Everyone knows the previous dependable white rice that we often use as a aspect dish for grilled meat or as a base for a shrimp fried rice. Maybe we’ve additionally used it to stuff greens, to present physique to a soup plate and even to organize a refreshing drink. The rice we already use could be very versatile, and for this very motive, we don’t cease to assume if there are different varieties with different qualities.

Do you know there are extra rice varieties than these you often purchase and eat? Within the following traces, we are going to briefly let you know about them.

Classifications of rice

There are a number of methods to categorise the completely different rice species and varieties, together with the botanical classification. We’ll depart this one apart, in order to not make issues harder with scientific phrases from biology, and we are going to focus first on the classification of rice by its form. Rice varieties are often categorized this fashion for business and culinary functions.

Lengthy-grain rice

Lengthy-grain rice varieties are characterised by their remarkably elongated grains—three or extra instances longer than huge. A typical instance of long-grain rice is Jasmine rice, a scrumptious selection which you’ll find out about in additional element at mahatmarice.com/merchandise/jasmine-white-rice/.

Lengthy grains are very wealthy in starch, in order that they require extra cooking time, and, relying on the kind, are likely to clump collectively in boiling water. Nonetheless, if cooked accurately, they don’t kind a compact sticky mass, however the little lumps shaped, when cooled, separate from one another and don’t stick collectively. This makes them simple to eat with chopsticks, which is why the long-grain varieties are extensively consumed in East and Southeast Asia.

As they’re very wealthy in starch, which accommodates varied fragrant compounds, long-grain varieties are additionally very tasty. Relying on the varieties, the flavour, particularly when the grains are sizzling, will be just like nuts, popcorn and even mushrooms.

Medium-grain rice

Medium-grain rice varieties have grains which can be about twice so long as they’re huge. Their starch content material is decrease than that of long-grain rice. If correctly ready, medium-size grains don’t kind lumps and stay fairly free. This is the reason medium-grain varieties are probably the most consumed outdoors Asia and Africa, particularly in tropical and subtropical America, the Caribbean and southern.

Europe, the place free grains are most popular for the rice dishes cooked in these areas. A typical medium-grain rice is the one used to make paella.

Because it accommodates much less starch, medium-grain rice is often much less flavorful, however it serves completely nicely as a aspect dish or as a base for a meal with loads of seasoning and a few items of meat or fish.

Brief-grain rice

Brief-grain rice varieties produce grains which can be nearly as huge as they’re lengthy, making them virtually spherical in look. These grains are often wealthy in a type of pectin, and due to this, they have an inclination to stay collectively to kind compact plenty. For that reason, they’re technically known as ‘glutinous rice’—from the Latin phrase gluten, which means ‘glue’. Nonetheless, we shouldn’t be misled by this identify, since short-grain rice varieties, like all others, lack the attribute protein of wheat grains known as gluten.

As a result of they have an inclination to stay collectively in compact plenty, quick grains are extensively utilized in far northeast Asia to cook dinner candy dishes and the rest that requires grains caught collectively in kind of massive parts.

A typical number of short-grain rice is the so-called Japanese rice, used to organize sushi.

Brown rice and white rice

In fact, rice varieties will be categorised by different standards, reminiscent of stage of processing. Thus, we receive the next varieties:

• Brown rice: grains from which the fiber layer overlaying them—known as bran—has not been eliminated. Because of bran, brown rice grains have their attribute shade.

• White rice: grains from which the bran layer has been eliminated, leaving solely the starch reserve.

• Semi-brown rice: white rice with bran residues.

• Rice with germ: grains from which the plant embryo has not been eliminated.

Now you already know there are extra forms of rice than the one you at all times purchase and eat, and you may select the extra appropriate rice to strive a brand new and scrumptious dish.