Rice is nice.

Local food #2-

In my previous blog I have written on Indian Super foods. Rice is one of the super foods. There are different varieties of Rice. Some rice varieties are explained below.

Rice is nice 😊-

Rice is a grain that sustain for long period. It is a type of seed from the green grass Oriza sativa. It is used in many auspicious occasion and ceremony. This grain is consumed worldwide especially developing countries. Top 10 rice producing countries are China, India, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Thailand, Burma, Philippines, Brazil, and Japan. You can see mostly Asian countries are producing and consuming rice.

In India, we celebrate newly cultivated rice grains. Especially, in western Odisha, people celebrate newly cultivated rice grains with their family members. They sit together and eat their meal happily. This festival is called 'nuakhai'. Rice is considered as the sign of peace. It is used during worshipping deities, marriage ceremony and also in death ceremony. This amazing grain provide strength and support through out our life and after life(belief of Indian people) also. 

There are varieties of rice grains worldwide. 1000 of types of rice can be observed in India only. In this blog, I will write on consumption of rice by Indians. Below you can get the information about-

1-GI tagged rice in India

2-Top 10 variety of rice consumed in India

3-Their properties

4-Which one is better?

5-White rice or Brown rice ?

1-GI tagged rice in India

What is GI tag?

GI means Geographical Indication. Thus tag indicates the uniqueness of the product with respect to the locality.

Name of GI tagged rice in India.

-Navara Rice, Palakkadan Matta Rice, Wayanad Jeerakasala Rice, Wayanad Gandhakasala Rice, Pokkali Rice,Kaipad Rice -kerala

-Basmati Rice-Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, parts of Uttar Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. 

-Kalanamak Rice-Uttar Pradesh

-Joha Rice, boka chaul- Assam

-Ajara Ghansal Rice,Ambemohar Rice  - Maharashtra

-Tulaipanji Rice, Gobindabhog Rice - West Bengal

-Katarni Rice- Bihar

2-Top 10 varieties of rice, which are highly consumed by Indians-

i. White Rice

ii.Brown Rice

iii.Black Rice

iv.Red Rice

v.Basmati Rice

vi.Palakkadan Matta Rice

vii.Wild Rice

viii.Parboiled Rice

ix.Sticky Rice

x.Jasmine Rice

3-Their properties-

Most of the properties of Rice compared with white rice.

i. White Rice - This rice type is primarily consumed and till now favourite of most of the Indians. This rice is also known as regular rice. It is highly consumed in many other developing countries.White rice is rich in carbohydrates. It is easily digested and keep our stomach full for long time. If you compare this polished rice with other varieties then you may change the rice. I am talking with respect to nutrients. 

ii.Brown Rice -  This rice type is also produced all over India. Now, white rice is being replaced by brown rice by many Indians. It is because of nutritional benefits such as protein, lipid,starch, and mineral content. Brown Rice is similar to White rice but it has nutritious. Brown Rice has bran, which is removed in white rice. Bran is the outer covering of rice. It is rich in fibres, lipid and other mineral contents.

iii.Black rice - This is indigenous to north-east India. Manipur got the GI tag for this rice variety. This is also grown in Odisha, West Bengal and Jharkhand. It is commonly eaten in Manipur because of its medicinal value. It is rich in antioxidant, anthocyanins(this is a compound which helps us to increase our immune system and prevent from cancer). This rice is low in carbohydrate,lipid. It has vitamin B, thiamine, niacin. 

iv.Red Rice- This type of rice is cultivated in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, and the northeastern states with areas having unfavorable conditions such as deep water, drought, sandy soils, salinity, and cold conditions. It is rich in Vitamin B complex, iron, magnesium. It is very helpful to maintain our blood level.

v.Basmati Rice- It is long in texture. It has very different aroma. It provides very delicious fragrance for cooking purpose. This rice is low in fat and gluten free. It has many essential amino acids and folic acid.

vi.Palakkadan Matta Rice- It is also called as Kerala Matta rice or Rosematta rice or Kerala Red rice or Red parboiled rice. This is an indigenous variety of rice grown in the Palakkad district of Kerala, India. It is known for its coarseness and health benefits. This rice is rich in magnesium. This rice also used for many health benefits. This rice can be eaten by diabetes patients. It is rich in Vitamin A and Vitamin B. It is high in fibres and low in calorie.

vii.Wild Rice- It is native to North America. It is an aquatic grass. It can be eaten in the form of rice or vegetable. It has more fibre, potassium and zinc.

viii.Parboiled rice-  This rice is used in Southeast Asian cooking. This rice is of long grain variety which has floral aroma and a soft sticky texture when cooked. The grains of jasmine rice are shorter and thicker than the basmati rice.

ix.Sticky Rice- It is also called sweet rice or waxy rice or glutinous rice. This is highly cultivated in North eastern India.M post of the time, it is served as desert. Regular rice has amylose and amylopectin, while this rice has only amylopectin. Digestion of amylopectin can raise blood sugar and insulin levels. Amylopectin can lead to fat accumulation. Sticky Rice needs less water to cook. So, people prefer to steam this rice rather boiling.

x.Jasmine Rice - It is like white rice only. It is also a refined rice. This rice is Thailand originated. It has no fibres because of removal of outer layer. You can say, it is same with Regular rice but it has nice fragrance that makes it different. It enhances the aroma and taste of Rice.

4-Which one is better?

All the rice varieties have their uniqueness. According to my opinion, all rice are better at some point. Your body require different nutrients at different time point. It is better to eat the rice which is available in your locality. Because your body beat fit to your locality. From above explanation, you may get the point that most of the rice varieties are better than white rice except sticky rice. If I say my opinion, White rice is best for me. That rice is easy to digest and local to me. 

5-White rice or Brown rice ?

Both the rice are best at their nutrients. Person having digestion problem should it white rice and person having diabetes problem should eat brown rice. Many research papers have stated the effect of white and brown rice on diabetes patients. They concluded brown rice is better option for diabetes patients. You should focus that research is on diabetes patients. For normal people all rice is perfect just do not overeat.

To read local food #1- Local food #1- Jackfruit