Red rice
Oryza sativa · Grain
Top 10 pairings
Red rice is a class of wholegrain rices whose bran is stained deep russet to mahogany by proanthocyanidin pigments rather than the polished-away white of ordinary rice. Sold as a wholegrain because the colour lives in the bran, it cooks up firm, chewy and separate, with a pronounced nutty, earthy flavour — think Bhutanese red rice, France's Camargue rouge and Thailand's red cargo rice.
Picking a good onedrag
Sound dry grain, fragrant or cleanly neutralRancid crayon, or holed and webbed
Pantry standardEveryday bestRice takes up arsenic you can't see. Rinse it, cook it in plenty of water, then drain.
Smell at the open bagAlmost nothing, as white rice is
White or brown, whole or milledBrown, red or black: buy small
The grains themselvesA few chalky grains, broken tips
A handful through your fingersA little starchy powder, normal
These cues are Rice's, and hold across its varieties; where this one differs, its own page says so.