rice water sitting for quite a while then boiling it. Now if it was just leaving it for a little while or boiling for a few minutes I'd have tried it.

[lapushka]

We don't eat rice, so that would be silly to do. But we do eat potatoes, and there appears to be about the same going on for potato water as well.

[missblueeyes]

So, I'm still very interested in doing this but: What do you do with the rice that's left? Do you just throw it out? That just seems really wasteful to me. Could you just cook the rice afterwards and prepare it like you would normal rice? If so, I might actually try it soon!

[littlestarface]

So, I'm still very interested in doing this but: What do you do with the rice that's left? Do you just throw it out? That just seems really wasteful to me. Could you just cook the rice afterwards and prepare it like you would normal rice? If so, I might actually try it soon!

Mmm I wouldnt think the rice would be good once its fermented, I saw that you can take the leftover rice and grind it up n use it as a scrub mixed with other stuff :shrug:

[Hairkay]

Mmm I wouldnt think the rice would be good once its fermented, I saw that you can take the leftover rice and grind it up n use it as a scrub mixed with other stuff :shrug:

I'd assumed that people who usually cook rice just used the rice rinse water drained from the rice they were preparing to cook to eat so there'd be no wastage. Otherwise a problem of what to do with rice reminds of of that ridiculous song first world problems, lol.

[littlestarface]

I'd assumed that people who usually cook rice just used the rice rinse water drained from the rice they were preparing to cook to eat so there'd be no wastage. Otherwise a problem of what to do with rice reminds of of that ridiculous song first world problems, lol.

Lol true, I was thinking the same thing when I was reading this stuff. Since it says in the "research" that this was done by farmers n the women who would harvest the rice. I think after soaking rice instead of dumping out the water they saved it n used it for their wash day. Cuz you know when your poor you use everything til you cant no more.

[syndel]

I happen to have rice in my pantry. Trying this when I get a chance! :)

[Wizmo]

Hi,

Yes it is true that fermented rice water is very good for the hair. It makes the hair very soft.

[TayDragonis]

I like the idea of this, but I'm far too lazy. I looked at some other videos and it only keeps for a week, if it kept longer I could make a up a big batch and use whenever, then I'd be on bored.

[syndel]

Got my rice fermenting. I'll have a crack at it tomorrow night. :)

[Platzhalter]

So, I'm still very interested in doing this but: What do you do with the rice that's left? Do you just throw it out? That just seems really wasteful to me. Could you just cook the rice afterwards and prepare it like you would normal rice? If so, I might actually try it soon!

It's actually the way we prepare our rice most of the time... rinse until clear and cook it after that.

[missblueeyes]

It's actually the way we prepare our rice most of the time... rinse until clear and cook it after that.

So, you're saying I could just wash the rice, put the water I washed it with into the fridge for 24 hours and then use the rice for something else? I thought the rice has to be inside the water for the 24 hours for it to work. Man, I'm really confused. :S

[littlestarface]

Got my rice fermenting. I'll have a crack at it tomorrow night. :)

Me too, tho I got it ready yesterday and gonna do it some time today.

[littlestarface]

It's actually the way we prepare our rice most of the time... rinse until clear and cook it after that.

Us too, we soak the rice for like 30 mins and then dump it out n cook the rice.

But for this process you have to let it ferment which will take a day or 2.

[Platzhalter]

So, you're saying I could just wash the rice, put the water I washed it with into the fridge for 24 hours and then use the rice for something else? I thought the rice has to be inside the water for the 24 hours for it to work. Man, I'm really confused. :S


There seem to be various opinions on how to make the rice water, but the version I hear about mostly is the one where you use the rice washing water you automatically have when making rice. Wash the rice, save the first rinse and let it ferment.

I even used to throw the water away... until hearing about the ways fermented rice water can be used. Depending on how "milky" the water looks after washing it for the second time, we even use that part as well.

[missblueeyes]

There seem to be various opinions on how to make the rice water, but the version I hear about mostly is the one where you use the rice washing water you automatically have when making rice. Wash the rice, save the first rinse and let it ferment.

I even used to throw the water away... until hearing about the ways fermented rice water can be used. Depending on how "milky" the water looks after washing it for the second time, we even use that part as well.

I understand! Thanks for explaining this to me, Platzhalter! :flower: I'll save the water next time we make rice and try the rinse then. :D

[Platzhalter]

I understand! Thanks for explaining this to me, Platzhalter! :flower: I'll save the water next time we make rice and try the rinse then. :D

Nice to hear that my explanation is helping you ;)

[Vanilla]

Two days ago, I put a cup of rice in 4 cups of water. I let it sit on my countertop to ferment the past two days. I don't really eat much rice, and I saw one YouTube person prepare her rice water this way.

I applied it to my dry hair with my head over a large bowl. I wrapped my hair up in a plastic bag and let it sit for a few minutes. I rinsed it out with just water, and used the leftover rice water as a face wash and in my bathtub. It softens the skin really nicely too!

My hair didn't have the gross greasy feel to it that I usually get when doing WO. I towel dried my hair and added a small amount of kinky curly knot today as a leave in (no oil this time).

If this works out well, I'll definitely be using it in my rotation. I'll let you guys know how it turns out once my hair is dry.

[syndel]

Okay, fermented the rice for over 24 hours. Applied it to my dry hair and let it soak in it for half an hour or so. Washed and dried as per usual, and my hair feels quite awesome! This method appears to do lovely things to my hair. It's naturally dry, frizzy and grippy and the rice soak really seemed to tone that down! :D

Was a resounding success for me. Will be incorporating into my usual routine.

[Anje]

This is all interesting to me. I've never rinsed or soaked my rice -- I just dump it into a pot, add water, and start simmering. Is that the wrong way to do it?

My eating habits have been lousy lately, and I should try to get back to the basics like cooking up a pot of beans and rice. Easy enough to do a rinse step first.

[Vanilla]

Sorry it took so long to report back on my results. This was a huge success! I can actually do WO with rice water. My roots were not greasy, and I feel like this strengthend my hair quite a bit.

I can see replacing one of my washes weekly with rice water WO (I wash twice a week).

[syndel]

This is all interesting to me. I've never rinsed or soaked my rice -- I just dump it into a pot, add water, and start simmering. Is that the wrong way to do it?

My eating habits have been lousy lately, and I should try to get back to the basics like cooking up a pot of beans and rice. Easy enough to do a rinse step first.

That's definitely the right way to prepare rice for eating! :) From what little reading I can find on the topic though, apparently it is the fermentation process that makes it optimal for hair, although some people seem to just use the water they cooked or washed their rice in. I don't know if it would be safe to can cook and eat fermented rice afterwards? I just threw mine out. :confused:

On a side note, I used a mixture of white jasmine rice and brown rice and noticed that over the 24 hours the jasmine rice pretty much disintegrated while the brown rice stayed completely in tact. Weird!

[Anje]

If I had to hazard an educated guess, I'd say that the fermentation is going to be from lactobacilli on the rice grains. That's safe enough. However, because rice often also has Bacillus cereus, I think the safer route is a short soak, then remove the rice to cook and eat immediately. I'd worry that rice kept in room temp water for hours might end up with some of B. cereus's toxins in it, not all of which break down when heated and which lead to food poisoning. The rice water is probably OK since you aren't eating it, especially if it gets acidic.

[parkmikii]

Okay, fermented the rice for over 24 hours. Applied it to my dry hair and let it soak in it for half an hour or so. Washed and dried as per usual, and my hair feels quite awesome! This method appears to do lovely things to my hair. It's naturally dry, frizzy and grippy and the rice soak really seemed to tone that down! :D

Was a resounding success for me. Will be incorporating into my usual routine.


Sorry it took so long to report back on my results. This was a huge success! I can actually do WO with rice water. My roots were not greasy, and I feel like this strengthend my hair quite a bit.

I can see replacing one of my washes weekly with rice water WO (I wash twice a week).

Now I really can't wait to try it :I
I sadly have to wash my hair today as I have a photo shoot tomorrow so I can't try it today as the results might be imprevisible XD
But I think I'll try it in the weekend if I manage to :D

[littlestarface]

This is all interesting to me. I've never rinsed or soaked my rice -- I just dump it into a pot, add water, and start simmering. Is that the wrong way to do it?

My eating habits have been lousy lately, and I should try to get back to the basics like cooking up a pot of beans and rice. Easy enough to do a rinse step first.

If it's regular white rice it's fine to do like that. Tho for us when we eat rice its basmati rice and that one you must soak it to make it bigger and cook faster but you only soak for 30 mins and then drain it and cook it in new water for only 10 mins.

[Hairkay]

If it's regular white rice it's fine to do like that. Tho for us when we eat rice its basmati rice and that one you must soak it to make it bigger and cook faster but you only soak for 30 mins and then drain it and cook it in new water for only 10 mins.

I don't soak basmati rice. I just rinse it and cook it. That works fine for me.

[lilelf]

What a great thread!! I offer myself as Guinea pig for rice cooking water, since everyone else seems to be using rinse water and Today I made curry and brown rice. I cooked the rice in extra water, and saved the milky liquid. It is fermenting as we speak. Will test it out manana. Will report back. :)

[Arkadas]

wanted to join in and see how everyone is doing. Soaked some rice yesterday and have used it this evening. Sitting with it in my hair right now waiting to rinse it out :). I don't know my genetic ability when it comes to hair (general family is not into long hair)
And as long as my hair likes the application with no freak outs lol .. Am putting it on my 2016 challenge to do it for a year once a week along with my no trim in 2016. Keep the updates coming and any tips you find out along the way :)

[Platzhalter]

Nice to hear from another one joining :)
If you have any questions or advice coming from your own experiences (which you'll definitely make), feel free to ask and share.

[LoveSnap]

If you use a rice maker and do not rinse the rice, it has a nasty plastic-like layer on the bottom of the rice. The sides of the rice maker may also have a thin skin--like dried glue. We exclusively use a rice maker so we have a plastic rice rinsing bowl. It is a MUST! lol

[Arkadas]

Great to have good company. I've tried WO in the past and it was a disaster in my fine strand hair. "really bad" ... last night I only did WO rinse after 30 minutes of leaving the rice water on with a shower cap and towel. My hair rinsed like when put conditioner in my hair for it to rinse smooth and not tangled. Happy with the results for drying soft an smooth. I would like to find something that I don't have to use extra products. First day hair feels like I shampooed and conditioned it. I used my electric pressure cooker to let the rice water set. It wasn't organic rice so I rinsed it twice before soaking and I still got a nice milky color water result. Interesting to see how my hair does by the end of the 7 days. :) As always it will be fun ....

[Arkadas]

Tomorrow is my next FRW session, got through the week just fine no upsets or anything funny, scalp was fine too. My hair is naturally dry in the morning but brushing natural oils down to my length works out just fine to start the day. If I could accomplish anything is staying away from having to add products that look and feel great after application in the moment but long term break down my hair, doesn't actually make it healthier just mask the unhealthy hair I have. That is where I am starting.

[Arkadas]

was wondering how everyone else is doing with their experience. I'm happy with my hair's behavior since a child my hair has always been easy to tangle and mat . Thus the reason my mom always kept my hair in a "Dorthy Hammill" type cut to not have to mess with it.. lol.. I have always dreaded trying to brush/comb through it too every time I have tried to grow it long always a good 10 to 15 minutes of getting sections untangled at a time that my arms hurt lol.. This morning I realized i went right through the length in about 5 minutes with little effort. I started off with damaged ends lots of white tips and splits just too lazy to cut before the no trim challenge which was a main reason for all the tangles. This morning I didn't have any trouble with them.. And I sleep with my hair down bad habit I know but I don't like my hair up for long periods of time I'll braid and tuck the braid in my hoodie under my coat when I am outside doing farm chores. but while in side I don't like the pull on my head to keep my hair up for too long at a time to let it be down until I have to go back out side again. Two applications for FRW so far once a week, setting my rice today for tomorrow evening for my third.. Turned 50 last Christmas and am post Menopause as of a year and really hated how course my hair had become 3 years leading up to now. Hair is feeling really soft and smooth and light like it did when I was younger. No complaints or feeling the need to add anything between my FRW applications. When I was shampooing and conditioning it's great for 2 days then go right back into dry tangle and matting unless I would s&c again often.. Very Happy that I am done one application once a week and getting the long term results that I was wanting.. .. That's the update

[Arkadas]

checking in 4th week done... :)

[llamacat]

Oh my God! As far as I know, the rice water rising method has a long history in China! gonna try it the next time I wash my hair XD

[bunneh.]

Maybe it's just me, but I would not trust that if it wasn't boiled. But if it's just for hair, there probably is no harm to it. :shrug:

I rinsed raw organic rice and used that water on my face in the past. I guess you could boil it and use that water but I think it would be gooey... Also if you're not using organic rice and you boil it first, any pesticide residue will get in the water so bear that in mind ("Furthermore, they noticed that pesticides disappeared following cooking, probably because boiling in water lead to the leaching of these substances." http://www.academia.edu/5951657/Invited_review_Review_on_the_main_differences_betw een_organic_and_conventional_plant-based_foods ). Other than that I'm a believer of if it's good enough for me to eat, it's good enough to put on my body. Organic food is friggin expensive (twice the price+ of conventional) and I'm not even eating that much of it so I have no intentions of buying it simply to use on my body.

[llamacat]

Hello everyone!

I just did my first rice water rinse today! I'd like to share my experience below.

I put some water and brown rice into a large jar with a lid and then waited for 6 hours, from 10 AM to 4PM roughly.
At 11AM I realized that I might also use some sticky rice water as well so I used another jar and put two table spoon of sticky rice flour and lots of water into it.

In the afternoon I just used the brown rice water and sticky rice water to rinse my hair. I also put several drops of vinegar into my rice water solution to make it less alkaline.
My scalp felt pretty oily and itchy before the rinse. But after I applied the mixture into my hair and wash it away with tap water, my scalp did not feel itchy anymore. However, it still felt kind of oily...And my hair takes almost the entire evening to dry. But it does feel shiner than before, and probably darker. (I have black hair)

Now I'm making more stick rice water in my bathroom and this time I plan to ferment it for days before I use it. Let's see the result.:o

[Arkadas]

good to hear from you llamacat. I really liked the improvements and changes in my hair on this 4th application. Usually my hair is very spider web matted / tangled if it gets wet, I have been totally dependent on using conditioner because my hair needed it. This last FRW application my hair was not matter or tangled when wet ( am soaking/ rinsing upside down)and it rinsed soft just like it does when I have used conditioner. My hair is holding up very well between application that I was considering extending the application longer then once a week and see how that works.

