Isothermal calorimetry allows rice cooking to be simulated directly at various temperatures in excess water. The signal can be interpreted as the sum of the thermal effect of the starch gelatinization, which obeys first-order kinetics, and of a further process that can be tentatively related to water diffusion. This effect is greatly reduced in ground rice, as revealed by comparing the behaviour of whole and ground rice samples. Determinations of water uptake seem to confirm this hypothesis. The enthalpy of gelatinization drawn from these data can be matched with that from non-isothermal DSC investigations carried out at low heating rate (<0.5 degrees C min(-1)). Analogous results and conclusions can be drawn from non-isothermal DSC investigations carried out on partially pregelatinized samples.