Sweet Rice
Petra Kolawenko
A warm, slightly sweet rice porridge is a nice treat on a rainy and cold spring day or any other occasion you need a bowl full of pure comfort.
It is easy to prepare but it takes a while to unfold all its humble glory. Because of this it makes no sense to cook smaller quantities than the following. Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for a few days and can easily be warmed in the microwave or on the stove. Add a little more milk or water to loosen it up and avoid burning.
Single serving
Cold spring day
Ingredients — Enough for 4 portions
200g round grain rice 0,5 tsp salt 40g /2 tbsp raw cane sugar 700ml water 100ml canned coconut milk (60% coconut) strip of lemon peel (optional)
toppings (optional): berries, left over fruits, cinnamon, toasted nuts or whatever comes to your mind
Instructions
In an heavy based pot bring the rice with 500ml water and the salt to boil.
When it is boiling stir in the rest of the ingredients and turn down the heat to low.
Cover the pot and let it simmer for 30 minutes. Stir once in a while and add a little mor water if it seems to dry.
After 30 minutes turn off the heat and let the porridge sit covered for 15 minutes longer.
While it sits prepare your topping. Cut up those slightly overripe fruits from your fruit basket,
Stir with some dessicated coconut, a sprinkling of maldon sea salt and some powder from unripe grape or mango, both available at Indian or Persian food stores.
The relatively dry fruit salad with crunchy salt flakes and tangy sour notes is a nice contrast to the soft and creamy rice porridge.
Pro Tips
Best results so far with rice bought at turkish supermarkets: Dolmalik Pirinc from the brand Efefirat
Slowly add up to 200 ml more water at the end of the cooking time. Lightens up the consistency, the amount of water depends on the used rice, so start with a small amount and see how much your rice can take.
Freeze the remaining 300ml from your can of coconut milk in an ice cube tray and you have always a small amount at hand to drop into your next curry, soup or the next batch of rice porridge.
Instead of coconut milk you can use a heaped tablespoon of any nut- or seedbutter. If you do so you have to use 800ml water in the basic recipe.
Feel free to experiment. A white rice porridge is a beautiful canvas for a lot of things. Prepare it without sugar and top it with soy sauce, roasted sesam oil and thinly sliced green onions, with leftovers from diner or ….