[Anje]

So I asked a friend today about washing rice, because it's kind of a foreign thing to me.

He tells me that it's traditionally done because weevils would get into the rice, and they eat the middle out of the grains. Washing would float the eaten grains, so they could be removed, which is why it was traditional in his culture to wash rice. Nowadays, he just dumps the rice in and adds water, like I do.

[Arkadas]

I rinsed raw organic rice and used that water on my face in the past. I guess you could boil it and use that water but I think it would be gooey... Also if you're not using organic rice and you boil it first, any pesticide residue will get in the water so bear that in mind ("Furthermore, they noticed that pesticides disappeared following cooking, probably because boiling in water lead to the leaching of these substances." http://www.academia.edu/5951657/Invited_review_Review_on_the_main_differences_betw een_organic_and_conventional_plant-based_foods ). Other than that I'm a believer of if it's good enough for me to eat, it's good enough to put on my body. Organic food is friggin expensive (twice the price+ of conventional) and I'm not even eating that much of it so I have no intentions of buying it simply to use on my body.

thanks bunneh am using Lundberg organic brown rice. Very trusted organic farm in the US , may be expensive if your not going to eat the rice . have been able to successfully soak the rice 24 hours or more, strain it, rinse the rice and keep the added rinse water for my hair and body... Then put the rice with fresh water and cook it to eat. Hasn't hurt the rice at all. No waste for the money spent.

[henné]

Oooh, ladies, how exciting! I've been on a hunt for natural hair washing recipes and this one sounds like it could totally work!

Does anyone in here use it instead of a shampoo/hairwash?

I'll definitely try it the next time we're making rice!

[Arkadas]

Oooh, ladies, how exciting! I've been on a hunt for natural hair washing recipes and this one sounds like it could totally work!

Does anyone in here use it instead of a shampoo/hairwash?

I'll definitely try it the next time we're making rice!

That is how I am using it.

[ladycaladium]

Ooo, I want to try this!

[syndel]

Oooh, ladies, how exciting! I've been on a hunt for natural hair washing recipes and this one sounds like it could totally work!

Does anyone in here use it instead of a shampoo/hairwash?

I'll definitely try it the next time we're making rice!

When I rice rinse I don't use shampoo, I'll just finger scrub in the shower washing it out or wash with conditioner if I'm feeling extra fancy. :)

[AutobotsAttack]

I've tried this and I really like it, although its a good idea to get the organic rice, not the bleached white rice, because it leaves a drying annoying residue. But its a good softener for the hair and a strengthener

[Arkadas]

am skipping todays (5th week) application just really cold here/snow on the ground and hair is doing just fine.. is there a reason using the FRW needs to be applied weekly in order to gain the benefits long term?

[henné]

I did a totally non-organic jasmine rice water (not fermented) wash some days ago and I have to say ... wow ... my hair was so insanely soft afterwards! A keeper!

[Arkadas]

I did a totally non-organic jasmine rice water (not fermented) wash some days ago and I have to say ... wow ... my hair was so insanely soft afterwards! A keeper!

glad it went well for you... 5th application tonight going into my second month stretching out washes out a little more for this week.. able to get a bun on top of my head which is a first and improvement not leaving it down to fully dry. pulls too much when the bun is lower with damp hair . guess I am unintentionally doing the inverted hair message at the same time I do my soak and washing..

[Shorty89]

Has anyone else with fine hair tried this?

[silkyselkie]

Hi!
I grew up washing rice and still do because it is to get rid of the rice powder that is left from the milling/harvesting process otherwise it tends to get gummy and won't be fluffy, that's why washing rice is done now a days. Just thought I'd add that because it's a Japanese thing to always wash it. (And in hawaii cause we learned it from Japanese.) Just thought I'd let you know :)

[silkyselkie]

Just wanted to pop in an add something to this. You can eat the fermented rice (if you choose to leave the rice) because it's good for you (depending on how long you ferment it. My mom usually cooks it after the water starts to get the faintest hint of sour smell)

Also! If you end up having too much rice water before fermenting you can use it on your plants.

[Platzhalter]

Thank you for the additional information, silkyselkie :)

[syndel]

Has anyone else with fine hair tried this?

I'm of the fine haired variety. Loving it; on me it adds shine, sleekness and seems to plump the hair strands for a while. Can recommend FRW! :p

[Lisa-K]

Wow this looks like something worth trying!

If I shampoo right after this, will it ruin the effect of the rice water?

[ladycaladium]

Has anyone else with fine hair tried this?

I've only done two applications so far, so I don't have much feedback yet. I do have fine hair and I've found that this doesn't seem to weigh down my hair or makeup greasy.

[henné]

Hello ladies. I fermented some rice water for longer than two days (room temperature) and now it's super stinky :D I wonder if it's still ok to use on hair? I boiled it to stop the fermentation process (read that somewhere), but I'm a little nervous about using it since I've let it sit for so long ... just wondering about the bacteria and all ...

[Anje]

Hello ladies. I fermented some rice water for longer than two days (room temperature) and now it's super stinky :D I wonder if it's still ok to use on hair? I boiled it to stop the fermentation process (read that somewhere), but I'm a little nervous about using it since I've let it sit for so long ... just wondering about the bacteria and all ...
Well, bacteria are what are doing the fermentation. ;) But if it's bad-smelling, I'd say it's probably not something you want to put on your head.

[Wizmo]

Hi,

I have heard the fermented rice water i.e. water from cooked rice is used to rinse the hair. It makes the hair soft.

[RavennaNight]

There's one step I'm missing, do you need to refrigerate the soaking rice overnight or just leave it on the counter?

[RavennaNight]

So I had the rice in water all day, refrigerated, and it seems to not be getting cloudy and fermented. So I'm leaving it out on the counter over night

[Arkadas]

I leave it at room temperature on the counter

[ladycaladium]

I don't soak the rise, I save the rinse water. I use warm/hot water to rinse. The water is cloudy from the start.

[ChloeDharma]

I don't soak the rise, I save the rinse water. I use warm/hot water to rinse. The water is cloudy from the start.

From what I gather the fermentation is important for the treatment. Water that has been used to rinse or cook rice can be used as a wash though.

[ladycaladium]

I ferment the water. From what I read it seemed that rinse water should be fine to ferment.

[henné]

There's one step I'm missing, do you need to refrigerate the soaking rice overnight or just leave it on the counter?

Heat accelerates the fermentation process.

[RavennaNight]

Yes. I found I needed to heat the water to get it cloudy.

[ChloeDharma]

I ferment the water. From what I read it seemed that rinse water should be fine to ferment.

I misunderstood and thought you used the rinse water without letting it ferment. Yes the instructions I have read say that soaking the rice for about 15 minutes then straining and leaving the water to ferment for up to 48 hours works. This is good as it means you don't have to throw the rice away.

[ladycaladium]

Sorry about not being clear! I don't like to waste the rice.

[henné]

Sorry about not being clear! I don't like to waste the rice.

Last time I utilised some rice water, I put 100% extra water in the rice as I was making it and after it started boiling, I extracted that extra liquid and put it in a glass jar that I kept until I washed my hair later on that night. Ate the rice. No waste, silky smooth hair, perfect :)

[ladycaladium]

Last time I utilised some rice water, I put 100% extra water in the rice as I was making it and after it started boiling, I extracted that extra liquid and put it in a glass jar that I kept until I washed my hair later on that night. Ate the rice. No waste, silky smooth hair, perfect :)

That's probably how I'd do it if I didn't use a rice cooker. I have to rinse the rice anyway.

[RavennaNight]

Ok, I got back from the gym, and the water finally smells slightly sour and it's cloudy. I think I can use the water now. I'm gonna have breakfast and then begin.

Not that anyone wants the slow-mo play by play of my morning lol.

[RavennaNight]

So, results. My hair feels pretty smooth, but not miraculously smooth like the video. It felt strengthened while I was rinsing and washing in the shower. I didn't feel any sudden magical change, but I might try it again, this time fermenting it more. I don't think I fermented the water long enough, because it wasn't activated until this morning I think, because the water wasn't cloudy until I heated the rice water a bit this morning. :shrug: I'll try it again some time, as I said, it did feel strengthened while rinsing. I haven't taken a photo yet, so maybe there's something I'm not seeing yet.


ETA: DH just told me my hair looks shinier and that it feels softer. :D I also did see my friend today and she said my hair looks really healthy.

[Lavendersugar]

I have done this twice and not sure I will continue. My hair felt very dry. I may use plain rice water and not let it ferment but at this point it still seems like a lot of work. Castro oil is just easier for me.

[Stagecoach]

This sounds fascinating! I'm going to try it I think

[RavennaNight]

This sounds fascinating! I'm going to try it I think

OMG STAGECOACH YOU CUT YOUR HAIR!! It looks cute! Happy growing /end threadjack

[pinutzz]

In addition to breaking down components the fermentation process also makes the rice water more sour. I wonder if it makes sense to use pH measurement strips to stop the fermentation at the right point (i. e. when the pH of the rice water is the same level as your hair at about pH 5.9-6.2). I have a cassia treatment planned for the weekend, but I am very intrigued by this and looking forward to giving it a try.

[Hairkay]

I've read somewhere that some don't boil the fermented rice water. They just let the cold of the fridge slow down the fermentation.

[Stagecoach]

OMG STAGECOACH YOU CUT YOUR HAIR!! It looks cute! Happy growing /end threadjack

Thank you!

[RavennaNight]

I did the fermented rice water rinse again this morning before washing, and it added volume at the roots that I hadn't had before. My baby hairs around my hair line didn't lay flat, instead they gave a bit of lift. I'd imagine that might be annoying when I wear it up, but it's the first day so it's gloriously happily down and on the loose at the moment. Otherwise, my hair feels good, and dried smooth.

[TatsuOni]

I've been using fermented rice water for a while now and I like it:)

Last time I washed my hair was two weeks ago at my fathers place. He has hard water with bad waterpressure in the shower. Getting the conditioner out of the hair is nearly impossible and my hair does no longer like the hard water... (I co-wash). WO doesn't make my hair clean and gives me a dry scalp and hair. So before the sauna I wet my hair with fermented rice water. After, in the shower I added some more and massaged the hair as if I would have used conditioner and then cleansed with water. Afterwards I sprayed in some catnip. My hair got clean, soft and shiny without a dry scalp! The only downside is that it got static as it used to before I began CO. Next time I use my fathers shower I will try this again but add some oil afterward to decrease the static.

I will definitely continue to use fermented rice water also when I CO-wash:)

I can also add that I got really fine and slippery hair. Picture a kitten...

[Shorty89]

How do you guys actually apply the water? Do you use a big bowl like she does? I don't have one big enough to avoid making a mess so I end up doing my rinse in the shower. But after about ten minutes of pouring it over my hair I'm cold. Maybe I need a bigger bowl. Haha

[Stagecoach]

I have a squirt bottle, like what you'd find ketchup in at a dinner. It works well over a sink.

[Platzhalter]

I usually do it with a bowl and a few cups as well, but the one we have is more than huge enough to not make a mess.

[dfotw]

So, I gave this a try!

Yesterday my dad was going to make his weekly pot of white rice, so I asked him to save the water in which he washed the two cups of rice. I left it in a pot in the (warm) kitchen overnight. This morning it was milky and smelled slightly sour, so I soaked my hair in it for a while, then put a shower-cap+t-shirt over the wet hair for half an hour, rinsed with what was left, then showered and CO-washed as normal.
As my hair air dried, it was... difficult. Hairs each going their own way, frizz, etc. I decided to leave it to dry in a braid instead and wrangled with it, Tangle teezer in hand... and magic happened.
My hair is softer and shinier and feels thicker. It's drying in a plait down my back and I just keep nuzzling it because it feels so lovely! As a bonus, now that it's braided, it's behaving well instead of giving me braid shred within 10 seconds! :crush: So, FRW does not get along with my curl pattern, but it does help my hair feel silky and soft. I'll take it!
The results are definitely worth doing this once a week (every time my dad makes rice :p)

:cheese:

[dfotw]

Day 1 after FRW.

I CO-washed again this morning. My curls are still in a state of absolute confusion, but two passes of my TangleTeezer and I got the softest, smoothest hair for braiding. I almost feel like I stole some 2c-type off someone else!
Another thing. When I looked at my ends this morning, I discovered a galaxy of white spots that weren't there yesterday! Obviously I don't think that washing my hair in milky water shredded my ends overnight, but I feel that whatever the FRW does to soften the hair also brings to light all the old damage. I dusted my ends to get rid of the worst of it, and will continue to monitor it.

Anyone else with curly hair has tried this and mislaid their hair type temporarily? :confused:

[Khristopher]

Hi everyone, long time no see. I tried FRW for the first time this week, and I must say: wow. I mean, WOW. my hair is so smooth, I can't take my hands away from it. It also gave me lots of volume, and waves (my hair is normally straight and a bit frizzy at the ends).
I did it on dirty hair, just poured the water with the same method as the video. Left it for 30 min and rinsed, followed with an ACV rinse, and that's it. My hair feels better than with the whole diluted shampoo-conditioner-ACV routine. Far better.
However I have a concern: any other hennaheads here use FRW? I think it lifted some of the henna from my roots, as I found the color duller than before. The water was quite orange, the grocery plastic bag I used was white so it was pretty noticeable. Anyone else had this happening too? I'm afraid of stripping more color if I keep doing this...

[dfotw]

Funny you should say that, Khristopher, I thought I was imagining things! The colour from the henna/cassia gloss I did a couple of weeks ago lifted a bit on my bleached ends after doing FRW. My water was not orange (I only used two tablespoons of henna after all), but my ends no longer match my length as well as they did before.
So yes, I'd say there's some henna lifting. Anyone else?

[dfotw]

Anyone still doing this?

Right now my hair is drying from my fourth FRW treatment. I do it once weekly-ish (when my dad makes rice, basically) and the results are WONDERFUL. My hair feels so much thicker and softer! :cloud9: I almost feel like I regained the thickness I lost in my last shed, and no longer cringe when looking at my braid taper or have so much scalp cleavage. My dad, who gathers the rice water, is very proud of his contribution to my hair care routine and keeps complimenting my hair!

Obviously this doesn't make hair grow to BCL overnight, so my guess is that it plumps up the hair-shaft somehow? (that would also explain why it brought out all that hidden damage the first couple of times)

Anyway, I'm in love and will continue to do this as long as there's rice! :crush:

[TatsuOni]

Anyone still doing this?

