Home / ANALYSIS / Hospitality Trends / Rice: the all time favourite

The last few years have seen a resurgence in the popularity of rice, which has donned exciting new avatars. Hotelier India looks at the journey it has made through various menus, both in India and internationally.

When it comes to creativity, there is a world of opportunity with low-cost, multipurpose rice, which is virtually infallible, whether it is a quick service cafe or a fine dining restaurant.

In fact, chefs are conceiving a number of ingenious applications for rice in everything from ethnic creations and healthy spa cuisine to western comfort foods.

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Risotto is sizzling and entrees such as salmon, pork and grilled chicken breast are finding a perfect companion in rice-based side dishes.

Executive chef Sahdev Mehta, Courtyard by Marriott, Pune Hinjewadi says, “Rice is a flexible ingredient and with the new thought-process going on in the food industry, it is undergoing a makeover.

Being an Asian staple, rice till some years ago was used mostly as regular pilafs, stir-fried dishes or steamed rice side dishes. However, today we see a prominent presence of rice, not only in the western cuisine, but also in novel dishes such as mango and rice ravioli, California rolls and the Japanese chocolate sushi.”

Spurring the renewed interest in this easy-to-serve grain, is its availability in more than 40,000 varieties found around the world. Executive chef Jose Borja, Renaissance Mumbai Convention Centre Hotel gives some interesting examples.

“In Japan, sticky rice is eaten at every meal; in India, rice is cooked separately and mixed with fat, meat or vegetables and spices to make pulaos or biryanis; in South America, rice is cooked dry and often topped with a spicy, saucy mix of red beans.

It forms an important element in the Mediterranean cuisine like paellas in Spain and risotto in Italy; in the Middle East it is present in the daily diet and in Southeast Asia and China it is a key element for every dish.”

Small wonder then that such a versatile ingredient has such exciting recipes around the globe, but Asian cuisines seem to be the clear winners among restaurateurs.

Varun Tuli, owner of The Yum Yum Tree, New Delhi-Chinese Oriental Grill & Sushi Bar agrees, “Asian countries use rice the most, including varieties like brown rice, wild red rice, organic black rice, long grain basmati rice, short grain Arborio, short grain and starchy glutinous rice.