Forbidden rice? What on earth is that? Well that’s what I thought when I was looking for an interesting salad last week and I came across this recipe that I thought I’d pass on as it was super easy and really tasty.
Forbidden black rice is is a type of heirloom rice that has been part of the Aisian diet for thousands of years. It can be long, medium or short grain and has never been as available as other types of rice (white, brown, red).
Black rice, forbidden rice or emperor’s rice as it was sometimes called was reserved for the wealthy and powerful! And, it’s REALLY good for you! Packed with more antioxidants than blueberries!
I was intrigued so when I was in the supermarket, I looked in the rice section and voila! There it was! I was a bit surprised to be honest. Riz Noir Interdit!
This recipes takes just a few minutes to put together and is quite delicious. It also uses edamame beans (that you can buy frozen in the oriental shop). Serve with cold smoked or hot griddled salmon or on it’s own. It’s high in protein and has loads of fibre.
For 2 people you will need:
One and half cups of cooked forbidden black rice (see note 1)
2 cups of edamame beans (thawed see note 2)
1 ripe avocado chopped into small chunks
Half a cucumber cut into small chunks (skinned if tough)
A bunch of chopped fresh coriander leaves chopped
1 tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds
And for the dressing:
The juice and zest of one lime
One finely minced garlic clove (I grated mine)
1 tablespoon of finely grated ginger
1 tablespoon of light soy sauce
Half a tablespoon of sesame oil
1 tablespoon of maple syrup
Method:
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl (rice, chopped avocado, cucumber, beans, coriander, sesame seeds)
Combine the dressing ingredients together and pour over the above.
Mix together and serve!
Notes:
1 I used the absorption method to cook the rice (2 cups of water to one of rice) and gave it around 20 minutes on a very low heat after it came to the boil). I think rice cooked the previous day would have been even better as it would be dry.
2 edamame beans can be found in the oriental stores or sometimes in Picard in France. Just pour on boiling water to defrost them and that’s it, you’re ready to go.
