Rice To The Occasion

• RICE FLOUR
  Made by grounding any type of rice to fine powder. Contains no gluten. Used to make rice noodles and vermicelli (also known as bee hoon and rice stick noodles).

• RICE MILK
  Made by blending cooked rice with warm water. The basic recipe is to blend 1 cup of cooked rice with 2 1/2 cups of hot water. Add more water to thin the mixture when necessary. Strain with cheesecloth to remove sediments. Add honey, vanilla, maple syrup or salt to taste.

  Rice milk is used for cooking and baking. A good milk substitute for those who are weight-conscious, intolerant to lactose found in cow’s milk or want to stay away from any diary products.

• RICE PUDDING
  A dessert made by baking or cooking rice in milk and sugar. Other common ingredients added include cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, raisins and lemon/orange zest.

• RICE VINEGAR
  Made from rice wines. There are 3 kinds of Chinese rice vinegar: red, which has a sweet and spicy taste and commonly used as a dipping sauce; white, has a mild taste and is ideal for sweet and sour dishes; and black vinegar is sour, used as a table condiment. Another type is the colorless Japanese vinegar which goes well with sushi.

• RICE WINE
  Made by fermenting sweetened glutinous rice. It is sweet and low in alcohol content (about 12-14%). In brief, the manufacturing process involves converting rice starch to sugar and leaving the yeast to convert sugar to alcohol.

• RED YEAST RICE
  Rice fermented by the red yeast called Monascus purpureus. Has been used by the Chinese for many centuries as a food preservative, food colorant, spice and ingredient in rice wine. Research has shown that red yeast rice maintains healthy blood circulation and balances cholesterol levels.

• RICE PAPER
  Edible rice paper is made by mixing rice flour/powder with water to form a paste, then cooked by using steam and let to dry in the outdoors for a day. It is common to find papers referred to as rice papers even though tapioca flour (not rice flour) is used.

  Inedible rice paper can be made from rice straw or from the bark of a mulberry tree.

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