Rice

Millions of Chinese eat rice. They have known that rice and whole grains are healthful sources of carbohydrates. The rice grains keep your stomach full, and when you are sick, a liquid rice gruel will make you better. If you are poor, you add lots of water to make a runny porridge, and you feel full after eating it.

The Chinese has a saying, "I have eaten more salt than you have eaten rice."
This is spoken from an elder to a junior in a form of rebuke. Rice grains are plentious, and if a person has eaten more salt, it means he is more experienced.

There are different types of rice besides the more common long and short grain polished white rice. They are brown,red, black aka nasi hitam, basmati, jasmine and wild rice. They have different textile and flavour.

At one stage, we were buying a red rice in Singapore for his friend in Malaysia. This friend has cancer, and they ground the rice with herbs so she could cook it easily in hot water and eat it like baby food. We also ate this red rice, and initially the children could not get used to the hard texture.

Rice is a good carbo for those suffering fron Caelic disease who are allergic to the gluten in wheat.

Rice is made into cakes, noodles, vietnamese rice paper, desserts, you don't have to limit yourself to bowls of steamed rice.


I made this at one of the lunches with our friends in NTU, and it was WOWed and they wanted the recipe. This is a distinctive dish as it uses soya sauce and sesame oil in the dressing. The redness of the rice makes it a very attractive dish, and the nutty texture is a welcoming change.



BROWN OR RED RICE SALAD

1 cup cooked brown or red (from NTUC or Liberty Supermarket in Singapore)
rice
1/4 cup chopped spring onions
1/4 cup of red onion, diced (optional for colour)
1 red or yellow pepper, diced
1/2 c. raisins
2 oz. cashew nuts
2 tbsp. sunflower seeds
1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil
1/4 c. soy sauce dressing


Toss thoroughly.

Optional: sweet corn kernels
peas
diced green pepper
diced celery

for a non vegetarian salad, boiled eggs, chicken, ham may be added.


SOY SAUCE DRESSING:

3/4 c. oil (sunflower or corn)
2 tbsp. lemon juice
4 tbsp. dark soy sauce
1 clove garlic, crushed

Put all ingredients in jar; shake well. Makes 1 cup.
Serves 6 to 8.

I have not made this dish in Auckland, I suppose you can use any brown rice.