Right now my hair is drying from my fourth FRW treatment. I do it once weekly-ish (when my dad makes rice, basically) and the results are WONDERFUL. My hair feels so much thicker and softer! :cloud9: I almost feel like I regained the thickness I lost in my last shed, and no longer cringe when looking at my braid taper or have so much scalp cleavage. My dad, who gathers the rice water, is very proud of his contribution to my hair care routine and keeps complimenting my hair!

Obviously this doesn't make hair grow to BCL overnight, so my guess is that it plumps up the hair-shaft somehow? (that would also explain why it brought out all that hidden damage the first couple of times)

Anyway, I'm in love and will continue to do this as long as there's rice! :crush:

I'm still using it every time I wash my hair (that's every other week). My hair still loves it!:o

[Shepherdess]

Anyone still doing this?

Right now my hair is drying from my fourth FRW treatment. I do it once weekly-ish (when my dad makes rice, basically) and the results are WONDERFUL. My hair feels so much thicker and softer! :cloud9: I almost feel like I regained the thickness I lost in my last shed, and no longer cringe when looking at my braid taper or have so much scalp cleavage. My dad, who gathers the rice water, is very proud of his contribution to my hair care routine and keeps complimenting my hair!

Obviously this doesn't make hair grow to BCL overnight, so my guess is that it plumps up the hair-shaft somehow? (that would also explain why it brought out all that hidden damage the first couple of times)

Anyway, I'm in love and will continue to do this as long as there's rice! :crush:

I did it for a while. I think my hair was alright with it and it felt nice, though I'm not sure if I did it long enough. I accidentally let the rice ferment too long one day (I kept it in a bottle, so I didn't really pay attention to that before I used it), and oh, it took so long to get the smell out of my hair, and it was the most horrible smell. I had to rewash my hair after a few days, since it still smelled bad. I was afraid the smell wouldn't leave. I haven't tried the rice water since then, maybe I will, though if I do, I will be much more careful. lol :laugh:

[Shorty89]

I've been too lazy but I'm doing it again right as I type haha. I am trying to figure out a better way to use it on my face.

[Platzhalter]

Anyone still doing this?

Right now my hair is drying from my fourth FRW treatment. I do it once weekly-ish (when my dad makes rice, basically) and the results are WONDERFUL. My hair feels so much thicker and softer! :cloud9: I almost feel like I regained the thickness I lost in my last shed, and no longer cringe when looking at my braid taper or have so much scalp cleavage. My dad, who gathers the rice water, is very proud of his contribution to my hair care routine and keeps complimenting my hair!

Obviously this doesn't make hair grow to BCL overnight, so my guess is that it plumps up the hair-shaft somehow? (that would also explain why it brought out all that hidden damage the first couple of times)

Anyway, I'm in love and will continue to do this as long as there's rice! :crush:


Has been a while but yes, I was just using rice water to wash my hair a few days ago.
Since we're having rice every day now, there'll always be some "fresh" rice water aside from the portion in the fridge. So it's hardly any different from using regular shampoo... at least talking about convenience.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Can you eat the rice after you have soaked it for 24 hours? It seems like a waste if you can't.

[littlestarface]

Can you eat the rice after you have soaked it for 24 hours? It seems like a waste if you can't.

If your gonna let the rice sit for more then 24 hours then no, you cant eat it itll be soured.

[dfotw]

Can you eat the rice after you have soaked it for 24 hours? It seems like a waste if you can't.

It'd probably be sour, though I remember someone upthread who had a recipe for it?
If you don't want to waste the rice, you can just wash it before cooking it normally, and ferment the now-milky water in which you washed it. That's what I do and it works a treat!

[MINAKO]

Every oil, herb, eggs, avocado, banana, yoghurt... You name it is going down the drain here, so you might as well waste a handful of rice. I wouldn't have a problem with that.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Ah, ok, thanks :) Looking forward to trying this tomorrow.

[Anje]

Can you eat the rice after you have soaked it for 24 hours? It seems like a waste if you can't.

My understanding is that this is usually rinse water, not water that the rice has been soaking in for all that time. So you let it soak for a few minutes, strain the rice, and cook it. Keep the water around that you used to wash the rice and use it the next day on your hair. :)

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Well I allowed my rice water to sit for 24 hours then used it. It may not have fermented much as it is currently very cold here, but I used it and my hair is feeling very nice. I shall experiment further.

[Shorty89]

I think I finally did things right. I've never gotten the water to get a true sour smell, or be as white/cloudy as it looked in the video. But instead of just soaking the rice for a bit, then taking it out/waiting, I rinsed the rice in really hot water and "caught" the rinse water in a bowl. Then I let that sit covered for two days and Voila! Perfect water!

[Morri]

This sounds amazing and I will definitely try it next time I have to wash my hair. I have brown, wild and black rice, I wonder if they all have the same effect? Also, as this rice is fermented, I'm wondering if hair can be washed with kombucha (fermented tea) too! Too bad I don't brew it anymore, otherwise I would experiment :D

[Morri]

Hmm I tried washing with fermented rice only and it didnt clean my hair at all. Then I just did as in the video - rice water and shampoo as usual. I ended up with waxies and didnt notice any improvement in appearance or feel of hair. Will be trying again as a pre wash treatment :rolleyes:

[Morri]

P.S. I was cooked and ate that fermented rice, it didnt taste any different and took less to cook :D

[Gvnagitlvgei]

I've been away from here for eons of time... Anyway, I'm going to try it. You shouldn't boil it because you'll destroy the nutrients. You can also use the rice water as a facial tonic. Lots of B vitamins good for hair and skin.

ETA: Going to rinse with this as the final after my henna gloss this evening.

[CarrotTop]

Fermented rice water is the best! :D I typically make it by leaving a pitcher of rice and water on the counter for 4 days or so. (I live in a cold climate, so it takes a little longer for it to ferment.) I let it sit in my hair for about 30 minutes before I shampoo. I haven't been using FRW for long, but I notice that I haven't been needing to oil my hair as often. I've found that it softens my hair really well without making it greasy. :)

[pailin]

I cooked rice on Tuesday, so I saved the water from washing it before I cooked it (all the while thinking 'LHC is making me nuts, I can't believe I'm doing this!' :rolleyes: ). I stuck it in the fridge, then used it before shampooing my hair last night. I really did the minimum amount with it- I refrigerated it and only kept it for one day, then dumped it on my hair in the shower, so only left it on maybe 3-5 minutes before CWC as usual- and it really did make my hair feel nice!
Next time I'm not putting it in the fridge, because it was still pretty cold when I used it. I usually cook rice about 2x/week, so I think I will have to continue doing this.

[ephemeri]

I tried this for a second time today. (I did a FRW rinse a month or two ago and for some reason forgot about it and didn't do it again until now!)

Yesterday I found some old red(!) rice that we're never going to eat. I rinsed it, let a 1/2 c sit, covered, in 4 cups of water overnight. This morning it was cloudy and had a lightly sour smell so I poured it over my hair until it was saturated, squeezed the excess out, and put my hair up in a big claw clip and let it sit for 30 minutes. I then co-washed and conditioned. I was happy to see that it didn't lift any of my henna/indigo out, especially since I only just henna'd yesterday.

I didn't notice any big differences in my hair texture but I'm also kind of playing around with my styling product routine so it's a little hard tell. If anything my hair feels a little more full? And it didn't seem to get very frizzy even though it was crazy high humidity today. What I'm really looking for is a decrease in shedding and an increase in hair strength in general ... will report back if I get more to report! ;)

[Decoy24601]

So, I did my first fermented rice water soak today. I let my rice water ferment at room temperature for about 18 hours until it was cloudy and had a lightly sour smell and rinsed my scalp and hair in it and soaked the length of my hair for 30 mins. I drew a hot bath and poured the rest of my rice water in. After that I rinsed my hair and scalp with tea I made from some herbs I had around the house and poured the remainder of that in the bath as well. I let the tea soak into my scalp for a few minutes and then washed it and soaked in the tub for about 20 mins. My hair is drying now and wow, it already feels so soft. The argan oil conditioner I was using before made my hair soft too, but it completely weighed my hair down to where my naturally wavy hair couldn't even hold tight braid-waves. My ends feel so good, I don't even feel like using my hair moisturizer. I'll be doing this for once a week from now on. My hair and skin seem to absolutely love fermented rice water. I also wiped my face with some of it and let it soak in. I have issues with my face being irritated and red from the products that keep my acne at bay and my skin tone looks a fair amount more even and it feels so soft.

[Hairkay]

Hmm, what's with the trend of wasting rice? Can't you just use the rice water from rice you've already washed or cooked? That's how it was originally used.

[Decoy24601]

I can't speak for other people, but my SO makes rice all the time so I was able to just use water from rinsing that rice.

I don't think a single cup of rice would be as wasteful as what other people use on their hair anyways. Some people use eggs and other raw food ingredients and sometimes in larger quantities, how is this any different?

[samanthaa]

I did a FRW soak last Saturday, 1 cup of rice to 4 cups of water, left to sit for about 36 hours. I let my hair soak in the mixture for about fifteen minutes, I think, before hopping in the shower and S&C'ing. I can't say I noticed much of a difference, but I'm planning to try it again this Saturday.

[dfotw]

I also use the 'rinse water' from the rice my dad makes every week, but I hardly think using a cup of rice is more 'wasteful' than the honey in SMTs, the eggs for washing, the soy sauce for protein treatments, the vinegar for rinsing, etc, etc. If it works for people, it's all good!

More on-topic, I'm still using this faithfully every week, and I love it! The one thing I've noticed is that FRW doesn't mix well with ROO (rinse-out oil), so I just skip the oil on days I've used the rice water.

[Hairkay]

I can't speak for other people, but my SO makes rice all the time so I was able to just use water from rinsing that rice.

I don't think a single cup of rice would be as wasteful as what other people use on their hair anyways. Some people use eggs and other raw food ingredients and sometimes in larger quantities, how is this any different?

Well the rice doesn't have to be used that way. I cup of rice is enough to make a meal for one. I'm sure if eggs etc just had by products to be used others would have been able to chose that method.

[ephemeri]

I'm on my second FRW rinse today (I'm doing once weekly rinses). I used white rice this time, 1/2 c in about 2 c of water. Since it's not organic rice, I rinsed it a few times first before I let it sit for about 2 days. I think it was too long though because it smelled kinda funky, a little more than just sour. But I'm being brave so I rinsed my hair with it anyway, after I put a couple drops of my favorite EO blend to mask the smell haha :bounce:

I'll let it sit in my hair for 30-40 minutes then co-wash and condition. I want to believe my hair was shedding less this week but I don't really have a way to measure for sure, just eyeballing it.

I think next time I will rinse it briefly again, then let it soak in the water for about 20 minutes, remove the rice and let the water sit. That way I can cook the rice and it's still edible. One thing I really like about this method is that it feels good knowing I'm putting something so natural on my hair. It really makes me think about slimming down my routine to the bare essentials with only natural products. I don't know if I could actually do that and ever be able to wear my hair down but it does make me think.... :ponder:

[ephemeri]

Checking in. Just did my 3rd weekly FRW rinse. I rinsed 1/2 c. rice a little first, then let it sit in 2 c. of water for about 30 minutes. I took the rice out and let the water sit for about 2 days, covered on the kitchen counter.

This time instead of doing the FRW and then shampooing/conditioning, I shampoo'd/conditioned, then soaked my hair in the FRW. I let it sit in my hair for 30 minutes or so then rinsed with just water. I wanted to see how this would work ... hoping there won't be any rice-y residue but I guess I'll find out. ;)

[Decoy24601]

I'm doing another FRW soak tomorrow with brown rice and will let you guys know how it goes. My SO and I decided to try out cooking with brown rice and hated it, so I figure that's one way to use it up without completely wasting it and letting it sit. It's only a small bag anyways.

[sumirechan]

Hello! Hope everyone is doing great! This thread has been very helpful to me, as I am a newbie FRW user. :) I just have some questions for the FRW users here:

1. I read in some websites that you need to dilute the fermented ricewater before using it for hair care . Do you have to? And if you do, what is the ratio of fermented ricewater vis-a-vis water?

2. After you ferment the ricewater, do you need to boil the FRW before using it? The reason that I'm asking is that some FRW users advice to boil before use, while others just immediately use it. So, I got confused. :( I also saw a video of a Yao woman doing an FRW tutorial where she boiled the FRW and added some orange peelings and shavings from a cake of camellia oil. Here is the video for reference: https://youtu.be/CEOUIWYGfn8

Would appreciate any help and feedback for the questions I have above.

[Decoy24601]

Hello! Hope everyone is doing great! This thread has been very helpful to me, as I am a newbie FRW user. :) I just have some questions for the FRW users here:

1. I read in some websites that you need to dilute the fermented ricewater before using it for hair care . Do you have to? And if you do, what is the ratio of fermented ricewater vis-a-vis water?

2. After you ferment the ricewater, do you need to boil the FRW before using it? The reason that I'm asking is that some FRW users advice to boil before use, while others just immediately use it. So, I got confused. :( I also saw a video of a Yao woman doing an FRW tutorial where she boiled the FRW and added some orange peelings and shavings from a cake of camellia oil. Here is the video for reference: https://youtu.be/CEOUIWYGfn8

Would appreciate any help and feedback for the questions I have above.

1: If I'm using rice water from rinsing my SO's rice when he makes it, I'll just fill up a bowl with the water that I rinse it with. I've never diluted it, I don't see why you would need to.

2: Boiling stops fermentation, so that wouldn't be necessary unless you plan on waiting a couple days before using it. I don't boil it beforehand, since I use it right away after I let it sit for 1 day. Boiling won't hurt it though.

[sumirechan]

1: If I'm using rice water from rinsing my SO's rice when he makes it, I'll just fill up a bowl with the water that I rinse it with. I've never diluted it, I don't see why you would need to.

2: Boiling stops fermentation, so that wouldn't be necessary unless you plan on waiting a couple days before using it. I don't boil it beforehand, since I use it right away after I let it sit for 1 day. Boiling won't hurt it though.

Thank you so much for the advice! I was wondering about the efficacy of using it undiluted. The reasoning that some blogs/websites give is that FRW is too potent to be used for the hair, hence the need to dilute it with water. Anyway, I'm going to test using it undiluted then.

I'll try waiting for a week for the rice to ferment (lol, the smell) and will boil it with orange peels and probably some peppermint green tea.

[sumirechan]

Two days ago, I put a cup of rice in 4 cups of water. I let it sit on my countertop to ferment the past two days. I don't really eat much rice, and I saw one YouTube person prepare her rice water this way.

