Wednesday 2 January 2013

Black Rice Breakfast Porridge

Happy New Year!

Everyone undoubtedly has many new year resolutions revolving around gym sessions and healthier diets.  May they last.  In any case, this is something to help kick start your new lifestyle and assist you in achieving your ambitious goals -- black rice simmered in water with cashews and dates, and then put into a blender.
 I actually learned this from my flatmate Leah.  She has the most unusual kitchen experiments from scrambled pancakes to jumbo stir-fries.  One thing I witnessed her make a black rice porridge which was blended in a food processor.  The problem is that if you merely cook black rice in water it would still have a bite to it, or perhaps you would need to cook it for a long time.  So if you're in the mood of a comforting thick soup-like porridge, then put it in a blender.  I’ve taken it a bit further by simmering black rice with chopped up dates and cashews in water.  Thanks, Leah.


The thing is I love having porridge for breakfast.  Maybe it's because I'm living in Scotland or right now in Beijing where it's -11C, there's nothing more satisfying than having something warm and filling first thing in the morning.  I can't have the same thing everyday though, so I've tried it with quinoa, polenta, oats, chia and now with black rice.

And! Black rice is incredibly nutritious.  I don't know if it can be easily found in normal supermarkets, try in Asian supermarkets. 

"Like brown rice, black rice is full of antioxidant-rich bran, which is found in the outer layer that gets removed during the milling process to make white rice. But only black-rice bran contains the antioxidants known as anthocyanins, purple and reddish pigments -- also found in blueberries, grapes, and acai -- that have been linked to a decreased risk of heart disease and cancer, improvements in memory, and other health benefits." - CNN

Of course, you can add other nuts, dried fruits, or omit them altogether and add sugar, or add spices.  Let your culinary imagination run wild.  

Serves 1
Ingredients
1/3 cup black rice
2 tbsp cashews
2 tbsp chopped dates
1 cup water

Method
Put everything together in a pot and bring it to a boil.
Turn the heat down, cover, and let it simmer for about 15-20 minutes.  Put everything in a blender and blend until smooth. You may add some warm milk if you find it too thick.

2 comments:

  1. I like that you're using CNN quotes to authenticate the healthy-ness of your blog! :P

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. i was actually just too lazy to paraphrase it :P

      Delete

 
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