Rice is staple food in many countries. And for good reason! Rice is very nutritious – when eaten in the right form. It is such a pity that the beauty of food took precedence over it’s nutritive value, and today brown rice is consumed only by the health conscious.

There are many, many varieties of rice.

Unpolished, red matta rice is the raw version of the parboiled rice that is commonly consumed in Kerala and Tamil nadu.

Most other varieties of rice, when unpolished, are usually a lighter brown and are commonly called Brown rice.

Unpolished rice retains the most nutritive content of the grain. Rice is very nutritious. It has selenium, manganese, naturally occurring oils, antioxidants and is also rich in fiber. Click here to read about the benefits of eating brown rice. Those who initially experiment with brown rice find the texture unappealing, but with a little practice it is possible to cook it so it is soft.

‘Red rice’ as it is commonly called, is parboiled rice. This is red rice which is boiled with it’s husk on, before being polished. Because of the boiling, the rice absorbs the nutrition from the husk. So, while this rice is definitely more nutritious than white rice, it contains less fibre than unpolished rice. Some Brahmin communities in India do not eat twice cooked foods, and this rice is avoided by them as it has been boiled once already.

There are really many, many varieties of rice in the world. Believe it or not, 90,000 types of rice are known of, out of which 40,000 types are cultivated in the world. Here are a few varieties that we commonly use.

Sona masuri rice is the most popular variety in Karnataka. It is typical to find 4-5 grades of this rice. It’s grain is fairly short and it has a soft texture if cooked right.

Basmati rice is used very commonly in North India. Good quality Basmati rice has very, very long grain, almost an inch long. Basmati rice has a wonderful aroma and is usually soaked for half an hour before cooking so that each grain is separate when it is cooked by boiling. If you are making pulao/ pilaf or biryani, this is the best rice to use.

Jasmine rice comes from Thailand and has a delicate, floral aroma. It is usually cooked by steaming or by absorption method. The texture of cooked Jasmine rice is usually soft and slightly sticky. This is the rice you should use if you are making a South East Asian dish.

Risotto rice (Arborio) is from Italy and is used in making risottos. This rice is usually cooked very slowly, adding boiling water or stock ladle by ladle. The result is a very creamy rice texture.

When see advertisements of rice on TV, they flaunt how white and shiny the rice looks. This is nothing to celebrate. The whiteness of the grain tells you how much goodness you have scrubbed off the grain.

Most people eat it because they are simply used to it. But when you think about it, it is such a pointless exercise – you take rice, carefully scrape off all it’s nutrition, and then you eat it. Later, you pay big money to the vendors to sell you tablets which were made from the scraped off nutrition, to fix your health. Is it worth it?

The Nutrition

The process that produces brown rice removes only the outermost layer i.e. the hull of the rice kernel and is the least damaging to its nutritional value. The complete milling and polishing that converts brown rice into white rice destroys 67% of the vitamin B3, 80% of vitamin B1, 90% of the vitamin B6, 50% of manganese, 50% of phosphorus, 60% of iron, and all of the dietary fiber and essential fatty acids. Brown rice as an excellent source of manganese, and a good source of the minerals selenium and magnesium.

The nutrients that brown rice contains are:

• Manganese-energy production plus antioxidant protection
• Rich in fiber and selenium
• Phyto nutrients with health-promoting activity equal to or even higher than that of vegetables and fruits

Benefits of eating Brown Rice:

Good for weight loss

White rice just makes a sticky mess inside your digestive tract because it is refined. Brown rice on the other hand, provides your body fiber, to smooth out the movement in the tract. This means better digestion and thereby lower weight.

Cardiovascular Benefits

Multiple studies have shown that brown rice can lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). It is also proven that brown rice helps to maintain normal cholesterol and blood sugar levels. The lignans in brown rice also protect again heart disease. It also reduces the risk of heart attach and stroke.

Reduces Type 2 Diabetes

Studies conducted in India showed that substituting white rice with brown rice for daily consumption helped significantly reduce glucose levels and lower serum insulin. This single change in food habit led to a 20% reduction in glucose levels and 60% reduction in the fasting insulin concentration.

Other Health Benefits

• Protective against breast cancer
• Reduces risk of metabolic syndrome
• Reduces the severity of asthma
• Reduces frequency of migraine headaches
• Reduces risk of heart attack and stroke

Further Reading:

WHFoods Brown rice
The Health Benefits of Whole Grains

Most of the world cooks rice by dropping it in boiling water. Things are a bit different in India, where we use pressure cookers, which change things up. I will talk about both methods of cooking here. Obviously, different varieties of rice need to be cooked differently. Basmati takes a lot less water, sona masuri, depending on it’s age, can take even more water than mentioned here, and brown rice takes double the time to cook.

Usually, 1 cup of rice is enough for 2 people.

The Pressure-Cooker Method

When using pressure cooker, people use two methods of checking. Most women count the ‘whistles’, which means the number of whistles after the first whistle. I know that some women cook on the max setting throughout, but I prefer to reduce the flame to minimum after the first whistle.

Proportions:
Basmati Rice: 1 cup rice, 1 cup water
Sona Masoori Rice: 1 cup rice, 2 cups water
Brown Rice: 1 cup rice, 3 cups water

Method:

• Wash the rice twice.
• Put the rice into the pressure cooker and add the water.
• Cook on high flame until the first whistle.
• TIME: Reduce the flame to minimum and cook for 5 minutes. (10 min for brown rice)

OR

• WHISTLE: Reduce the flame and cook until the next whistle.

Note: If you have an induction cook top, you will need to place the rice inside of another vessel within the pressure cooker, otherwise the rice at the bottom will burn.

The Open Cooking Method

• Wash the rice twice.
• For cooking 1 cup rice, bring about 4-5 cups of water to a boil.
• Pour the rice in, let it come to a boil again and then reduce the flame and let it simmer.
• Do NOT cover the vessel unless you are standing right next to it, or the foam will push the lid over and spill.
•  Boil for exactly 10 min (brown rice might take a bit more than 20).
• Inspect the grain of rice – if there is a ridge along the length of the grain, then it is cooked well. Taste about 1/4 teaspoonful, to make sure that it is cooked properly.
• Cover the vessel with a lid, leaving a narrow gap on one edge. Tilt it in the sink until all the water is drained. This water can also be poured to the plants, it is very nourishing.
• For best results, let it sit for another 5-10 min. It will continue to cook in it’s own heat and become softer.
• Note: To get the rice to look perfect, every grain separate from the other, add 2 pinches of cooking soda, 1 tsp of oil and salt to the water before you pour the rice in. Cooking soda is not a good thing to eat regularly, so I do this only if it is a special occasion.

The Microwave Method

Proportions:
1 cup rice
2 cups water, heated

Method:

• Wash the rice twice.
• Put the rice and add hot water.
• Cover and cook on HIGH for about 6 minutes.
• Let stand covered for 10 minutes
• Optionally, you could soak the rice for 10 minutes and then microwave it covered for 15 min