SC - big spice question

[LrdRas@aol.com]

kat wrote:
>Speaking of "odd" grains <G>, I saw something interesting in the natural
>foods store the other day...
>
>Sitting on the shelf next to the rices, there was a small cellophane packet
>of *black* rice.  It was labelled "The Forbidden Rice" and vaguely implied
>that in ancient times only the pharaohs were allowed it, blah blah blah...
>
>Has anybody else heard of this?  Is this an actual Old World grain product,
>or is it a really fancy packaging idea?  It didn't look like wild rice; it
>*really* looked like a good long-grain rice, like a basmati, but it was
>coal-black.

It is originally from Southeast Asia (that is one of the Old Worlds) and is
used for sweet snacks - in Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia, for example.
Never in Egypt, unless there was a tunnel under the Pyramid that went
straight to the Golden Triangle.

You cook it like regular rice -- bring 2X as many cups of water to a boil,
pour in 1X rice, bring back to boil, stir,  reduce heat to bare simmer,
cover, and cook for about 15 min.

THEN, you put the rice into a larger pot with 2X as much coconut milk, lots
of slices of fresh ginger, and palm sugar to taste. Ah, there's nothing
like palm sugar... but dark brown sugar makes a good substitute. You can
also add a cinnamon stick - cinnamon, not the cassia sticks they sell as
cinnamon in the supermarket - real cinnamon bark is very thin and fine and
has a much sweeter flavor. Then you simmer on a medium-low fire, stirring
often so the coconut milk doesn't burn, until the rice is fairly mushy but
the grains are still distinct. You don't take any of the spices out. Serve
and eat hot in 95 degree farenheit air temp and 95 percent humidity in the
mid-afternoon, after your mid-afternoon nap.

I lived in Indonesia for several years in real life, so i speak from
experience. First i bought it from the afternoon snack vendors, then i
began cooking it myself. I believe it is one form of what is called "Kolak"
in Bahasa Indonesia. Kolak sometimes has plantains (NOT bananas) and
starchy tubers added. Nothing like a light cool snack in the tropical heat
and humidity.

There was absolutely nothing "forbidden" about it. I just saw the same
package at the health food store a few days ago and began laughing and
muttering at it. Silly package. The store clerks must have thought i was a
few bricks short of a load...

You could also cook it until done in water (i'm not sure - you might need a
bit more water and simmer a bit longer tp get a good consistency) and serve
with your meal. The texture will not be like white rice or, heaven forbid,
brown rice, and it will surely have more flavor than American grown white
rice. It is not generally eaten with main courses.

I brought some back with me when i returned from overseas in 1980. It
wasn't available here much then except in Vietnamese markets.

Alternatively, you can cook it plain (with a pinch of salt in the cooking
water) and serve at room temperature with ripe mangoes sliced over it. For
taste, a bit of *highly* sweetened hot chili paste and some sliced of lime
might be good, too.

Oh, yeah, i forgot to mention, after it is cooked and the outer coating
begins to burst, black rice is purple. OOOH, lovely

Anahita Gaouri bint-Karim al-Fassi
that's Mutiarawati to you


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