Full of fibre

What makes brown rice brown? In short, it is due to the nutritionally rich brown layer of bran beneath the husks. It can be milled into white rice by removing the layer of brand, revealing the white interior kernel. When cooked, brown rice has a pleasant chewy texture and a subtle nutty flavour.

While it does take longer to cook than white rice, brown rice is in fact much healthier. Its high-fibre content helps control cholesterol, which in turn helps prevent heart disease. Just one cup of brown rice will provide you with essential vitamins such as B3, B1 and B6, and 88% of your daily intake of manganese. The complete milling and polishing that converts brown rice into white rice destroys 67% of the vitamin B3, 80% of the vitamin B1, 90% of the vitamin B6, half of the manganese, half of the phosphorus, 60% of the iron, and all of the dietary fibre and essential fatty acids.

Makes you wonder why anybody eats white rice, doesn’t it!?

A reminder that brown rice has a much shorter shelf life compared to white rice due to the oil in the germ, which can cause it to go rancid. So, be sure to keep it in a cool, dark place for a maximum of six months. Refrigerating it can also help extend shelf life.