Info - rice
1 Servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| **** NO E ***** | ||
Directions
Choosing the right rice for a recipe is simple: If your recipe calls for rice that absorbs flavors well select a mild-tasting white rice such as Valencia. If you want one with a flavor that stands on its own pick an aromatic rice such as basmati or Wehani. If chewiness is what you're looking for choose a brown rice.
When it comes to texture remember this: Short-grain rice cooks up sticky medium grain, moist and tender; long grain dry and separate. * Most health-conscious cooks prefer brown rice, which is less processed than polished white rice and has twice as much fiber five times as much vitamin E and three times as much magnesium. However, white rice is fortified with iron and thiamine, which makes it superior in those nutrients. It has been recommended that using both white and brown rice will add variety to your menus.
Arborio: A medium-grain, refined, white Italian rice used to make risotto.
Arborio develops a creamy texture and chewy center as it cooks.
Mild-tasting arborio soaks up flavors.
Basmati: A long-grain aromatic rice grown in India and Pakistan. Available brown or polished, basmati has a delicate nutty flavor and alluring scent.
Cooked grains remain separate and dry. Used in making Indian dishes including pulao and biryani.
Black Japonica: A medium-grain rice with a black bran that splits when cooked to reveal a greyish-white interior. Earthy tasting Black Japonica is most commonly available in gourmet rice blends and is suitable for stuffings and pilafs.
Brown Rice: Short, medium and long grain. Tan color, nutty flavor and chewy texture. Short-grain brown rice cooks up sticky and is perfect for making sushi and other Japanese dishes and rice puddings. Cooked medium-grain brown rice is moist and tender, with a hint of stickiness. Long-grain brown rice becomes fluffy and dry when cooked; grains remain separate. Long-grain and medium-grain brown rice are interchangeable in recipes and are ideal for making fried rice, bean and rice dishes, stir-fries, stuffings, pilafs and salads.
Jasmine: A long-grain aromatic rice originally grown in Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia. Available brown or polished, jasmine is similar to basmati but has a softer, starchier texture and a more flowery fragrance.
Jasmine is perfect in Thai curries and other Southeast Asian dishes.
Sweet Brown Rice: Not to be confused with short-grain brown rice, sweet brown or "glutinous" rice is sweeter and very sticky when cooked. It's most often used in making desserts.
Valencia: A polished, medium-grain Spanish rice used in making paella. Like arborio, Valencia rice readily absorbs other flavors and has a core that remains al dente when cooked.
Wehani: A long-grain aromatic rice with a mahogany colored bran. Wehani has a nutty scent and buttery flavor, which makes it perfect for stuffings, pilafs and salads.
Wild Rice: Not a true rice, wild rice is a type of aquatic grass seed. The one-inch-long blackish- brown grains have a distinctive woodsy aroma and earthy flavor perfect for stuffings and pilafs. Grains cook up separate and dry. Since it's expensive, wild rice is often blended with other rice varieties.
To create the perfect pot of rice: Rinse rice in several changes of cold water until water runs clear (omit this step if you're using white rice, as rinsing washes away some of the enrichment). Transfer rice to a saucepan.
Add two parts liquid (water or stock) to one part rice, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until liquid is absorbed, about 20 to 25 minutes for polished rice; 40 to 45 minutes for brown rice. One cup raw rice yields two cups cooked rice.
Posted to Digest eat-lf.v096.n218 Date: Thu, 14 Nov 1996 09:04:17 -0800 From: Reggie Dwork <reggie@...>