I applied it to my dry hair with my head over a large bowl. I wrapped my hair up in a plastic bag and let it sit for a few minutes. I rinsed it out with just water, and used the leftover rice water as a face wash and in my bathtub. It softens the skin really nicely too!

My hair didn't have the gross greasy feel to it that I usually get when doing WO. I towel dried my hair and added a small amount of kinky curly knot today as a leave in (no oil this time).

If this works out well, I'll definitely be using it in my rotation. I'll let you guys know how it turns out once my hair is dry.

I just joined this community, so I'm late in the game when it comes to FRW. I've been wondering whether to use the FRW with wet hair or dry hair. I'm also wondering if I should use a shampoo and conditioner right after the FRW OR use the FRW as the last rinse. So many options to test if it works on my hair! :confused: :hmm: :ponder:

The longest that I let my rice water ferment is 1 1/2 days. I notice that the longer it ferments, the more it smells of a combination of vomit + blue cheese :cheese: :puke:. That first attempt made me a bit paranoid if I'm growing harmful bacteria or microorganisms in the water. LOL.

[sumirechan]

I'm currently doing another batch of FRW and I added some orange and lemon peels in my rice water so that it wouldn't smell as pungent. I'm going to let this sit for a week and then will boil the FRW along with the peels washing my hair with it. I'll update how it goes.

[sumirechan]

Update: I finally got to use the FRW that I fermented for a week. I did the following:

Prior to testing this, I made sure that my hair was free of any residue or 'cones, so I washed my hair the day before. The reason why I did this, is because the last time I did an FRW, the rinse smelled of the hair serum I was using. I didn't want to keep pouring the "contaminated" mixture again and again over my head.

1. Did a 1:2 ratio for FRW and water. 1 part FRW and 2 parts water. Yes, I diluted it a bit.
2. Added orange peels and boiled the mixture (about 30 mixtures) until the orange peels were soft.
3. Rinsed my DRY HAIR and I let the mixture sit for about 20 minutes.
4. Rinsed my hair with water, then did CWC.

Outcome: My hair was really soft and wasn't as frizzy. The ends of my hair were soft too. I would say that this experiment was somewhat of a success. Somewhat, because of the reason below:

The only big con here is that there is a lingering scent of the FRW. Horrible smell. I had to wash my hair twice hoping to get rid of the smell. I feel that I have to shampoo, not just at the roots, but the whole length of the hair, making sure that each strand is washed. Despite washing it twice, there are still sections of my hair that still smell like FRW. Ugh. :puke:

I'm thinking that aside from the orange peels, maybe I should use essential oils to help mask the scent. Maybe I should have boiled longer too. Hmm hmm!

Anyway, I have another batch to experiment on, so I will update in a week or so. :)

[Decoy24601]

Why did you ferment the water for a week? That's unnecessary and disgusting, in my opinion. I couldn't stand the way it smelled when I accidentally let it sit for 3 days. After a week there's probably so much bacteria and mold in there, yuck. My hair smells only mildly of rice after fermenting it for a day, and it only smells slightly sour.

Most people on here only let it sit for a maximum of a day.

[sumirechan]

Why did you ferment the water for a week? That's unnecessary and disgusting, in my opinion. I couldn't stand the way it smelled when I accidentally let it sit for 3 days. After a week there's probably so much bacteria and mold in there, yuck. My hair smells only mildly of rice after fermenting it for a day, and it only smells slightly sour.

Most people on here only let it sit for a maximum of a day.

Hi there. Two reasons why I fermented it for a week:
1. This video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW4eJkBYTsI - the DIY which I followed.
And this video: The Yao women of China, who have gorgeous long hair, ferment theirs for a month! Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEOUIWYGfn8

2. Fermenting the rice water for a week made my hair softer than just for a day. For the mold and bacteria issues, no, there was no mold, nor did I experience any adverse reactions on my hair, scalp and skin. I used a mason jar that was tightly sealed. I did not leave my rice water to ferment on open air. The Yao women ferment theirs in closed lid jars.

The only con, like I mentioned before, was the lingering scent. I feel that this can be eliminated by thorough boiling and adding essential oils. The Yao women use orange peels and camellia oil while boiling their 1-month fermented rice water. The lady with the curly hair, with the first video link used orange peels. But she also recommends using grapefruit peels and tea waste. I didn't add the tea waste, but I'm thinking of altering my DIY recipe to include essential oils, aside from the orange peels.

Also, 3 days into the fermentation process, I add some orange peels into the jar. It helps mask the sour, pungent, "vomitty" scent.

I'm going to do this experiment again after a week, so I'm going update if I was successful in eliminating the lingering :puke: scent.

[jaquelines]

Hi there. Two reasons why I fermented it for a week:
1. This video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LW4eJkBYTsI - the DIY which I followed.
And this video: The Yao women of China, who have gorgeous long hair, ferment theirs for a month! Video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CEOUIWYGfn8

2. Fermenting the rice water for a week made my hair softer than just for a day. For the mold and bacteria issues, no, there was no mold, nor did I experience any adverse reactions on my hair, scalp and skin. I used a mason jar that was tightly sealed. I did not leave my rice water to ferment on open air. The Yao women ferment theirs in closed lid jars.

The only con, like I mentioned before, was the lingering scent. I feel that this can be eliminated by thorough boiling and adding essential oils. The Yao women use orange peels and camellia oil while boiling their 1-month fermented rice water. The lady with the curly hair, with the first video link used orange peels. But she also recommends using grapefruit peels and tea waste. I didn't add the tea waste, but I'm thinking of altering my DIY recipe to include essential oils, aside from the orange peels.

Also, 3 days into the fermentation process, I add some orange peels into the jar. It helps mask the sour, pungent, "vomitty" scent.

I'm going to do this experiment again after a week, so I'm going update if I was successful in eliminating the lingering :puke: scent.

sumirechan hope you can help me out with this - am I mistaken, or isn't the old lady in the video boiling the rice water immediately? I have read about 15 different ways to do this properly and I feel I have learned nothing. Some people let the rice strain in the water for more than 30 min, up to days. Some recipes say boiling is required after letting the water fermentate for a few days in a bowl, but then, the lady in the video, is boiling the rice water immediately after washing the rice. Boiling stops fermentation. I don't understand. :confused:
What is the best way to do this?

[sumirechan]

sumirechan hope you can help me out with this - am I mistaken, or isn't the old lady in the video boiling the rice water immediately? I have read about 15 different ways to do this properly and I feel I have learned nothing. Some people let the rice strain in the water for more than 30 min, up to days. Some recipes say boiling is required after letting the water fermentate for a few days in a bowl, but then, the lady in the video, is boiling the rice water immediately after washing the rice. Boiling stops fermentation. I don't understand. :confused:
What is the best way to do this?

Hi there! If you're referring to the video about the Yao woman using FRW, she left it to ferment for a month. She used rice water from rice washing / rice-rinsing, not from boiling rice.

I feel your dilemma. I'm still in the experimentation process, because I too was confused on an effective method. Some sites say to use the water from boiled rice, while some say that water from rice-washing is perfectly fine. I initially got my FRW instructions from Hair Buddha (http://www.hairbuddha.net/rice-water-for-gorgeous-hair-and-flawless-skin/) and I was disappointed because the instructions were vague, plus I ended up having more questions than answers. It's the worst site to try to familiarize yourself with re: FRW, IMHO. :rolleyes: Sadly, there is no "one best way" to do the FRW. It all boils down to your personal preference and more importantly what works for your hair.

But here is what I learned so far from my experiments and I hope that these learnings will shed some light and provide some answers to the questions you still have:
1. Obtaining the rice water: Using rice water from a second washing of rice is perfectly okay. Even if my rice is organic, I feel that the first washing is essential, because it removes whatever dust, dirt, etc. is on the rice. I also feel that there is no need to boil the rice to get the rice water. Besides, I cook rice in an electric rice cooker, so there's no water left when the rice is cooked. I leave the rice-rinsing water for 30 minutes to an hour before straining it into mason jars. Then I proceed cooking my rice for lunch or dinner. Waste not, want not. :grnbiggri

2. Fermentation: Fermenting the rice water for a day is okay and there is no need to dilute the mixture. HOWEVER, if you decide to ferment it for a week (a month, like the Yao woman in the video is just too long of a wait for me), you may need to dilute it as this mixture becomes very potent. I decided to ferment mine for a week, because fermenting it only for a day or 2 does not do anything for my Asian coarse and frizzy hair. This is where you need to experiment to see what works best for you.

Here are transcription excerpts from the Yao woman video:

"Then the rice-rinsing water is boiled by fire. Some raw materials should be put inside. Such as orange peel or shaddock peel. Pan Hongmei says that, some people also put three or four kinds of traditional Chinese medicinal materials, but it doesn't matter if they are not put inside. However, a kind of raw material should be added."

"Pan Hongmei says that, according to the traditional method of Red Yao people, boiled rice-rinsing water also needs to be stored in a porcelain pot for half a month to a month. Then rice-rinsing water will ferment and get sour naturally."

"The rice water is only useful only after it ferments. Right. In fact, some people may not get used to the smell. Now I understand why she says that although some people want to try this method in the hope of having glossy hair, they are not used to it."


Incidentally, I found another video where the Yao women ferment the rice-rinsing water for only a week: https://youtu.be/y45KMpCcBYU?t=58s

3. Raw ingredients and essential oils: This is where you boil the FRW to stop the fermentation process, but also to blend the raw ingredients and essential oils. Adding orange, lemon, grapefruit peels is a must for me to help mask the sour scent. Plus, it's cleansing on the scalp. You can also choose to add your choice of essential oils and/or tea waste. I added Rosemary, Eucalyptus, and Jojoba oils into the mix. It did my scalp and hair good. The Yao woman used shavings from a defatted cake of Camellia oil for the fermented rice water shampoo.

Some notes: I still have issues with the "vomit" smell of the mixture after it ferments for a week, but I found out that a ratio of 1:3 (1 part FRW to 3 parts water) helps with the awful smell. If you ferment the rice water for a day or 2, it will just have a sour scent. It can easily be masked by the raw ingredients/essential oils of your choice. Smell-wise, I think I'm on the right track with my FRW. As seen in this video: https://youtu.be/R4DDw87yoW0?t=9m5s the woman trying it had the same "ugh" reaction I had re: vomit smell of the rice water. It really takes a lot of getting used to.

4. Usage: I make sure that my hair is free from silicones, dirt, oils, and hair products. Basically, I made sure that my hair is somewhat clean when I do the wash. The last experiment I did, since I used a hair serum with silicones a day before, I shampooed my hair first before doing the FRW. After all, you'll be rescooping the FRW mixture back and forth onto your hair. You don't want to be rescooping FRW with residue from your hair products back into your scalp and hair. Once I have massaged my scalp and my hair is thoroughly washed with the FRW, I leave it on for 20 minutes. I go about my usual shower routine - washing my body, etc, etc... two birds with one stone. Then, I rinse off the rice water from my hair with warm water and then shampoo and condition my hair as normal. To make sure that there is no more "vomit" scent on my hair, I shampoo my hair twice.

Hope that these info help. Let me know if you have any more questions and I'll do my best to answer them. Good luck!

[Platzhalter]

Thank you for your post, sumirechan :)
It really helps a lot, especially the advice regarding the awful smell... it really bothered me when trying to ferment the rice wash water for a little longer (because just doing so for a day or two didn't do much for me).

[Hairkay]

I always thought this required just too much effort with the ones leaving the water for a day, but a week or a month sounds like way too much trouble. Why not just do a mild vinegar rinse using rice wine vinegar?

[sumirechan]

I always thought this required just too much effort with the ones leaving the water for a day, but a week or a month sounds like way too much trouble. Why not just do a mild vinegar rinse using rice wine vinegar?

I tried vinegar rinses (ACV, raspberry vinegar from a Korean brand) and weirdly enough, it doesn't do anything for my hair. It always leaves it dry and frizzier. I was sad with the result of the raspberry vinegar, because that product really smelled so yummy! Maybe I'll try Mirin some other time, but I'm assuming that I'm going to get the same result.

As for the process of making FRW, it's not a hassle for me as I eat rice everyday. So, I always have rice water readily available. In fact, here in the household, we use the second rice water washing for soups like Tinola and Sinigang.

[sumirechan]

Thank you for your post, sumirechan :)
It really helps a lot, especially the advice regarding the awful smell... it really bothered me when trying to ferment the rice wash water for a little longer (because just doing so for a day or two didn't do much for me).

You're welcome! :) The fermentation process is the tricky part and initially where I had a lot of questions. This thread has been wonderful in helping me experiment with the process of making FRW. :D

[Platzhalter]

(...)
As for the process of making FRW, it's not a hassle for me as I eat rice everyday. So, I always have rice water readily available. In fact, here in the household, we use the second rice water washing for soups like Tinola and Sinigang.

Almost the same here... making the FRW is something that "just happens" unless I decide to throw that water away completely, and we're trying to avoid wasting anything that can be used safely and easily?


You're welcome! The fermentation process is the tricky part and initially where I had a lot of questions. This thread has been wonderful in helping me experiment with the process of making FRW.

Yes,it really is... even used to listen to people with completely different hair than mine which was a really bad idea as it doesn't work. Even though they seem to have more experience with their own type but not so much with certain methods in general.

[jaquelines]

Thank you sumirechan for the detailed explanation. It makes it clearer, so good explained!
I know that link from hair buddha. It was one of those pages which left me the same as you experienced it, with more questions.
You mentioned that you shampoo after using rice water. Wouldn't it be better as a final rinse?
Regarding the ratio for diluting, if I understand it well, I could go 1/3 or guiding myself on the smell factor ?
What is astonishing in both videos (unfortunately without the english translation the second video is impossible for me to understand), is that the liquid looks almost creamy. My rice water has been in a jar for almost a week, and it's still very liquid. I've made two batches. One to be left for a month and one to be used after a week. I've washed the organic rice with my clean hands and left it for over an hour in water. The color is a bit dark now, but not at all as the consistence and color of the one in the video.

[Hairkay]

I tried vinegar rinses (ACV, raspberry vinegar from a Korean brand) and weirdly enough, it doesn't do anything for my hair. It always leaves it dry and frizzier. I was sad with the result of the raspberry vinegar, because that product really smelled so yummy! Maybe I'll try Mirin some other time, but I'm assuming that I'm going to get the same result.

As for the process of making FRW, it's not a hassle for me as I eat rice everyday. So, I always have rice water readily available. In fact, here in the household, we use the second rice water washing for soups like Tinola and Sinigang.

