's motd Friday January 124, 2011 - Brown Rice

[Guest guest]

RICE WITH A

PURPOSE

Friday, 14 January 2011

I was raised on white rice. Back

home on 926 St. Louis Street in New Orleans, we had

red beans & rice everyday. I used to watch my

sweet mother, Shirley, as she cooked the rice. She'd

put four cups of water into a pot and bring it to a

boil. Next, she'd add a pat of butter and swirl it

around the pot until it melted. Then she'd add two

cups of rice and let it simmer for about 18 minutes.

After that, she'd let the rice sit on the stove for

another five minutes or so. Then she'd spoon the

fluffy white rice into a big serving bowl and bring it

to the dinner table. Mmm-mm! Let's eat!

I just loved my Mom's red beans

and rice. But like I said, my folks served only white

rice at our dinner table back in New Orleans.

But today, we know there's a healthier rice we can all

be eating. And that is...brown rice.

Brown rice doesn't cook up as fluffy as white rice.

But I prefer brown rice because it has a more nutty

flavor. But the big question is...why is this rice brown?

Well, brown rice is simply white rice that hasn't had

the brown-colored bran coating removed. Brown rice

qualifies as whole grain. And by leaving

the bran-coating intact, it means that brown rice

contains a lot more fiber than white. Get this: A

cup of white rice contains just 1 gram of fiber. But

a cup of brown rice contains 3 1/2 grams of

fiber. Plus, brown rice is high in magnesium and

zinc...whatcha think?

Some people prefer white rice to

brown as a matter of time and convenience. See, brown

rice takes much longer to cook. It takes about 45

minutes to cook a pot of brown rice while the white

rice cooks up in just 20 minutes. But oh, I just love

the smell of that brown rice as it'scooking. And I

smell it all the time because I cook up a pot every

few days.

Sometimes I'll add cooked brown rice to one of my

turkey meat loafs. And oh yes, I still eat rice &

beans but I've switched to brown rice for those

dishes. I also like adding it to my casserole dishes

using a vegetables and brown rice combination.

And while we're on the subject of rice, there's

another kind that's been around for a long time but

has been pretty much ignored. Lately though, it's

making a bit of a comeback. I'm talking about black

rice. I've told you before how nutrient-rich

blueberries are. Well, black rice contains some of

the same nutrients found in blueberries. It's so good

for you! Black rice actually has kind of a blue-black

tint and I think it's very pretty. You can find it in

most health food or specialty grocery stores.

So do like me and eat some rice

that has...a purpose. And that purpose is

to give your body more fiber, more nutrients and, in

my opinion...more taste! Hey why dontcha

make some brown rice for yourself...today!

How now...brown RICE!

Love,