RICE, BUCKWHEAT & OATS

RICE........

Brown rice is a good source of B vitamins and Vitamin E and may be ground into flour for baking cakes, cookies, pancakes, waffles and breads. To prepare, boil twice as much water as you have rice. Stir in rice, return to boil, reduce heat and cover. Simmer about 35-40 minutes. Remove from heat and allow the rice to steam for another 15 minutes or more. Fluff with a fork to separate grains. To make you own cream of rice cereal, grind enough toasted rice to equal 1 cup. Bring 3 cups water to boil and add ground rice. Return to boil, reduce heat, cover and cook 1 hour. Top with honey, fruit or nuts. You can also bake your brown rice in the oven in a glass baking dish. Gather your ingredients as usual (1.5 cups rice and 2.5 cups water), butter and salt. Boil the water, salt and butter together and then pour the mixture over the rice, cover with foil and bake at 375° for one hour.

Wild rice
Wild rice has a similar nutritional profile as grains — with twice the fiber and protein of brown rice — but is not a true grain (it’s the seed of an aquatic grass). It’s grown mostly in Great Lakes region, as well as California and Oregon. Some find the taste of wild rice too strong on its own and prefer to blend it with brown rice. Try it in salads, stuffings, pilafs, and side dishes — or even for breakfast.

The world’s population is estimated to grow from 6.8 billion people today to 9.4 billion people by 2050. Leading experts predict we will need to produce more food over the next 50 years than has been produced in the past 10,000 years combined. Compounding this challenge are the effects of climate change and limited natural resources.

Rice and wheat are two staple crops critical to the food security of billions of people around the world. Together, these two crops feed more than half the world’s population.

Rice is consumed both with its bran coating and without. White rice, of which there are many types, is the generic name for bran-free rice. There are three types of rice with intact bran (whole-grain rice): wild rice, brown rice and the far less popular black rice. While biologist don't consider wild rice to be a true rice

Brown rice has a nutty taste and chewy texture. It's healthier than white rice because of its higher fiber content. White rice, however, has a much longer shelf life, cooks faster, and produces fluffier grains. Wild rice has a hard, almost woody texture along with a nutty taste and has similar health benefits as brown rice. Also, wild rice has the lowest calorie content of all rices.

Raw rice may be ground into flour for many uses, including making many kinds of beverages such as amazake, horchata, and rice milk. Rice flour does not contain gluten and is suitable for people on a gluten-free diet. Rice may also be made into various types of Pasta. Raw, wild or brown rice may also be consumed by raw-foodist or fruitarians if soaked and sprouted

                 short grain rice

There are several types of rice:

· Short-grain (white or brown)

· Medium-grain (white or brown)

· Long-grain (white or brown)

· Sticky (glutinous)

· Converted (parboiled)

· Enriched

· Instant (pre-cooked)

There are several ways to cook rice:

·Boiling_

· microwave

· electric Rice_Cooker

· rice cooker

· pressure cooker

·Steamed_Rice

Pollo (Chicken) Fried rice, Jambalaya, Pilaf, Rice and beans, rice pudding, Risotto, Steamed Rice.  Are just a few of the very many ways to cook with rice.

The harvested rice kernel, known as paddy, or rough, rice, is enclosed by the hull, or husk. Milling usually removes both the hull and bran layers of the kernel, and a coating of glucose and talc is sometimes applied to give the kernel a glossy finish. Rice that is processed to remove only the husks, called brown-rice, contains about 8 percent protein and small amounts of fats and is a source of thiamine, niacin, riboflavin, iron, and calcium. Rice that is milled to remove the bran as well is called white-rice" and is greatly diminished in nutrients. When white rice forms a major portion of the diet, there is a risk of beriberi", a disease resulting from a deficiency of thiamine and minerals. Parboiled white rice is processed before milling to retain most of the nutrients, and enriched rice has iron and B vitamins added to it.  White Rice has one of the longest shelf times

The rice rationing in the U.S. comes as the torrid pace of commodity price increases has led to violence over food supplies and costs in several nations. Globally, rice prices are starting to hit record highs, following a host of other commodities. Costco-limit 2 bags.

Food costs will continue to rise and people will begin to hoard food, both to insure against shortages and rising prices. This is just the beginning. You will hear this type of news more and more.

Buckwheat-

Buckwheat is sometimes referred to as "groats" (hulled, crushed kernels) or "kasha" (roasted buckwheat groats). Whole grain buckwheat may be used as a main or dish, added to casseroles or soups or ground into flour for pancakes, waffles, muffins, and breads. The flour is dark, robust, and slightly sweet and is best used in combination with blander flours when baking. It contributes bioflavanoids, protein, folic acid, vitamin B6, calcium, and iron to your diet. To prepare, use about 2 cups water per cup of buckwheat. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer 20-30 minutes or until tender, not crunchy (add extra water, if needed). For a main dish or side dish, cook onions with the buckwheat and add some herbs and sea salt during the last 10 minutes of cooking time. For kasha, use slightly less water and reduce cooking time to 15-20 minutes.

Oats......

Rolled oats, flattened kernels with the hulls removed, are used mostly for oatmeal

Oat flour is not generally considered suitable for bread but is used to make cookies and puddings. Oat grains are high in carbohydrates and contain about 13 percent protein and 7.5 percent fat. They are a source of calcium, iron, vitamin B1, and niacin

OAT Groats – whole oats that have been cleaned and hulled – can be treated as rice for risotto, and oat flour makes good oatcakes, breads, pancakes and pastry.

Oat bran does carry a risk of going rancid, although it is processed in a way which is designed to prolong its shelf-life it should be kept in a cool, dry place, and not exposed to moisture. If you only use a little at a time, you can keep oat bran in the freezer, which will extend the potential usability period of this grain product dramatically. When buying products which contain oat bran, read the label carefully, as many cereals and other packaged products use oat bran as a marketing technique to conceal the fact that they are high in sugars, saturated fat, and other unhealthy ingredients. Oat bran may also be a preventative for some forms of cancer. American Heart Association even have oat bran recipes on their websites to encourage people to integrate this food into their diets.

Whole grain oat flour is a great substitute for individuals with allergies to wheat or anyone interested in low-fat Oat flour retains moisture in baked goods, which reduces the need for additional fat. It is also helpful for adding fiber to the diet by replacing some or all of the refined flour in baking recipes.

Tips & Warnings

· Use your homemade whole grain oat flour in any recipe that calls for wheat flour. Substitute approximately 1 1/3 cups of oat flour for every 1 cup of wheat flour.

· If you're using oat flour to increase fiber intake, simply replace 1/3 of the refined flour in a recipe with an equal amount of whole grain oat flour.

· Non-wheat flour typically performs best when baked in smaller servings, such as cookies or muffins. If you want to use only oat flour in a recipe, try to bake it in smaller muffin-sized servings rather than a large loaf or cake.