White rice can balance out spiciness in dishes such as curries.
White rice is a primary food staple used around the globe as a main or side dish. Rice is high in fiber, iron and protein and low in sodium. As an alternative to costly store-bought flavored rice that can be filled with preservatives, add various ingredients to white rice to bring new life to a boring side dish.
Saffron
Saffron is the stigmas from the purple crocus, which gives food a golden hue and has a sweet pungent taste. The spice is very expensive, but you only need a few strands to make a large impact on flavor. Saffron needs to be soaked in 1/2 cup of boiling water for about two to three minutes before use. The saffron water and stigmas should be added to the cooking water before the rice. This gives rice a sweet taste.
Bouillon
Bouillon is packaged dehydrated meat and spices, available in cubes or packets. The traditional function of bouillon is as a stock or broth that is created when adding the package to a cup of boiling water. The addition of one to two bouillon packages or cubes to the boiling water with the white rice creates an herb-flavored rice that can complement any beef or poultry dish.
Curry Powder
Curry powder is a combination of various spices, such as cumin, cinnamon, fennel and black pepper that are ground to create the curry spice. The powder can be mild to spicy and, when added to the boiling water with the rice, creates a spicy side dish. One to 2 tsp. can be added to the water, depending on preferred spiciness.
Garlic
The flavor of garlic can complement many savory dishes. One or two garlic cloves can be crushed and added to the boiling water with the rice or 1 to 2 tsp. of garlic powder can be stirred into cooked rice.
Butter
A simple way to flavor rice is by adding 1 to 2 tbsp. of butter and a dash of lemon juice to the boiling water. This creates a versatile can be paired with any savory dish.
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