FOLLOWME R I C E :

ABy Shoba NairPlain Jane?

Many a household in Asia rarely lets a meal pass without rice, so much so that in Japan, the word for rice is synonymous with the general meaning of meal.

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ithink #4-140705_priNt.indd 30 7/4/14 7:54 pM R I C E : Today, India is one of the world’s leading rice The plain, bland humble rice is the staple food for many A Plain Jane? producers, in Asia and the Middle-East, covering almost half the and the IR8 population in the world. Many a household in Asia rarely lets a meal pass without rice, so much so that in Japan, the word for variety has rice is synonymous with the general meaning of meal. since been rice is typically grown in tropical countries that experience used by many high rainfall, as traditionally, rice fields have to be flooded countries after the planting of the young seedlings in order for rice crops to grow well and produce high yields. It is for this throughout same reason that rice farmers are at the mercy of the weather, Asia. and suffer during erratic weather patterns such as heavy droughts or long dry spells. For example, the 2004 Tsunami 1ravaged rice fields in Indonesia’s Aceh province and the 2011 Tsunami in Japan slammed Japan’s east coast, 2obliterating rice crops and contaminating the farming land with salt in that area, shattering the rice bowls of the rice farmers affected, besides creating spikes in rice prices worldwide. With the rapidly growing population in the world, especially in Asia, there are more mouths to feed, and rice, being the basic main meal, is in high demand. With rice being vulnerable to the unpredictable weather, it is of little surprise that rice farmers and researchers had long fore- casted the possible shortage of rice to meet the world demand. That propelled the modernisation of agricultural practices, and the green revolution was born. The green revolution was the result of research efforts having paid off in developing high-yielding varieties of crops to meet rising demands for food, and involves selective breeding of plants, irrigation methods and use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Springing from a need to save the country from the brink of famine in the 1960s due to a fast growing population, India gladly embraced the green revolution. This led to them developing a new high-yielding variety of rice, IR8, which responds well to fertilizers, resulting in the production of larger seeds and thus more grains per plant. Today, India is one of the world’s leading rice producers, and the IR8 variety has since been used by many countries throughout Asia.

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ithink #4-140705_priNt.indd 31 7/4/14 7:54 pM FOLLOWME

AN EXAMPLE OF A ZESTY RICE-BASED WESTERN FOOD VARIETY IS THE SPANISH PAELLA, WHERE SPICES, VEGETABLES AND MEAT ARE ADDED INTO THE Although the green revolution has drastically reduced the variety of rice grown, leaning more RICE AND COOKED IN towards the high-yielding types, rice traditionally THE OVEN. comes in various shapes and sizes. The most widely consumed rice is the clingy, short, almost-rounded, soft, white variety. When cooked, it tends to be quite sticky, and is predictably rich in starch. Another rice variety is the longer-grained white rice, also known as basmati rice, where the grains are drier, containing less starch. With the health wave sweeping the world, brown rice is more sought-after, especially in developed countries. Brown rice, where only the hull of the rice is removed, leaving the bran and germ intact, is known to have greater nutritional value although it may be trying for the tongues of first- timers who are 3ardent white-rice eaters. in many parts of Asia, rice is consumed as the main part of the meal and often eaten plain, accompanied by vegetable and meat side dishes. The neutral taste of rice allows it to easily soak up the flavours of the meat and vegetables, making for a satisfying meal.

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ithink #4-140705_priNt.indd 32 7/4/14 7:54 pM Rice can also be cooked with flavour, such as fried rice which is made by frying the vegetables and the meat in soya and oyster sauces; chicken rice, made by cooking the rice in chicken broth; and ‘nasi lemak’ which is rice cooked in coconut Production and Consumption of Rice: milk. In Western countries, rice is consumed as a A Quick Snapshot main meal or a side dish but is always enhanced Rice Production/Consumption 2013 to be 4saporous. An example of a 5zesty rice- based Western food variety is the Spanish 160000 Production paella, where spices, vegetables and meat are (in thousand metric tons) added into the rice and cooked in the oven; a 140000 Consumption creamy rice dish, the Italian risotto, is a rice dish (in thousand metric tons) cooked with butter, vegetables and meat to a 120000 smooth consistency.

100000

80000 Produc=on (in thousand metric tons) Consump=on (in thousand metric tons)

60000

40000

20000

0 China India Indonesia Thailand Phlippines Japan United States (source of data : AIREA) Figures for milled rice for 2013 - May 2014

Besides being a main meal or a side dish, rice is also consumed as a much-favoured dessert, such as the sweet rice puddings of the Middle-East (‘Rox Bel Laban’) and of India (‘Kheer’ or ‘Payasam’), Indonesia’s black rice pudding as well as Thailand’s mango [ Word Bank ] sticky rice. Rice is even consumed as a drink and as 1. ravaged : destroyed a seasoning in the form of rice wine, an alcoholic 2. obliterating : wiping out 3. ardent : passionate or enthusiastic beverage originating from China. 4. saporous : flavourful The long and short of it is, as much as rice looks 5. zesty : having a strong, pleasant like a plain Jane, it conceals much potential and ex- and somewhat spicy flavour citement, like a shining starlet. It does, after all, make the gastronomic world, a more fascinating place.

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