More than half the world’s population relies on rice for sustenance — and here in the U.S., that typically means long-grain, pearly-white kernels enriched with some of the nutrients stripped away in the milling process. What’s left is an inexpensive, shelf-stable, gluten-free carbohydrate that cooks up soft and fluffy, with a mild taste that offends almost no one, and can stretch practically any tidbit of food into a meal.
For most of us, that’s about all we care to know about this humble staple.
Caryl Levine and Ken Lee, however, aim to pique our curiosity further.
The San Francisco-based husband and wife are the founders of Lotus Foods, Inc., a company that imports and distributes sustainably-produced specialty rice and rice noodles from around the world. In “Rice is Life: Recipes and Stories Celebrating the World’s Most Essential Grain” (Chronicle, $29.95), they take us back to the thatched-roof restaurant they visited in China’s southern Yunnan province in 1993, where they first tried black rice, sometimes called “longevity rice” due to its high nutritional value.
Captivated by its extraordinary fragrance and “color of the midnight sky,” they set out to learn more. A few years later, they began importing the heirloom grain they called Forbidden Rice, a riff on the Forbidden City, China’s imperial palace. Legend has it black rice was once reserved for the emperors to ensure their good health.
Ever since, they’ve committed to supporting rice-growing efforts around the world designed to conserve water, improve soil, increase food security, and combat climate change.
They share those illuminating stories, with photos from the fields, in chapters that introduce us to dozens of rice varieties in a rainbow of textures and hues — black, brown, red, jasmine, sticky, short-grain. Creative, practical recipes throughout include flavors from across the map: Black Rice with Brussels Sprouts and Fried Eggs, Basmati and Pea Pulao, Portobello Ramen Burgers, Horchata Milkshakes.
“Rice is Life” offers myriad ways to diversify our pantries and menus with this essential grain not only for better eating in 2023, but for a healthier planet and all who inhabit it for years to come.
Susan Puckett is a cookbook author and former food editor of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Follow her at susanpuckett.com.
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