Cooking Rice Recipe thread - inspired by JodyLynC

[piratesmate]

JldyLynC started a great thread for pasta recipes. I love the idea because I get into a rut & just make spaghetti & meatballs far too often. But it got me thinking that for side dishes especially I never seem to know what to do with rice. Plain rice is far too boring to have more than once a month. But it's not the kind of thing I really think about searching for on recipe sites.

Here are a couple I use, but what do you have?

Rice Pilaf

3 Tbl butter
1 Tbl garlic, minced
¾ c rice, converted
¾ c orzo
3 c chicken broth
½ c slivered almonds

Melt butter on low; add garlic, salt, pepper & nuts. After 1 minute, add rice & orzo; stir until well-coated. Add broth, increase heat & bring to boil. Lower heat, cover & cook 25 minutes.
[NOTE: The original recipe called for an entire stick of butter & while yummy, I'd prefer to keep my arteries open TYVM! ]

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Citrus Rice
Polynesian

1 1/3 c water
½ tsp Salt
7 Tbl butter, divided
1 1/3 c pre-cooked rice
2/3 c chopped celery
1/3 c chopped Spanish onion
3 Tbl chopped orange peel
1½ Tbl chopped lemon peel
1/3 c orange juice
3 Tb chicken broth
Salt and white pepper to taste

Bring water, salt and 2 tsp. butter to a boil. Stir in rice. Cover and remove from heat. At the end of 5 min., fluff with a fork. Set aside.

Heat remaining butter in a 9" skillet. Add celery, onion, orange and lemon peels and mix in rice. Sauté for 7 minutes. Add orange juice and chicken broth and season to taste. Spoon into a 1-quart buttered casserole and bake at 350 deg. F for 15 min.

[NOTE: Again, too much butter for us. I do use 2 Tbl when making the rice, but I do the same thing as in the pilaf recipe - melt butter, add rice & stir to coat. (That seems to keep the cooked rice from sticking together.) Then add water, cover & cook. Then when cooking the veggies & citrus zest I just spray my pan with olive oil. I also use a non-stick casserole.]

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JOLLOF RICE
Boma
Yield: 4 servings

1 pt Coconut Milk
1 pt Water
½ lb Onions, diced chunky
4 oz Black Eye Peas, soaked overnight
½ oz Ground Turmeric, toasted
½ oz Ground Coriander, toasted
1 qt White Rice/Jasmine/Basmati, washed
2 oz Sugar
¼ oz Chopper Cilantro
To taste Salt and Pepper

Cook the black eye peas half done and set aside. In pot, combine all the ingredients. Cook rice until black eye peas and rice are done. Sprinkle with parsley and adjust seasoning.

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Peanut Butter Rice
Boma
Yield: 10 servings

½ c peanut butter
1 c coconut milk
¼ c soy sauce
1/8 tsp ground ginger (dry)
1/8 tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp garlic powder
¼ c sugar
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1¼ c Basmati rice
1/8 bunch parsley, rough chop

Cook the basmati rice according to direction ration (normally 1:1¼ liquid.) In a small pot, combine all the ingredients. Mix well until smooth and heat to proper temperature to 145o or above. Taste and adjust seasonings. Mix the hot Basmati rice with the peanut butter sauce in a large bowl and add the parsley. Mix well.

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Spiced Rice (Mexican) Side Dish

2 c water
2 tsp bouillon
1 c rice
½ tsp chili powder
½ tsp cumin
1/8 tsp thyme
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp coriander
2 Tbl salsa
1 Tbl butter
2 tsp cilantro, chopped

Bring water to a boil & add all ingredients. Return to a boil, reduce heat & simmer 20 min or until rice is tender.

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And I know it's the end of summer, but we often have this in place of pasta salads in the summer.

Wild Rice and Apricot Salad

6 oz wild rice
4 oz dried apricots, chopped
2 oz almonds, sliced or slivered
6 oz yogurt, plain, vanilla or lemon
3 oz raisins or Craisins ®
2 Tbl parsley

Make rice according to directions, using no seasonings or butter. Cool slightly & toss with remaining ingredients. Chill & serve cold.

 

[liamsaunt]

I make risotto a lot. Sometimes as a main dish (if it has lots of vegetables), and sometimes as a side (if just herbs and spices). You can put in any vegetables you want. Some of my favorites to use are asparagus, mushrooms, and spinach. I made a very summery corn-tomato risotto a couple of weeks ago. Here is the recipe.

Corn and tomato risotto

2 tbsp. butter
1 onion, finely minced
1 clove garlic, finely minced
½ cup dry white wine
1 cup Arborio rice
4 cups chicken stock, heated
1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernals
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
½ cup parmesean cheese
Handful of basil, cut into ribbons

Heat the butter in a wide skillet or saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring once in a while, until translucent—about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a moment longer. Add the rice and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and cook until it is almost gone. Add the chicken stock, a ladleful at a time, adding more as the stock is absorbed and stirring every minute or so. You don’t have to constantly stir the risotto, by the way. Continue in this way until most of the stock has been absorbed and the rice is almost cooked through. This will take approx. 20 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and the corn and cook for three minutes. Add the cheese and the basil and cook, stirring, until the cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Photo:

Leftover risotto is delicious shaped into patties, covered in breadcrumbs, and pan fried until crispy. Sometimes I put a piece of mozzarella inside the patty. It melts and oozes out when you cut into the rice cake.

 

[liamsaunt]

Here is another tasty rice recipe from Cooking Light magazine that I sometimes make to accompany tacos.

Fiesta Rice:

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 (10-ounce) package frozen whole-kernel corn, thawed
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup chopped green onions
1 1/2 cups uncooked brown rice (I used regular uncle ben’s because that’s what I had)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Dash of salt
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with chiles, undrained
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Preparation:

Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add corn to pan; cook 10 minutes or until corn starts to brown, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan. Set aside.

Melt butter in pan. Add onions; sauté 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in rice, cumin, and garlic; cook 1 minute. Add chicken broth, black pepper, salt, and diced tomatoes to pan; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in reserved corn and beans. Cover and let stand 10 minutes. Stir in cilantro and juice.