In my grandmother's youth they'd use rice water to help with ironing. It kept those collars starched stiff.

[sumirechan]

Thank you sumirechan for the detailed explanation. It makes it clearer, so good explained!
I know that link from hair buddha. It was one of those pages which left me the same as you experienced it, with more questions.
You mentioned that you shampoo after using rice water. Wouldn't it be better as a final rinse?
Regarding the ratio for diluting, if I understand it well, I could go 1/3 or guiding myself on the smell factor ?
What is astonishing in both videos (unfortunately without the english translation the second video is impossible for me to understand), is that the liquid looks almost creamy. My rice water has been in a jar for almost a week, and it's still very liquid. I've made two batches. One to be left for a month and one to be used after a week. I've washed the organic rice with my clean hands and left it for over an hour in water. The color is a bit dark now, but not at all as the consistence and color of the one in the video.

Yes, I shampoo and condition my hair after using the rice water. I don't use it as a final rinse. You can try to do that, but you might be dealing with some smell issues, if you know what I mean. Also, the effectiveness has not diminished when I shampoo and condition AFTER the FRW rinse.

You can try a 1:3 ratio as I suggested. I did a 1:2 ratio in the past and I found that the FRW was still too potent and I had a hard time getting the smell off my hair. It took 3 days for it to fade. UGH. :puke: Remember that you need to add the raw ingredients and essential oils of your choice to help mask the smell. I did a FRW today with a 1:3 ratio, added orange peels, rosemary essential oil, orange spice tea and lemon tea. Boiled it for 30 minutes until the orange peels became soft and let the mixture cool. This experiment is soooo much better. The icky smell is very minimal. I have a sensitive nose, so I can smell hints of it here and there, but it's not strong enough to make me wanna gag. YAY! :)

The creaminess/milkiness of the water depends on the rice you use. I notice that if I use Japanese rice, particularly the Koshihikari kind, my water becomes milky. Japanese rice has a lot of starch in it, so when you wash it, the water becomes instantly milky. Try it and see. :) Remember to stir your FRW first before putting it in a pot for boiling.

Also, just a tip. There is a way to wash rice. You just don't dump the water in the rice and leave it there to soak. You need to massage and knead the rice grains, as if you're polishing them. Here's a how-to for your appreciation: http://www.japanesefoodreport.com/2011/01/video-washing-rice-perfectly.html. If you notice in the video in the link, the rice water from the Japanese rice is milky. :)

Here's another useful link re: washing and preparing rice: http://justhungry.com/japanese-basics-plain-rice-sushi-rice

Try the above techniques with the rice you currently have. After you leave it sitting for a hour, do a last massage of the rice and swirl the water before storing it in your container. See if your second wash becomes milkier than before. :)

[jaquelines]

Oh, you are such a sweetheart! So many helpful infos. And...sorry...that I pop out new questions - I live in Europe and used brown rice. Do you think it might have an impact to the creamy consistency and efficacy? I've looked up the rice you mention, it is called sushi rice in the stores online here. Do you think it would be better to buy sushi rice, instead of a "normal" brown or white european rice?

[sumirechan]

Oh, you are such a sweetheart! So many helpful infos. And...sorry...that I pop out new questions - I live in Europe and used brown rice. Do you think it might have an impact to the creamy consistency and efficacy? I've looked up the rice you mention, it is called sushi rice in the stores online here. Do you think it would be better to buy sushi rice, instead of a "normal" brown or white european rice?

Yay! Thank you and I'm so glad to have helped. Sushi rice would be better, IMHO. You will get the milky/creamy consistency that you want. Brown rice won't produce the same milky consistency. As to the effectiveness of brown rice, I have not tried it, so I cannot say whether it works or not.

If buying sushi rice is a hassle, try using the white European rice first. OR, another option, since you're in Europe is risotto rice. Arborio is less starchy, while Carnaroli is starchier. Caveat though: I read that you're not supposed to rinse the risotto rice, because the starch is what is needed for a good risotto dish. You might have to discard the rice after washing and soaking. And I feel that would be such a waste! :( At least with the sushi rice, you can still cook it and have a meal with it.

Do the rice washing technique and see if your second wash produces the milky consistency you are looking for. :)

[jaquelines]

You are the queeeeeeeen ! Thank you again. I'll use first this week the FRW already harvested and will buy next week sushi rice. I'll go all in and let you know.

[sumirechan]

You are the queeeeeeeen ! Thank you again. I'll use first this week the FRW already harvested and will buy next week sushi rice. I'll go all in and let you know.

Good luck and have fun! Yes, lemme know how it goes, please. :D

[Toffeemonster]

Hi guys I'm going to be trying this soon.

I've read through this whole thread, albeit skimming some of it.

Sumirechan I watched the video of the yao lady making FRW and I think I understood her process differently than you did. (I could be missing something because I did alot of reading so sorry if I've gotten confused).

A few key things I took from the video that might be relevant to folk are:

1. The lady says they only use the rice from their fields because it makes a thicker water than other rices. I know you can use other types of rice but this may be a key difference in how effective the plain rice rinsing water is versus water from boiling rice or rice left sitting in it. I have used easy cook brown rice as that's what we had and the rinse water is completely clear, so I'm sure the quality/potency of the rice rinse water varies alot depending on the type of rice. Mine didn't turn milky until it reached boiling point.

2. My understanding is that they boil the water immediately, BEFORE fermentation, not after. Thus it would also, in theory, be perfectly ok to use the boiled water from cooking rice(although I know your reason for not doing this is because you use a rice cooker :)) But it might be relevant for others. At this stage they also add the orange peels and camellia oil and boil it all together. This is when the presenter comments about the sour smell and seems to say it's coming from the camellia and orange peel, rather than the rice water(Which is fresh at that point).

3. Then they ferment the water after it's been boiled. I know people keep mentioning how boiling stops fermentation. I think this comes from hair buddha, I haven't found great confirmation of this one way or the other online. It says they ferment it for 1/2 - 1 month. I'm wondering if it's 2 weeks in hotter weather, 4 in winter, weather probably plays a big role in deciding how long to leave it. I'd wonder if this long duration is also because the water has been boiled, maybe that slows the fermentation process compared to non boiled water?

4.Then she "specially mixes" some FRW that has been made previously...it doesn't make it clear if it's diluted or not. It shows a massive amount of water pouring in the bowl but then shows that it's green like soup, so it looks like they just edited it together funnily and it's not diluted, or not very diluted. Lots of websites mention diluting it to "slightly milky looking water" because it's strong, but I suspect this may just be an evolution of the technique to make it more appealing to modern women because most would not stand the smell of the concentrated liquid. It looks like the yao use the straight stuff to me.

So that was my take on the video and my theories based on all the stuff I've read/seen since yesterday lol.(where's my diploma?)

I have rice fermenting, I'm super excited to try this. I have made it two ways, one pot is strained from rice after boiling and one with the rice left soaking in the water, both are at room temp. It's been a day and neither are fermented yet, it's 20ish degrees celsius here.

I intend to use them undiluted to wash my hair...but we will see haha

After I've tested both of these I want to try with other rice and also with orange peel.

I'll let you all know how my experiments go. :beerchug:

[sumirechan]

Hi guys I'm going to be trying this soon.

I've read through this whole thread, albeit skimming some of it.

Sumirechan I watched the video of the yao lady making FRW and I think I understood her process differently than you did. (I could be missing something because I did alot of reading so sorry if I've gotten confused).

A few key things I took from the video that might be relevant to folk are:

1. The lady says they only use the rice from their fields because it makes a thicker water than other rices. I know you can use other types of rice but this may be a key difference in how effective the plain rice rinsing water is versus water from boiling rice or rice left sitting in it. I have used easy cook brown rice as that's what we had and the rinse water is completely clear, so I'm sure the quality/potency of the rice rinse water varies alot depending on the type of rice. Mine didn't turn milky until it reached boiling point.

2. My understanding is that they boil the water immediately, BEFORE fermentation, not after. Thus it would also, in theory, be perfectly ok to use the boiled water from cooking rice(although I know your reason for not doing this is because you use a rice cooker :)) But it might be relevant for others. At this stage they also add the orange peels and camellia oil and boil it all together. This is when the presenter comments about the sour smell and seems to say it's coming from the camellia and orange peel, rather than the rice water(Which is fresh at that point).

3. Then they ferment the water after it's been boiled. I know people keep mentioning how boiling stops fermentation. I think this comes from hair buddha, I haven't found great confirmation of this one way or the other online. It says they ferment it for 1/2 - 1 month. I'm wondering if it's 2 weeks in hotter weather, 4 in winter, weather probably plays a big role in deciding how long to leave it. I'd wonder if this long duration is also because the water has been boiled, maybe that slows the fermentation process compared to non boiled water?

4.Then she "specially mixes" some FRW that has been made previously...it doesn't make it clear if it's diluted or not. It shows a massive amount of water pouring in the bowl but then shows that it's green like soup, so it looks like they just edited it together funnily and it's not diluted, or not very diluted. Lots of websites mention diluting it to "slightly milky looking water" because it's strong, but I suspect this may just be an evolution of the technique to make it more appealing to modern women because most would not stand the smell of the concentrated liquid. It looks like the yao use the straight stuff to me.

So that was my take on the video and my theories based on all the stuff I've read/seen since yesterday lol.(where's my diploma?)

I have rice fermenting, I'm super excited to try this. I have made it two ways, one pot is strained from rice after boiling and one with the rice left soaking in the water, both are at room temp. It's been a day and neither are fermented yet, it's 20ish degrees celsius here.

I intend to use them undiluted to wash my hair...but we will see haha

After I've tested both of these I want to try with other rice and also with orange peel.

I'll let you all know how my experiments go. :beerchug:

Hi Toffeemonster!

Some thoughts to your post:

1. I agree with the type and quality of the rice. That is the reason why the Yao women are getting a creamier/milkier consistency with their rice-rinsing water, since their rice type is starchier. I suggested sushi rice or Koshihiraki to jacquelines, which might be easier to obtain than the rice used by the Yao women. Brown rice is unpolished, so you would get less starch content, hence the water is clearer.

2. Thank you for you video clarification! I didn't see that the Pan Hongmei mixed FRW with fresh rice-rinsing water for the lady narrator to try out. Looks like that's another recipe for me to try. Interesting. It could be that this is their method of diluting the FRW. You have amazing observation skills! :D

Re: Boiling rice-rinsing water before fermentation and rice water from boiling rice: If you use the water from boiling rice to obtain your rice water, that's not called "rice-rinsing water anymore", but rice water from boiled rice. I don't know if that makes sense. I also see no reason why you need to boil the rice-rinsing water first before you ferment. :confused: Either way, I won't stop people from experimenting on different ways to obtain their rice water. But, there is a reason why they call it "rice-rinsing water", because it's water obtained from rinsing rice, not boiling. My suggestion is to take the instructions in the video like a grain of salt. I'm pretty sure that the captions are not 100% word-for-word accurate, which is why I also watched other Red Yao women videos on how they obtain their rice water, fermentation, and the addition of raw materials, essential oils, and teas. So far, two other videos explain that there is no boiling of the rice-rinsing water BEFORE fermentation, nor mixing it with fresh rice-rinsing water: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y45KMpCcBYU and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4DDw87yoW0&feature=youtu.be&t=9m5s (this video has no captions, but judging from the reaction of the lady, she is sniffing fermented rice-rinsing water that is pungent/sour). In fact, in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y45KMpCcBYU they add the raw ingredients to the FRW and boiled.

3. Yes, fermentation is a lot faster in humid/hot climates. Since I live in a tropical country, my rice-rinsing water ferments faster. I notice that in less than 24 hours, my rice-rinsing water already has a sour smell. You are right to assume that the Red Yao women have longer fermentation times, because it could be that it's either Autumn or Winter when they were fermenting their rice-rinsing water. The only way to find out re: correct fermentation times is if you experiment with yours. A looooot of experimentation. Tedious, but if you're up for it, it is fun.

There are two ways to stop fermentation: Through heat or cold. Some recommend you to boil the rice, others recommend you to nuke it (microwave), while others just tell you to just store it in the refrigerator. I tried all 3 methods and I honestly prefer boiling my mixture after a week of fermenting. It is also in this stage that I add my raw ingredients and essential oils, so boiling helps a lot.

4. As mentioned previously, maybe that's the Red Yao women's way of diluting their FRW: mixing fresh rice-rinsing water with the FRW. :bounce: But in the 2 other videos that I posted here, there's no dilution being done prior to use. I guess even they have different ways in using their FRW.


Good luck with your experiments and looking forward to seeing your results from your two batches! :)

[Toffeemonster]

Hi again, I don't have much of a update on my experiments but I'll respond to this now anyway :)



2. Thank you for you video clarification! I didn't see that the Pan Hongmei mixed FRW with fresh rice-rinsing water for the lady narrator to try out. Looks like that's another recipe for me to try. Interesting. It could be that this is their method of diluting the FRW. You have amazing observation skills! :D

Sorry I must not have been clear, I thought that they may have been diluting it with spring water, not fresh rice water. But then they show it and it looks undiluted, so I don't think in this video that they diluted it at all, and definitely not as much as some websites suggest.


Re: Boiling rice-rinsing water before fermentation and rice water from boiling rice: If you use the water from boiling rice to obtain your rice water, that's not called "rice-rinsing water anymore", but rice water from boiled rice. I don't know if that makes sense. I also see no reason why you need to boil the rice-rinsing water first before you ferment. :confused: Either way, I won't stop people from experimenting on different ways to obtain their rice water. But, there is a reason why they call it "rice-rinsing water", because it's water obtained from rinsing rice, not boiling.

Sorry I was not suggesting that boiled rice water is the same as rice rinsing water, what I was saying was that they boil the rice rinsing water before fermentation, thus is it both rice rinsing water and boiled water. And if you can boil it before fermentation(it's been suggested several times that you can't) then there's no reason you can't also ferment the water from boiling rice. Which is relevant to people wishing to avoid wasting rice and also to me because I want to use this as a shampoo rather than rinse and I've seen it stated elsewhere that water that has been boiled prior to fermentation is what would be used for FRW shampoo. I'm just trying to sort out the myth and legend of it all because it seems there are alot of opinions on the different ways to use FRW.


