Look up the Backyard Chef on YT - he’s a patronising bastard, but his recipes are legit and his rice pudding is sublime! An old fashioned plain cook and a very good one. What he can with 3 potatoes, half a cabbage and a rasher of bacon is little short of astounding.
I like a good rice pud - but a bad one is truly horrible and I can quite see why it might not have suited you back then. Let me know if you want the recipe that I use.