This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Minute® Rice.
Hubby is from South America and my parents hail from the Caribbean therefore rice has always been a mealtime staple. Although we eat it so much, it is one food item that I never get tired of mainly because there are so many different ways to prepare it. Rice and beans, fried rice, rice mixed with vegetables, the list goes on. I thought I knew of just about most ways to prepare rice, but last week, I discovered that I was wrong. I was invited to a party to learn about Minute® Rice. Erica, who hosted the party prepared a few wonderful rice dishes that I had never heard of. She made a brown rice, kale and tomato salad that was not only beautiful, it was delicious!
She also made a summer vegetable & rotisserie chicken bake which was very good.
This Blueberry Basil Rice Salad was to die for!
All of the dishes she prepared were made with Minute® Rice. While I had heard of Minute® Rice in the past, I never tried it. I guess I wasn’t really sure what it was and how it was different from regular rice. It’s really not much different from regular rice. It’s easy to prepare and cooks up a lot quicker than regular rice. The Minute® Rice family of products includes Minute® White Rice, Minute® Whole Grain Brown Rice, Minute ® Multi-Grain Medley and a variety of Minute® Ready to Serve Rice products. Here are some facts about Minute Rice:
What's the difference between Minute® Rice and regular rice?
The main difference between the two is that minute rice is parboiled, precooked and dehydrated, which is why it doesn’t take a long time to cook. Regular rice takes a much longer to prepare, therefore making Minute® Rice much more convenient, especially for people with busy schedules like me!
Is Minute® Rice gluten free?
Yes, most varieties of Minute® Rice are gluten free.
How to cook Minute® Rice
It is really not as complicated as you may think. Minute® Rice can be prepared on either the stove or in a microwave.
Cooking on the stove
Bring your water to the boil, add salt and butter if you wish. Pour the rice into the water, cover the pot with a lid and take it off the stove. Let the rice stand for 5 minutes for it to absorb the water before fluffing it with a fork.
Cooking in the microwave
Put the rice and water in a microwave container. Again, add butter and salt if you wish. Cover the container and microwave on high for the recommended time. All microwaves differ, so check your instruction manual. Let the rice stand for 5 minutes to allow it to absorb the water. Give the rice a quick stir with a fork before serving.
Both Minute® Rice and regular rice are delicious. The main difference is the time that you will be saving by using Minute® Rice.
I decided to test the time saving feature of Minute® Rice by making some cilantro brown rice. Cilantro rice is the perfect side for spicy dishes. If you’ve ever cooked brown rice before, you know that it usually takes forever to cook. Well not the Minute® Rice version. It was done in ten minutes! Now that's what I call fast!
Here is the super easy recipe for Cilantro Brown rice:
Cilantro Brown Rice
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups cooked brown rice (I used Minute 100% Whole Grain Brown Rice)
1/4 packed cup chopped cilantro leaves
1/4 tsp salt
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a medium bowl, combine rice, cilantro and salt.
Do you have any rice recipes to share?