Another type of rice

[esvoboda]

I am sure there are some of you who are caught between a rock and a hard place because you want to eat rice but feel white rice isn't too healthful yet you can't bear to eat brown rice. I'm one of those people.

I mostly eat Japanese style at home, eating mostly fish for protein and sometimes chicken. Giving up rice isn't an option for me.

There's a type of rice that is neither fully-polished (white) nor unpolished (brown). Instead, it's semi-polished, with the outer bran removed but with the inner rice germ retained. This results in rice that is nutritionally somewhere between white and brown. I honestly think the taste is better than either one. The germ seems to add good flavor. This type of rice is called "haiga" rice.

I live in sort of a Japantown neighborhood and buy this rice at my Japanese grocery store. It sells here for about $14 for 15 pounds. That's about the same as a very good Japanese white rice. I've also found it online here.

Note that this is a short-grain "sticky" rice like you see at a Japanese restaurant. It's quite different than a long-grain rice like basmati.

By the way, it's my understanding that the Japanese government requires schools to serve haiga rice instead of white rice because of the nutritional benefits.

[Terry Monk]

Ed - have you tried brown rice mixed with salsa? It tastes just like mexican rice at a restaurant. I can't tell any diff between white/brown when I add the salsa. Just my 2 cents.

[LeafofDeath]

I've always found it amusing how individual tastes can be. My mother always cooked brown rice when I was growing up, and to this day, I far prefer brown over white. In fact, I can barely stand the taste of white rice.

Haiga rice sounds interesting, though. I'm always up for trying new things. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[esvoboda]

Thanks, gymrat. I've made Mexican rice before but I've never tried it with brown. I can see that it'd work nicely. Good idea.

[Terry Monk]

Hey, no problem. Just an idea. I do apologize though, I called you Ed. Sorry, esvoboda. [img]redface.gif[/img]