4 Types of Delicious Rice You Should Be Stocking Up On

No pantry is fully stocked without a few bags of rice. With its endless colorful varieties, rice is your go-to culinary solution for practically every meal. It’s the perfect soaker for any soup or saucy dish. Fry up leftover rice and it can make an entire meal on its own. Mix it with milk, cinnamon and raisins and you even got yourself a dessert!

Seasoned chefs know that rice has many virtues, both health and taste-wise. Now that home cooking has taken a huge leap forward, amateur cooks are also beginning to discover all the wonderful things they can do with rice. From the classic basmati to the sticky sushi, rice brings distinctive flavors, textures, and colors to any dish.

Here are 4 rice varieties you should always have on your shelves.

Jasmine Rice

Jasmine Rice

This aromatic rice gets its name from the sweet-smelling jasmine flower grown in Thailand. It is often confused with basmati rice, which is also a fragrant and nutty-tasting long grain rice, except its native to the Himalayas and Pakistan.

This type of rice goes great as a plain side dish for any chicken or fish recipe. To make a fun veggie variety, whisk together vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger and sugar. In a skillet, heat edamame and red pepper until vegetables are tender-crisp. Stir in the vinegar mixture and the pre cooked jasmine rice. Garnish with green onions and sesame seeds.

Sushi Rice

Nigiri and Sashimi made from Sushi rice

At the base of any good sushi recipe is the rice. Also known as Pearl rice, Glutinous rice or Japanese rice, this variety is made from short grain white rice. Unlike long-grain rice, sushi rice has a chewy, sticky texture that makes it perfect for holding things together.

Besides buying the right kind of rice, you’ll also need sugar and salt to make sushi. You can also try adding some Japanese rice vinegar to your sushi for a rich, slightly sweet flavor.

Basmati Rice

Basmati with shaved almonds

An Indian and Mediterranean classic, basmati rice is a long-grain rice that is characterized by a light nutty flavor and floral aroma. Its fluffy, clean grains are great in soaking up curries and other saucy Indian dishes. It’s also perfect as rice pilaf with fun ingredients thrown in like nuts and vegetables.

Brown basmati rice is the healthier version, although with a slightly firmer texture. It is the same as white rice but with the outer husk covering each grain kept on. Brown rice provides fatty acids, dietary fiber and other nutrients thanks to bran.
Basmati rice is fairly easy to cook. Just make sure to rinse it until the water runs clear and then let drain.

Arborio Rice

Arborio rice in the raw

Named after the commune in the Po Valley found in the Piedmont region of Italy, Arborio is best known for making risotto. This short grain rice is high in amylopectin starch, so when it’s cooked it becomes creamy and chewy. Unlike many other rices, arborio is not to be washed prior to cooking. Washing the rice will remove some of the starch leaving a lackluster risotto dish.

Risotto is easier to make than you think. Virtually any kind of stock or broth you have in your fridge or pantry will do. Simply stir in whatever vegetables you have on hand, generously top it with Parmigiano-Reggiano and you’ve got yourself the perfect comfort food that’s also elegant.

Check out this seafood and saffron risotto recipe from Rajika Basu, Cheetah’s Social Media guru.

Buy Wholesale Rice to Fill Your Pantry

At Cheetah we know how important it is to keep dinner fun and healthy throughout the week. To keep things interesting, we have all the rice varieties you can think of waiting for you on our app. Buy the same kind of rice restaurants use at wholesale prices so you’ll never have to worry about dinner.