Either way, I won't stop people from experimenting on different ways to obtain their rice water. But, there is a reason why they call it "rice-rinsing water", because it's water obtained from rinsing rice, not boiling. My suggestion is to take the instructions in the video like a grain of salt. I'm pretty sure that the captions are not 100% word-for-word accurate, which is why I also watched other Red Yao women videos on how they obtain their rice water, fermentation, and the addition of raw materials, essential oils, and teas. So far, two other videos explain that there is no boiling of the rice-rinsing water BEFORE fermentation, nor mixing it with fresh rice-rinsing water: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y45KMpCcBYU and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4DDw87yoW0&feature=youtu.be&t=9m5s (this video has no captions, but judging from the reaction of the lady, she is sniffing fermented rice-rinsing water that is pungent/sour). In fact, in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y45KMpCcBYU they add the raw ingredients to the FRW and boiled.

Thanks for the videos! I will have to watch them later. I have not been able to find any videos of how the Yao make their rice water, none show up in my results at all. The one you shared previously was the only one I'd been able to find anywhere. I agree about the captions and the editing of the video too, it leaves room for confusion.


There are two ways to stop fermentation: Through heat or cold. Some recommend you to boil the rice, others recommend you to nuke it (microwave), while others just tell you to just store it in the refrigerator. I tried all 3 methods and I honestly prefer boiling my mixture after a week of fermenting. It is also in this stage that I add my raw ingredients and essential oils, so boiling helps a lot.

I've read mixed things about this, for one I'm not sure that boiling does stop fermentation? I can't find any reputable sources for this and I know nothing about it personally. Most of my search results were about wine and people were basically saying it's very difficult to stop fermentation, even through boiling. The one technique with wine is very specific that you don't boil the wine, but rather heat the bottles in hot water which changes how the heat disperses. I also saw this technique suggested for rice water in an article that claimed boiling rice water ruins alot of the nutrients in the FRW, they flat out said never boil FRW.


Good luck with your experiments and looking forward to seeing your results from your two batches! :)

Thank you! I am looking forward to watching the other videos you've shared and seeing what I can get from them. I did get one other AWESOME piece of information from the original video you shared. The part where she adds orange peels and "cake of the camellia oil", I was wondering what the heck that was. I mean it looked nothing like camellia oil. So some googling has helped me figure it out. It is called "tea seed cake" or "tea seed round" and is a bi product of making camellia oil, it does not contain the oil, rather the other parts of the seed, which are high in saponins(ie SOAP!). Traditionally it has numerous uses including to wash hair!

"The tea seed rounds have quite a few applications. The two applications I remember from childhood are as fertilizer and as hair soap. I remember my grandma always bought tea seed rounds to wash her hair with. Back then they were easily found in any street markets. Ladies from my grandma's generation wouldn't use shampoo to wash their hair because they said shampoo made their hair too dry. (Back then there were no hair conditioner and the shampoo I believe was just some regular liquid soap). My grandma always said tea seed soap was the best for washing hair because they made her hair soft and silky smooth."

Source - http://derentea.blogspot.ie/2011/10/tea-seed-part-i.html

So it seems like this is probably a pretty important element of the yao womens formula, given they use it to wash their hair. Unfortunately this stuff is pretty much impossible to get for us westerners, the closest I've found is a concentrated shampoo made from the camellia seeds or a refined powder from the seed which is 95% saponins. Both are super expensive.

This is what it says about the powder:

"The use of tea saponin surface activity , can be used as shampoo , detergents, hair dye , body lotion , shampoo and other cleaning reason , not only skin and hair care , anti-inflammatory and anti-itching , dandruff good effect."

Obviously English is not their first language but the claim is that it's good for the scalp as well as washing. An alternative to it might be adding soap nuts or something similar for those wishing to wash their hair with the FRW, that is if the FRW alone is not cutting the mustard.

I'd be interested to know if anyone who has continued using FRW as a shampoo is still finding it works well?

I shall update on my experiments when my FRW finally ferments! :stirpot:

[MariSA5894]

Since (almost) no hairproject is too weird for my hair, I decided to wash it with fermented rice water.
It should work as an conditioner but also have a similar result to a keratin treatment so lets try.

You could use any kind of rice you like, from white, even yasmin till brown rice (which I used since that is the only kind I eat).

First I let the rice boil in a bit more water than usual and I let the ricewater ferment (get sour) in 1,5 days or you could ask your lokal Chinese/Japanese/other Asian restaurant for some leftover rice water.
You can also use the water you used for rinsing the rice and let that ferment.

Fermented rice water has inositol in it, a carbohydrate that is said to repair damage.
Even after rinsing the inositol stays in the hair.
The amino acids strengthen the roots for volume, add sheen and make it silk and smooth.
When fermented rice water has gone slightly sour, the PH is almost similar to the PH of hair.

To stop the fermenting process, you have to boil it again.
The ricewater should be a bit diluted which can be done with water or green tea.
I chose green tea.

Well at first it smells horrific and I'm glad I used green tea.

I put it all in a large bucket and rinsed my hair until thoroughly soaked, then I rinsed with lukewarm water to get the rice water out.
To my surprise the smell has gone immediately.

Now lets wait for it to dry.
Watch a movie and drink some tea.

For as my hair looks when dry, I don't notice much difference when I use normal conditioners.
It maybe has some more volume but it's definately not softer or shinier.

Is it worth a try?
Maybe it works for some people but the effort isn't worth it to my opinion and the smell, even though it doesn't linger, I can't stand it

[sumirechan]

I've read mixed things about this, for one I'm not sure that boiling does stop fermentation? I can't find any reputable sources for this and I know nothing about it personally. Most of my search results were about wine and people were basically saying it's very difficult to stop fermentation, even through boiling. The one technique with wine is very specific that you don't boil the wine, but rather heat the bottles in hot water which changes how the heat disperses. I also saw this technique suggested for rice water in an article that claimed boiling rice water ruins alot of the nutrients in the FRW, they flat out said never boil FRW.

I read a similar article in a website (which I honestly prefer over Hair Buddha): https://naturehelps.me/hair-care/fermented-rice-water-remedies-great-hair which instructs never to boil FRW as "once you boil this liquid – you will get plain water in which all vitamins are gone... From the other hand, liquid can be pasteurized. Pasteurization kills bacteria and the easiest way to do this is microwaving. Exposure to microwaves delivers energy evenly and deeply into the whole liquid, it allows for gentler and shorter heating, so that almost all heat-sensitive substances in the rice water are preserved. So, if you prepared rice water and want it be nutritious to your hair – never boil it before application! Just place it in a fridge to stop fermentation process. If you wish to have nice scent on your hair you can add few drops of essential oils (for example, lavender, rosemary or tea tree oil)." Essentially, it makes sense as bacteria is the cause for fermentation and by boiling it, you kill the bad as well as good bacteria. I wish they had a link to some studies regarding this, but I'm thinking that not boiling the FRW would be suitable if you ferment the rice-rinsing water for only a day or 2. If you ferment it for a week, like I said before, there will be smell issues. :puke: Another thing also, the Red Yao women boil theirs as they add orange peels, pomelo peels, as well as that cake of Camellia seed oil.



Thank you! I am looking forward to watching the other videos you've shared and seeing what I can get from them. I did get one other AWESOME piece of information from the original video you shared. The part where she adds orange peels and "cake of the camellia oil", I was wondering what the heck that was. I mean it looked nothing like camellia oil. So some googling has helped me figure it out. It is called "tea seed cake" or "tea seed round" and is a bi product of making camellia oil, it does not contain the oil, rather the other parts of the seed, which are high in saponins(ie SOAP!). Traditionally it has numerous uses including to wash hair!

"The tea seed rounds have quite a few applications. The two applications I remember from childhood are as fertilizer and as hair soap. I remember my grandma always bought tea seed rounds to wash her hair with. Back then they were easily found in any street markets. Ladies from my grandma's generation wouldn't use shampoo to wash their hair because they said shampoo made their hair too dry. (Back then there were no hair conditioner and the shampoo I believe was just some regular liquid soap). My grandma always said tea seed soap was the best for washing hair because they made her hair soft and silky smooth."

Source - http://derentea.blogspot.ie/2011/10/tea-seed-part-i.html

So it seems like this is probably a pretty important element of the yao womens formula, given they use it to wash their hair. Unfortunately this stuff is pretty much impossible to get for us westerners, the closest I've found is a concentrated shampoo made from the camellia seeds or a refined powder from the seed which is 95% saponins. Both are super expensive.

This is what it says about the powder:

"The use of tea saponin surface activity , can be used as shampoo , detergents, hair dye , body lotion , shampoo and other cleaning reason , not only skin and hair care , anti-inflammatory and anti-itching , dandruff good effect."

Obviously English is not their first language but the claim is that it's good for the scalp as well as washing. An alternative to it might be adding soap nuts or something similar for those wishing to wash their hair with the FRW, that is if the FRW alone is not cutting the mustard.

That's why their FRW acts like a shampoo and conditioner. It's not just the FRW itself, but the other ingredients that they put in, like the orange and pomelo peels, which are cleansing to the hair and scalp and especially the cake of Camellia seed oil. Adding these ingredients alone to the FRW is not enough. I see that they have to boil the mixture along with the raw ingredients.

Camellia oil is very beneficial to the hair. I follow a Reddit community called "Asian Beauty" and one of the products that is highly touted over there is a Japanese product called, "Oshima Tsubaki Hair Care Oil". Tsubaki is Camellia in Japanese. http://www.ratzillacosme.com/hair/best-oshima-tsubaki-oil/ Maybe I'll try looking for organic Camellia oil as this product is not yet available in my country and will add it to my FRW recipe.

[ChloeDharma]

Camellia oil is very beneficial to the hair. I follow a Reddit community called "Asian Beauty" and one of the products that is highly touted over there is a Japanese product called, "Oshima Tsubaki Hair Care Oil". Tsubaki is Camellia in Japanese. http://www.ratzillacosme.com/hair/best-oshima-tsubaki-oil/ Maybe I'll try looking for organic Camellia oil as this product is not yet available in my country and will add it to my FRW recipe.

Camellia oil used to be very popular on this forum years ago, I have often wondered why it's not talked about so much these days.

[mizukitty]

Very interested in this thread. I've been doing some research and figured out the tea seed powder with oil extracted is what enables this liquid to cleanse hair like a shampoo. It is called "茶籽餅." A quick Google searched reveals that this is sold on a popular Chinese marketplace called taobao, and a quick translation of this page here (https://world.taobao.com/item/37937910608.htm?fromSite=main&spm=a1z3o.7695460.0.0.3QGpCj) reveals that it is indeed a way to wash your hair or wash dishes. You simply mix the powder with boiling water and wash away. My current hunch is that the FRW is used to condition, while the camellia cake is used to shampoo. The pomelo I'm unsure about. Perhaps the smell is nice and overpowers the sourness? Do pomelos even have a scent, lol? Anyway, I'm going to make a trip out to NYC Chinatown and see if I can purchase some powder. They have a lot of herbal stores, so I can probably find someone who knows what I'm talking about, as it is still used in China today by elderly people (source - linked site.)

Hope this is helpful. Anyone else got a Chinese market nearby? :) Ohhhh the things we do for our hair...

[sumirechan]

Very interested in this thread. I've been doing some research and figured out the tea seed powder with oil extracted is what enables this liquid to cleanse hair like a shampoo. It is called "茶籽餅." A quick Google searched reveals that this is sold on a popular Chinese marketplace called taobao, and a quick translation of this page here (https://world.taobao.com/item/37937910608.htm?fromSite=main&spm=a1z3o.7695460.0.0.3QGpCj) reveals that it is indeed a way to wash your hair or wash dishes. You simply mix the powder with boiling water and wash away. My current hunch is that the FRW is used to condition, while the camellia cake is used to shampoo. The pomelo I'm unsure about. Perhaps the smell is nice and overpowers the sourness? Do pomelos even have a scent, lol? Anyway, I'm going to make a trip out to NYC Chinatown and see if I can purchase some powder. They have a lot of herbal stores, so I can probably find someone who knows what I'm talking about, as it is still used in China today by elderly people (source - linked site.)

Hope this is helpful. Anyone else got a Chinese market nearby? :) Ohhhh the things we do for our hair...

Shaddock is also known as pomelo. It does have a sweet fragrance to it. It's also known as pink grapefruit, I believe.

[Toffeemonster]

Just a quick post to catch up. Basically I've gone off track and been generally experimenting with loads of natural washing techniques, I have washed my hair too much :(

Anyways the results super summarised are:

1. Brown easy cook rice is no good.

2. Water from cooking rice boiled with orange peel and then left for a week was too acidic and astringent, it left my scalp and anywhere I shaved(I washed my whole body with it) itchy and irritated.

3. I like the smell of FRW, I must be weird.

4. Generally speaking none of the FRW mixes worked well for my hair, they do not clean it any better than plain water and my hair is....well it's ok, but it's as frizzy and dull as with shampoo and there's some sort of grimey buildup. I think this could be due to the fact I live in a hard water area so that is something I'm currently sorting out(Shower filter). No no poo methods have worked for me in the past and this may be why.

5.It is fantastic for my skin, bye bye shower gel.

6. It takes a good 4 days to get a decent FRW in my country right now(15-22 c), and up to 7 is quite bearable in terms of smell.

I will be trying more concoctions with a higher concentration of soapnuts and with my new shower filter, but I won't know how that works for a while.

I'm just curious for now if people who find it works well are more often in soft water areas?

[Nymphe]

Have you tried it with distilled water? Or, with black rice? I plan to try this next month since I did an oat treatment this month.

[mizukitty]

Checking in! I ordered camellia seed powder from aliexpress, and am very impatiently waiting for it to arrive. In the meantime, I have two jars of rice water stored in a dark cabinet indoors, and I'm going to ferment them for about 2-3 weeks. Upon watching some videos more extensively and doing a tad more research, I believe they ferment the water in a porcelain pot (not unlike the pots used to ferment sauerkraut and other similar foods) for about a month, pour it onto a pot on the fire, add camellia powder and dried pomelo skins (which has been used in ancient Vietnam as well (http://www.eastbound88.com/archive/index.php/t-33866.html)), boil it to presumably kill the nasties and infuse the water with pomelo fragrance, oils, etc. (I recall the interviewer girl commenting on her dry hair smelling like "fresh fruit" or something), and then use a small amount of this concoction to rub their hair around in. Leave in for 20-30 mins, and rinse very thoroughly (I gathered this from the woman repeatedly telling the girl to "rinse better" and "rinse the back of the neck"). After that it's just air dried and combed a lot. When my concoction is ready, I'm going to clarify and chelate my hair for a fresh start and then wash it every 3 days as per their tradition. Can't wait :) :) :)

[jaquelines]

What would it be the worse that can happen, if I neither boil, nor put the FRW in the fridge before using it? It makes sense, that boiling will kill bacteria (good and bad)? Would I get eczema on my face/scalp? Like...what is the real danger if I don't boil it? If I refrigerated it for one day before using would make it more safe, I don't mind doing this, but if not-boiling is an option, I would rather not boil the FRW, so I don't kill the good bacteria.

