Rice evolves with love of ethnic foods

Once upon a time, in a land called USA, there was rice. It was called Uncle Ben's or Riceland. It was white or brown, converted or instant.

It was pretty simple.

Until we got a taste for sushi, risotto and curries. And life got so busy, it seems, that we really didn't want to cook rice -- just eat it in 90 seconds.

So now take a look at the rice in your supermarket: Arborio. Texmati. Basmati. Long grain. Short grain. Medium grain. Frozen. Boil-in-a-bag. Seasoned. Aromatic. Black. Brown. White. Red.

That there are more rice products than 10 years ago has been fueled by folks' appetite for "ethnic cuisines and desiring new varieties of rice that are grown in different countries," said consumer educator Judy Rusignuolo of the USA Rice Federation, an industry group based in Arlington, Va.

That has prompted U.S. growers to develop products such as Texmati, a "domestic variety from seed originating in another country," she said.

Then the government released new dietary guidelines in 2005 urging consumers "to incorporate whole grains into their diet, and we felt an immediate impact," added USA Rice's retail expert Molly Johnson.

Up went the number of organic and brown rice products (we now have brown or white long grain, brown or white basmati and more). Stir innovations into the mix (ready-in-90-seconds types, blends, etc.) and it's mind-boggling. Cooking, texture and flavor vary with most every product.

"Each rice has its own particular usage," said chef Jose Garces, who uses several types at his Philadelphia restaurants (Amada, Distrito, Tinto and Chifa). He favors rice from Spain, such as bomba, for paellas at one restaurant and a short grain for his Latin-Asian dishes at another.

That there are so many rice products (and confusion) is understandable. More than 7,000 rice varieties are grown on this planet and are usually divided by grain size (long, medium and short).

"More than 80 percent of the rice consumed in the U.S. is produced in the U.S.," USDA economist Nathan Childs said. Most imports come from Thailand (jasmine) followed by India and Pakistan (basmati), he said.

Which raises the question: What do I cook?

"A lot of rices are interchangeable, but there are dishes that call for specific types of rice," Johnson said. "If you know you're going to make a rice pudding or a risotto, for instance, then you're going to need a medium-grain rice."

Choose long grain "when you need grains to be separate and fluffy," she said. Cook a short grain for a stickier, clingier rice for dishes such as sushi. Well, have you ever tried eating long-grain rice with chopsticks?

On the label

Basmati: Long grain, aromatic, nutty.

Black: From China; some grown domestically, chewy, nutty.

Red: From Bhutan; some grown domestically, nutty.

Arborio: Medium grain for risotto, develops creamy texture but al dente bite.

Jasmine: Long grain, aromatic.

A few terms to help you shop and cook:

Long grain: Cooks up fluffy with separate grains; good for pilaf, gumbo.

Medium grain: Cooks up plump, tender and moist; more starch so absorbs more liquid; good for risotto.

Short grain: Cooks up soft, plump, chewy and clingy; good for sushi.

White rice: Hull and bran removed; usually cooks faster than brown rice.

Brown rice: Hull removed; bran intact; can take longer to cook than white.

Texmati: Domestically grown basmati.

Spanish: Such as bomba and Valencia.