Rice is the most popular dish during festive periods, especially Christmas. White or brown, local or foreign, long or short grain; all are presented as white, jollof, or fried on many tables.
However, few really appreciate the diversity of rice until they experiment. It can be made into many different dishes for even the pickiest palate.
Rice is inexpensive, making it the perfect dish for the frugal cook. And it need not be boring for the family.
Bunmi Edomwonyi, a food and nutrition teacher, advised that families should make it a more memorable yuletide by presenting and eating rice in different ways.
“A boring pot of white rice can be amazing when treated differently,” she said.
The treatment could be before cooking, during cooking, and when serving.
“One thing I learnt a long time ago is the toasting of rice grains before actually cooking,” she disclosed.
She explained that toasting dry rice grains in a little butter or olive oil before adding water brings out the flavour and adds a fantastic nutty note in the finished dish.
Cook stylishly
Bimbo Olumuyiwa, a caterer, also disclosed that one can get an amazing taste from rice if cooked with chicken stock.
But using only chicken stock can make rice gummy or overly-starchy, thus an equal mix of stock and water is good.
Another method of making rice taste better is by seasoning it with what is being cooked.
“Very often, some of the same seasonings going into the main dish are great for the rice as well. Whole spices are usually better for adding subtle flavours while ground spices are great when you really want the rice to stand out on its own,” Edomwonyi advised.
Olumuyiwa said she usually adds bay leaf for that slight woodsy-herbal flavour.
Suggestions
Ingredients needed to add perky flavour and taste to rice dishes are inexpensive and available in open markets, health shops, and stores.
Edomwonyi advised that where an ingredient is not available, improvisation is required.
Here are some rice dishes to liven up tables.
Vegetable-spiked rice: Use half water and half carrot or tomato juice to cook rice.
Indian rice: Cook rice with one cinnamon stick, six whole cloves and two garlic cloves (use water or broth). Remove cinnamon, cloves, and garlic before serving.
Herbed rice: Stir into cooked rice a quarter cup of chopped fresh herbs such as parsley and basil.
Rice with peas and onions: In a small skillet, saute half diced yellow onion with one table spoonful of oil until it starts to brown. Mix in frozen or fresh peas and saute for about two more minutes.
Mix onions and peas into steamed rice. Season with salt or soy sauce, if desired.
Curry rice: Cook rice with finely diced yellow onion sauteed in a little oil before adding rice, salt and curry powder.
Caribbean rice: Cook rice in light coconut milk with ground allspice, salt, dried thyme, and ground cloves.
Mexican rice: Cook rice in chicken stock, garlic cloves, chopped tomatoes, oil, pepper, and salt.