[Hairkay]

What would it be the worse that can happen, if I neither boil, nor put the FRW in the fridge before using it? It makes sense, that boiling will kill bacteria (good and bad)? Would I get eczema on my face/scalp? Like...what is the real danger if I don't boil it? If I refrigerated it for one day before using would make it more safe, I don't mind doing this, but if not-boiling is an option, I would rather not boil the FRW, so I don't kill the good bacteria.

Why would you suddenly get an allergic reaction to rice if you never had an allergy problem that affect the skin before? You're talking about bacteria. The worry is about safe bacteria since the bad ones can cause illness (bacterial infection). That has absolutely nothing to do with allergies.

[jaquelines]

Why would you suddenly get an allergic reaction to rice if you never had an allergy problem that affect the skin before?
I did not mention anything about allergies or allergic reaction. I simply asked "What would it be the worse that can happen, if I neither boil, nor put the FRW in the fridge before using it".

[mizukitty]

I did not mention anything about allergies or allergic reaction. I simply asked "What would it be the worse that can happen, if I neither boil, nor put the FRW in the fridge before using it".

Not a science guy, so please take my advice with a grain of salt, but the longer you ferment it, the more bacteria such as C. Botulinum you invite into it. This normally isn't a problem with boiling since 10 minutes at 175 degrees F or higher destroys it, but with raw FRW, this isn't possible. I would say if you wanted to use it raw, you should ferment it for a day or until it's just a little bit sour. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong!

Edited to add: refrigeration doesn't kill any existing bactera, if I recall correctly. It simply slows down fermentation, just like if you place dough with yeast in the fridge to rise overnight instead of the usual 1-2 hours.

[jaquelines]

Got it! will boil it.:guns:

[Hairkay]

I did not mention anything about allergies or allergic reaction. I simply asked "What would it be the worse that can happen, if I neither boil, nor put the FRW in the fridge before using it".

You also used eczema as an example of what you thought would be worst that could happen. Most eczema is a result of allergic reactions.

[Toffeemonster]

Nymph my last batch I used with my new shower filter but honestly at that stage I had so much stuff going on with my hair(potential build up) and other ingredients in the mix that I can't say if it agreed with my hair or not.

I think mizukittys approach with clarifying the hair will get clearer results, my hair was already all over the place and then I went all mad scientist, out stealing leaves off birch trees for my hair potions lol It made for a confusing few weeks as far as my hair is concerned.

In terms of leaving the FRW longer periods....I've changed my mind on that. My last batch was accidently left too long and oh.my.word.... it was about 10 days I think, and it smelled worse than the worst mix of sewage and sweat you can imagine, and there was stuff floating in it. Now that was probably way worse because the rice was left in it, as I believe that speeds up fermentation. But still it turned very quickly in the last couple of days from "ok that's some pungent rice water" to "quick get the gas masks! the house is contaminated!"

I am excited to see the results of different techniques for longer fermentation from the other ladies though, you never know there might be some magic trick that results in some fantastic frw.

[Flipgirl24]

I tried vinegar rinses (ACV, raspberry vinegar from a Korean brand) and weirdly enough, it doesn't do anything for my hair. It always leaves it dry and frizzier. I was sad with the result of the raspberry vinegar, because that product really smelled so yummy! Maybe I'll try Mirin some other time, but I'm assuming that I'm going to get the same result.

As for the process of making FRW, it's not a hassle for me as I eat rice everyday. So, I always have rice water readily available. In fact, here in the household, we use the second rice water washing for soups like Tinola and Sinigang.

Off topic but my favourite food is Sinigang! I love Tinola too.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

I have been watching this thread for a while now and I think I shall give this a try. I soaked my rice overnight, washed it out this evening. Placed the rinsed rice water in the refrigerator, cooked my rice. Now I guess I have to boil this water before use?

[sumirechan]

Putting it in the refrigerator slows down the fermentation process. If you left it in the fridge for a day, I don't think you will need to boil your fermented rice water.

Also, when I did my experiment where I fermented my rice water for only a day and used it as is, I didn't boil my rice water. If I'm adding orange peels, tea, and essential oils, I need to boil the mixture.

[sumirechan]

Off topic but my favourite food is Sinigang! I love Tinola too.

Haha! They're quite tasty!

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Thank you for your reply to my post sumirechan

[sumirechan]

Thank you for your reply to my post sumirechan

You're welcome! Good luck with your experiments! :D

[jaquelines]

I have tried FRW but I did not see any results. I confess at the same time I have tried for the first time to wash my hair with oatmel and my hair looked after all this a bit greasy.
I don't know if I actually ruined my FRW. It fermented for about 2 weeks and when I saw what's inside the glass (see pic), I got so scared that I've boiled the FRW for about 30 min. Really really hard boiling.
What do you think? Can it be that I've over-boiled the FRW and destroyed its "powers" ?
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=24770&d=1475153977
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=24771&d=1475153987

[Nymphe]

Why not work your way to longer periods of fermentation, meaning start with one day and try it, then two, etc. Maybe remove anything floating on top, then strain the liquid with a coffee filter. Pasteurization only take a few seconds, like 15 under boiling point (simmering).

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Did my first fermented rice water today. Left it on my hair for 25 minutes. My hair is still drying and feels awesomely soft. Will see how it is tomorrow

[Decoy24601]

I'm doing another FRW soak tomorrow or the day after. I had wonderful results with this before, but I kept having an issue of forgetting about my rice and ending up having it stink up my apartment... so I banned myself from doing it for a little while.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

I'm doing another FRW soak tomorrow or the day after. I had wonderful results with this before, but I kept having an issue of forgetting about my rice and ending up having it stink up my apartment... so I banned myself from doing it for a little while.

Good luck Decoy24601 I did my first FRW soak yesterday and had wonderful results too

[Decoy24601]

Good luck Decoy24601 I did my first FRW soak yesterday and had wonderful results too

Thank you! It went well :). I clarified my hair since it needed that anyways. My hair feels wonderful even though I didn't use conditioner after clarifying, only the FRW soak. My scalp and hair likes being sulfate-free, but using lots of oils and conditioners (even cone-free) is still too much for my hair without using harsh sulfates, since my hair gets buildup very easily. I find that the less product/oil on my hair, minus my natural sebum, the better my hair feels. I plan on trying an herbal shampoo with soapnuts, shikakai, and FRW in a couple weeks when I can get the ingredients. I'm also trying different combinations of tea rinses.

My hair seems to like teas/herbs a lot more than oils/butters/cones/etc.

I do have a good cone-free sulfate-free routine that I can fall back on now, which is allowing me to experiment without worrying about finding something that fits quite as much.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

I think when I do my next FRW soak I shall omit the conditioner at the end of my hair wash process. Just to seek if I can go that route

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Hi.
Does anyone with henna dyed hair use the FRW
As I am noticing the colour in my rinse. Even today and this is the second FRW soak that I have done

[TatsuOni]

Hi.
Does anyone with henna dyed hair use the FRW
As I am noticing the colour in my rinse. Even today and this is the second FRW soak that I have done

I hendigo and I can't say that the color disappers quicker with FRW for me. My hair bleeds henna the first two to three washes after I've dyed it and then it stops. It was the same before FRW for me.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Thank you TatsuOni I guess it is normal. This is my second wash After henna

[Annalouise]

I've decided to try this method. I'm going to do the 24 hour room temperature fermented rice water. Has anyone been doing this for a long time?

[Annalouise]

Well, my rice water has been sitting there for almost two days and no fermentation. What is going on? It's supposed to ferment!:hmm:

[Nymphe]

Well, my rice water has been sitting there for almost two days and no fermentation. What is going on? It's supposed to ferment!:hmm:

What does it look like? Where do you have it fermenting?

I started my rice water today; it looks like watered-down milk.

[Annalouise]

Nymphe - it started to ferment after 48 hours! It looks like watery milk. At 48 hours it didn't bubble but it has a slightly "off" smell to it.
So I strained it and put it in the fridge to stop the fermentation. I think I'll shampoo my hair, then put it on my clean hair and leave it on for 15 min or so, and do a scalp massage, and then rinse it out. Let me know how it goes for you.:)

[Annalouise]

I rinsed my hair with fermented rice water after shampooing (I had oil in my hair I had to wash out first). I didn't put a conditioner on.
I gotta say.... verrry interesting. My hair is soft, fluffy and tangle free without having used a conditioner.:bow: Me likey...

[Ginger Power]

I am definitely going to try this ! :o (but first I have to buy some decent rice ahah)

[Nymphe]

Mine had the off scent this morning, but I am going to use it tomorrow. I poured it into another container, leaving the dregs behind. Another day ferment will not kill me and I want to pick up another applicator bottle for stinky concoctions.

[Annalouise]

You can put it in the fridge to stop the fermentation. That's what I did. Mine wasn't really stinky.

[TatsuOni]

If I feel that my water has fermented pretty much enough but still plan on waiting another day before washing, I put a lid on my jar and it slows down the process. (I don't live in a hot country).

[Nymphe]

I put a lid on mine and stuck it in the frig last afternoon. The scent hadn't change at all, not bad, very faint.

[Nymphe]

OK, hair is just about dry, so I can review it. I used a applicator bottle to saturate my hair, massaging it in thoroughly. My hair is fine, no scent, nothing special. My scalp treated it like a face toner; it still feels light and refreshed. All I did was the water, no additional oils or anything so I could see the results. I would do it again just to refresh my scalp. :D

[Annalouise]

Nymphe - do you feel that it cleansed your scalp? I did mine after a shampoo so I couldn't tell if the rice water was cleansing.

[Nymphe]

Nymphe - do you feel that it cleansed your scalp? I did mine after a shampoo so I couldn't tell if the rice water was cleansing.

I do not consider it a cleanser at all; my sebum/oil was reduced, but not a shampoo/soap clean. It felt more like a moisturizing toner, if that makes sense, refreshed, not dry.

[Nymphe]

OK, this is weird - I woke up with an oily scalp. My scalp never gets oily that quick! For my hair, I desperately need that extra sebum. I am definitely trying this again soon.

I am going to use the rest as a skin toner and make a fresh batch in a few days.

[Annalouise]

I think it also made my scalp more oily. Usually I can go 3 days without washing my hair but on day two I had to wash my hair.
I didn't have time to use the rice water so I did a regular shampoo/cond. I'll try the rice water again probably on Monday and see what happens.

[Lizzie.torp]

I did a fermented rice water rinse and my hair was extra tangly and unmanageable. Is that normal?

[Nymphe]

I did a fermented rice water rinse and my hair was extra tangly and unmanageable. Is that normal?

No. Maybe it lifted your cuticle layer? What did you do exactly?

[Annalouise]

I decided to stop my fermented rice water experiment. Not because of anything negative that happened, its just that I'm paranoid. My hair is already very thin and fine and I don't want to encourage any hair loss by switching things up too much...
But I will be watching how it works for you folks. :popcorn:
Hubby is giving me a hard time. I was doing rotten yogurt facial masks ...(not deliberately, the yogurt was turned and I didn't want to waste it). And then putting fermented rice water on my face and hair, so hubby started making jokes about me putting rotten food on myself. Oh well, I guess he does have a point. Sometimes I do get carried away with the experiments.:D

[Nymphe]

I can understand that. Stuff like this is a "sometimes" thing for most. I cannot use most commercial products, so I experiment.

My DH minds his own business, thank the Lord. I do not tell him what I am doing; he never asks and never touches any concoction I have going on. My children may ask "what is that" on occasion, but are like their dad, minding business.

[Annalouise]

I can understand that. Stuff like this is a "sometimes" thing for most. I cannot use most commercial products, so I experiment.

My DH minds his own business, thank the Lord. I do not tell him what I am doing; he never asks and never touches any concoction I have going on. My children may ask "what is that" on occasion, but are like their dad, minding business.

Smart. My mistake is telling hubby what I'm doing. Then the jokes.....:p
I can't use most commercial products either due to the fragrance issue.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Besides LHC no one else knows that I use FRW on my hair.

[Ginger Power]

Okay so I did a massive mistake and I hope you all get a good laugh from it ! :bluebiggr:rolleyes:

I decided to try the "simple method" by taking rice water from rice that had just been cooked... I applied it on my hair, let it sink in for 15 minutes (I was a bit on a hurry) and then washed it all out... but as I started drying my hair in a towel, I immediately noticed it was super dry.
"Honey... tell me, you did NOT put any salt into the rice water, did you ???" "Yes of course, why ?"
:blueeek::disbelief:shake::boohoo:

It will teach me for having my man cook all the time... :nono:


Well, next time I'll try the real method ! Maybe it'll get something othen than multiple knots ! :cool: #ImFabulous

[Nymphe]

Okay so I did a massive mistake and I hope you all get a good laugh from it ! :bluebiggr:rolleyes:

I decided to try the "simple method" by taking rice water from rice that had just been cooked... I applied it on my hair, let it sink in for 15 minutes (I was a bit on a hurry) and then washed it all out... but as I started drying my hair in a towel, I immediately noticed it was super dry.
"Honey... tell me, you did NOT put any salt into the rice water, did you ???" "Yes of course, why ?"
:blueeek::disbelief:shake::boohoo:

It will teach me for having my man cook all the time... :nono:


Well, next time I'll try the real method ! Maybe it'll get something othen than multiple knots ! :cool: #ImFabulous

Teehee! I poured mine into two different containers to leave the dregs behind. Did not want rice bits in my hair.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Okay so I did a massive mistake and I hope you all get a good laugh from it ! :bluebiggr:rolleyes:

I decided to try the "simple method" by taking rice water from rice that had just been cooked... I applied it on my hair, let it sink in for 15 minutes (I was a bit on a hurry) and then washed it all out... but as I started drying my hair in a towel, I immediately noticed it was super dry.
"Honey... tell me, you did NOT put any salt into the rice water, did you ???" "Yes of course, why ?"
:blueeek::disbelief:shake::boohoo:

It will teach me for having my man cook all the time... :nono:


Well, next time I'll try the real method ! Maybe it'll get something othen than multiple knots ! :cool: #ImFabulous

Sorry about that Ginger Power
But we all learn from mistakes be it ours or someone else. Sending you some hugs

[Ginger Power]

Sorry about that Ginger Power
But we all learn from mistakes be it ours or someone else. Sending you some hugs
Oh you're nice, but don't worry it's no big deal. :) My hair survived quite well ! I'll be careful next time ! :o


A little update : I did the water with rice mixture yesterday evening and I'm still waiting for the fermentation. It appears to be a really slow process... :confused:

[TatsuOni]

Oh you're nice, but don't worry it's no big deal. :) My hair survived quite well ! I'll be careful next time ! :o


A little update : I did the water with rice mixture yesterday evening and I'm still waiting for the fermentation. It appears to be a really slow process... :confused:

It takes around 48 hours for my water to ferment.

