The instruction to rinse rice 'until the water runs clear' has a precise functional purpose: removing excess surface starch. Unmilled rice grains carry a coating of loose starch that, if not washed away, causes the grains to clump and stick during cooking — producing the dense, indistinct texture the judges criticised in Ismail's khichuri. Rinsing under cold running water, or repeatedly soaking and draining, removes that surface starch and allows the grains to cook separately. For a dish like khichuri, where rice and lentils cook together in the same pan, rinsing them separately before combining is important: lentils carry their own starch coating, and combining them unwashed with rice creates a double layer of excess starch in the cooking water. Consistently clear rinse water is the signal that enough surface starch has been removed. Rinsed grains also absorb cooking water more evenly, reducing the risk of mushy outer layers and undercooked centres.