If there was a culinary common thread around the world, rice would most likely be it. On a global scale, rice has a seat at the table in just about every country.
There’s the creamy arborio rice in Italian risottos, sticky rice in Japanese sushi, jasmine rice as a base for Thai dishes, a blend of spices in Spanish and Caribbean rices, rice to complement and soak up Indian curries, and the list goes on and on.
With roots that date back to ancient times, rice has also long been a staple in US households, used as a side dish, in soups, stews and stir-frys. But perhaps because of its mainstream popularity and deep-rooted history, it’s lost its luster. It’s easy to prepare and nice on the wallet, but is it boring?
It doesn’t have to be. If you think of rice as a blank canvas that can be dressed up or down, it can be as creative as you are feeling in the kitchen.
“It’s the perfect canvas for many flavors: Asian, Mexican, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean,” says Marie Simmons, author of The Amazing World of Rice (William Morrow). “Just by adding a bit of curry or turmeric it takes on an Indian profile. Add thin-sliced scallion and it goes well with Asian, stir in grated parmesan it leans Italian, add chopped tomatoes and it becomes Spanish.”
And that versatility, the ability of even a novice cook to make rice morph and adapt so easily into whatever flavor profile you put it, makes it a seasonal chameleon as well. The summer table, to be sure, just begs for a light rice salad or a rice-based dish with fresh greens from the backyard garden.
Because you’re probably trying to look and feel your best during the active summer months, you’ll also benefit because rice is healthy and gluten-free. “Rice has a lot of health benefits,” says Diane Phillips, author of The Everyday Rice Cooker: Soups, Sides, Grains, Mains, and More (Chronicle Books). But some rices are better than others.