[whimsicalfaerie]

What's the consensus on application methods for FRW? Do you wash before or after, and do you leave it in or rinse it out? How long do you leave it in?

I have mine fermenting right now and am excited to try it. Mine has been going for about a week.

By the way...I do other ferments for eating (water and milk kefir, kombucha, sourdough, sauerkraut, etc.) and generally each ferment has a stage where the good bacteria take over the bad. For instance, sourdough starter will smell kind of "off" for the first week or so until the good bacteria and yeast take over and give that good "sour" smell. Sauerkraut takes 7-10 days as well to go from atomic fart smell to yummy kraut smell. I don't know where those stages land for FRW, but I'd be curious to know how long it's traditionally fermented. Ancient cultures are remarkable in their ability to create shelf-stable food products without refrigeration.

[Ginger Power]

I have a good feedback to share on this method ! :D Although I might have done this differently from you, again. :o

I used brown rice and the water didn't turn out white like you can see it on the video. The "white" colour is obtained because of the starch contained in the rice and it's mainly starch that has hair properties (makes it shiny, soft, etc.). So I wasn't sure it'll do anything but I decided to try it anyway. I used it like I'd do for a hair water rince, so I soaked my hair with the rice water but didn't rince it (I'm crazy, I know, but I always want to try things out :rolleyes:). Of course my hair turned out a little bit greasy so next morning I washed it (with Sidr and Shikakai) and OH MIRACLE, my hair became really soft, light, shiny and very very hydrated ! :D

I guess I did what we could call a "water rice mask" as it stayed in my hair overnight... and the result is amazing ! Next time I'll try it with white rice and/or rince it immediately to see the difference but so far I'm totally satisfied. I might incorporate this in my routine. :)

[lapushka]

Adding this video link! Very informative!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiRnjNiwgNQ

[sumirechan]

Adding this video link! Very informative!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiRnjNiwgNQ

I just checked back in now after awhile! Thanks for the updated and informative video link. I like the "sciencey" explanation on how rice water helps hair growth.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Thank you lapushka for the video link.

[Nymphe]

I am trying a new way to keep my supply of FRW constant with minimal work: I keep my batch in the fridge, remove the small amounts I need with an applicator bottle, then adding the same amount (I had just removed) of fresh water to the FRW. The rice sediment will continue to break out and ferment, so I can keep it going. When the sediment is gone and the jar is mostly empty, I will make a new batch. I will let you now how it goes.

[likelikepenny]

I am trying a new way to keep my supply of FRW constant with minimal work: I keep my batch in the fridge, remove the small amounts I need with an applicator bottle, then adding the same amount (I had just removed) of fresh water to the FRW. The rice sediment will continue to break out and ferment, so I can keep it going. When the sediment is gone and the jar is mostly empty, I will make a new batch. I will let you now how it goes.

Very interested to know how this works. I'm considering using it once a month as a sort of protein treatment? Has anyone tried this? I have low porosity and wondering if this would help my hair without making it hard.

[Nymphe]

Very interested to know how this works. I'm considering using it once a month as a sort of protein treatment? Has anyone tried this? I have low porosity and wondering if this would help my hair without making it hard.

It actually softens my hair a bit, but it seems way too light for a true protein treatment.

[likelikepenny]

It actually softens my hair a bit, but it seems way too light for a true protein treatment.

Interesting. I guess the only way to know if my hair likes it is to try it out. :D

[DreamingFlowers]

I can't wait to try this... Does it matter if you use white or brown rice?

[Nymphe]

I can't wait to try this... Does it matter if you use white or brown rice?

You can; just make sure you rinse it well before soaking. I prefer the instant white rice because it is already clean (and cheap). I like to eat the brown.

[DreamingFlowers]

Oh okay, thanks for the tip! I'm all for saving money too, so that sounds perfect :) I was just soaking some beans and usually discard the water, but it got me wondering whether anyone has ever tried that water for their hair...

[Nymphe]

Oh okay, thanks for the tip! I'm all for saving money too, so that sounds perfect :) I was just soaking some beans and usually discard the water, but it got me wondering whether anyone has ever tried that water for their hair...

Oh, and you can reuse the rice; I keep mine in the freezer until I need another batch.

Soak water from beans, hmm. The only problem I have with that are the chemicals that keep the beans dormant. What would they do to the follicles? I wonder...

[girlunlucky]

I've heard good things about this! Definitely going to try

[dvep]

Does anyone know if there's a line of fermentation that shouldn't be crossed? Mine smells more than just a little sour, it's pungent. I'm letting it soak now and will report the results after!

[Nymphe]

Does anyone know if there's a line of fermentation that shouldn't be crossed? Mine smells more than just a little sour, it's pungent. I'm letting it soak now and will report the results after!

I ferment for 2-3 days, then fridge. Some have done longer, not me.

[girlunlucky]

I feel like I did something wrong, with the fermenting maybe.. But my hair didn't feel soft at all afterwards.

[dvep]

So the highly fermented rice water definitely didn't destroy my hair, but it's dried rather frizzy. Next time I'll try to use it right as it gets that faint sourness. My hair isn't as soft as it could be, but maybe I'm comparing it to how my hair is after oiling. Can't wait to do this again next week and see if I can get it right!

[TatsuOni]

I ferment mine for two to three days, but if you live in a warmer country, the fermentation process will probably be faster.

[Nymphe]

Since I started using this, the elasticity of my hair has improved. I can stretch a strand pretty far and it snaps back, hard to break as well.

[Meredith_Sulok]

I saw this mentioned recently and thought I'd post here asking if anyone has tried it.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po0LM1cTIV8&feature=youtu.be

I followed this exact video and I am quite pleased by the results. First wash with rice water, and my hair became very soft and manageable. Just washed my hair today (the second wash this week but without rice water) and my hair is still as soft as I washed it the first day. And between my no washes, my scalp wasn't as greasy as before.

[Ophidian]

Since I started using this, the elasticity of my hair has improved. I can stretch a strand pretty far and it snaps back, hard to break as well.

That's awesome!

I tried fermented rice water once but I overfermented it by about 24 hours and ummm... the smell was less than ideal... I plan to try it again sometime, letting it go a little sour but not quite as much as I did before :)

[Aredhel]

Does anyone know if the type of rice (ex., brown, white) makes a difference? :) I've heard of this method before and I have yet to watch the video, so please forgive me if that has already been answered!

[Nymphe]

That's awesome!

I tried fermented rice water once but I overfermented it by about 24 hours and ummm... the smell was less than ideal... I plan to try it again sometime, letting it go a little sour but not quite as much as I did before :)

I have done up to 3 days, the smell does not bother me. Straight neem oil will always smell worse, ugh.


Does anyone know if the type of rice (ex., brown, white) makes a difference? :) I've heard of this method before and I have yet to watch the video, so please forgive me if that has already been answered!

Any rice will do. I use cheap, instant white rice, since I had some and no one wanted to eat it. I even reuse the rice, storing it in the freezer until it is time for another batch.

[Bedhead]

Hello,

SparrowWings from the NW/SO thread asked me to report back to this group once I tried washing with fermented rice water.

First a little background. I have been NW/SO for 5 years, and in that time have "washed" my hair with water 3 or 4 times, including this one. So, my hair has absolutely nothing it in to confuse with anything else.

Second, I always soak my rice, and grains for a couple days to aid in digestibility. This is the traditional way, before mass production of bread became a thing. Soaking rids the grains of phytates and other toxins that stop animals from digesting the grain so that it comes out in the stool and gets planted for the plants' survival. Once these are gone, it makes the grain's nutrients more accessible to us and digesting it is easy. I highly recommend it!

And third, I think the type of rice matters... somewhat. I usually eat the organic Lundberg short grain brown rice, and the fermented water is more sour than what I experimented with in this wash - I used an organic Arborio rice, which is short grain white rice, i.e. no hull. The water with the Arborio rice was visibly fermenting despite its lesser sour scent.

Okay, so down to the wash. This is what I wrote in the NW/SO thread:


Saying that, my hair is soft, not completely stripped, and holy! Curly!!! The way it got when I used to use mouse kind of curly. Ha ha! ... My scalp still has a very thin layer of sebum on it, probably half of what was there before the wash, and my hair just feels... fluffier, for lack of a better word. It's not flyaway, nor staticky. It's lifted up higher off of my scalp than with NW/SO and actually with most shampoo/conditioners I've used. It did not rinse out 100% - maybe 93%, but I already read that it wouldn't, and I'm okay with that, it's not like that stinky clarifier I used whose smell lingered for 2 weeks from all the chemical perfumes. My hair smells like hair, nothing more. It's that fruity smell my hair changed to once it transitioned, nothing to do with the rice water. Plus, this is loaded with nutrients. Who wants to argue with getting nutrients?! Besides, I'm sure as I preen, a lot more will come out.

I didn't enjoy the wetness... at all, but I think I've found my washing method!!!!!!

So that it! If I washed my hair regularly, I thin this is what I'd use all the time. In fact, I had decided with wash my hair on the Spring Equinox and the Winter Solstice, and this is what I'm going to use, although, I think I'll stick to my Lundberg rice.

Hope that helps! Have a great day! :)

EDIT: I meant Fall Equinox, not Winter - too cold for wet hair!!! Brr!

[Nymphe]

Thanks for the feedback, Bedhead. Let us know how it works in the long run.

[Bedhead]

Thanks for the feedback, Bedhead. Let us know how it works in the long run.

Will do Nymphe! I'll see you again in September then for my second wash. ;-)

[Ophidian]

I just used rice water as the base for my shikakai+amla wash. It's still drying but I think I really like it :).

[SparrowWings]

I've been researching rice lately (types, cooking methods, growing regions, etc), largely because arsenic came up as a topic during a get together, and apparently rice tends to absorb it quite readily. And since arsenic can absorb through skin contact, it's not only a concern for eating. Washing hair certainly involves skin contact, so have any of you done any research related to washing with arsenic-laden water? I'm guessing it might be a non-issue, given arsenic's high water solubility, but since the way to get arsenic out of rice is to soak and/or cook with extra water and drain, and it's that soaking and/or extra water which has the extracted/dissolved arsenic that's used for hair, it has made me curious!

[Reyesuela]

I wouldn't be worried about it. The amount of arsenic absorbed through skin should would mean that the rice would have to be deadly for the water to have any effect.

[Zemeraldite]

I have no idea, my mum (asian) always used to go on about how rice water is great, but i've never tried
rice water or not, I love her hair tho

[Reyesuela]

Eeeenteresting info... Lactobacillus improves the appearance of skin and may prevent hair loss. That's the major type of bacteria in truly fermented rice water.

[KeenAbby]

Not yet but I have a link that I saved moths ago...

https://naturehelps.me/hair-care/fermented-rice-water-remedies-great-hair

[- Lizzy -]

I have done it maybe 2 or 3 times. Once I accidentally fermented it too long and it smelled like dirty diapers :disgust:. I haven't done it lately because with wo washing idk if the sour smell will come out.

[jaquelines]

This is a major question on all ladies who have followed this thread. I raised earlier the question about how long to boil the fermented rice water in order to destroy the "bad bacteria" and if I could use it without boiling. Without any scientific background I thought on one hand that boiling the FRW will destroy also the good properties of the fermentation, on the other hand the question is open if it can be dangerous (someone mentioned contact dermatitis) to use the FRW without boiling it, especially since I let mine ferment longer than 2 weeks.
This link advises to NOT boil the water and the explanation that it will turn it into basically plain water is logical for me. This is why I never boil my tea rinses, or as a matter of fact I never boil any water when I drink tea. I use a maximum of 90 degrees Celsius (of course less for green/black tea). At the same time the link advises to place the FRW in to the fridge to stop the fermentation, which I know, after reading so much about it and doing the math, it won't stop the fermentation. It's not sub zero refrigerator, the normal recommended temperature in a refrigerator is around 7 degrees Celsius, so at least this presumption in the link is faulty, it won't stop the fermentation for sure. It will though probably slow it down.
It comes down to IMHO one/two important questions - will boiling destroy the "good" bacteria and vitamins and is it dangerous to use it straight without boiling it. Just diluting.


Not yet but I have a link that I saved moths ago...

https://naturehelps.me/hair-care/fermented-rice-water-remedies-great-hair

[Reyesuela]

I'd keep a lactobacillus "mother" like with sourdough to make sure it stays good.

[jaquelines]

Hi Reyesuela, what do you mean by that. What should I add to FRW? Do you mean something like a Lactobacillus powder? Found this online for ex (it is a random choosing, the first thing that popped out on my search) - http://www.customprobiotics.com/l-acidophilus-powder.html
If so, should I keep the ratio from the description? 1-2 scoops to one glas FRW?

Is it also your opinion that boiling it will destroy also the bad bacteria?


I'd keep a lactobacillus "mother" like with sourdough to make sure it stays good.

[Reyesuela]

Boiling would destroy ALL the bacteria. Lol.

I have lots of good bacteria floating around the house. If the kids stash a cup of milk in their rooms, it's yogurt in 2 days. But I would start with a powder if I didn't. Keep some back from every wash and feed it with molasses.

https://brodandtaylor.com/how-to-maintain-a-yogurt-culture/

[jaquelines]

Right now I have one week old FRW stored.It already smells funny and has (as usual when it starts to ferment) things floating around. If I understand it right, adding molasses to the batch, would kill the bad bacteria?
I also use FRW for my face. Every other day I take out a few spoons out of the jar, dilute it a bit with distilled water and use it on the face. This is why, since I have no deep knowledge background and the different instructions found on the internet, I am a bit concerned as to properly using FRW for its benefits, without infecting my skin with some weird bad bacteria floating around.


Boiling would destroy ALL the bacteria. Lol.

I have lots of good bacteria floating around the house. If the kids stash a cup of milk in their rooms, it's yogurt in 2 days. But I would start with a powder if I didn't. Keep some back from every wash and feed it with molasses.

https://brodandtaylor.com/how-to-maintain-a-yogurt-culture/