- May 11, 2024
- 0 Comment(s)
Worldwide Delicious Rice Recipes: 21 Dishes to Savour
What's best about rice-based meals? They satisfy the taste buds and accompany any side dish with ease. Rice's versatility has made it a kitchen staple in most countries worldwide. It's a great source of energy and nutrition for people who want to cut down their food costs without compromising the nutrition level.
Thanks to chefs experimenting with ingredients and spices, hundreds of rice dishes with exclusive preparations exist. Moreover, rice has been cooked in different ways in different cultures.
We have compiled a list of delicious rice recipes from different countries. We’ve selected these dishes based on their popularity, cooking methods, and ingredients. Let’s check it out.
Famous rice recipes from across the world
There are plenty of rice recipes available to food lovers. These dishes made from rice are popular due to their aroma and easy cooking method. Here are the rice dishes from around the world that you can enjoy with family and friends.
01. Kabsa (Saudi Arabia)
Kabsa is Saudi Arabia's national dish. It is a combination of many ingredients. This one-pot meal includes grilled spiced chicken or lamb and aromatic basmati rice in its preparation.
It is a dish with a rich flavor due to spices such as cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, bay leaves, and ginger. Along with these spices, garlic, tomato puree, onions, and bone-in chicken are also included. Rice and raisins are cooked in chicken broth with wholly cooked chicken for a delicious taste. Here’s how chicken kabsa is prepared.
02. Hyderabadi biryani (India)
Hyderabadi biryani is a famous rice and meat-based recipe from the Indian city of Hyderabad. This is a popular and unique dish served at significant events and celebrations.
It uses aromatic rice, spiced yogurt, marinated goat or chicken meat, onions, and ghee. Often, the dish is served with curd sauce and peanut chilly curry.
03. Jambalaya (United States)
Jambalaya is a popular dish from Louisiana, USA. Its main ingredients are long-grain rice, chicken, local seafood such as mussels and shrimp, and andouille sausage. A key feature of this dish is the generous amount of hot sauce and cayenne pepper used.
On the other hand, its New Orleans version includes aromatic spices such as celery, green bell pepper, and onions.
04. Sushi (Japan)
Sushi is a famous rice dish in Japan. Vinegared rice, raw fish, seaweed, and vegetables are used to prepare this recipe. Since sushi is a worldwide famous dish, it now comes in different versions. One simple version called nigiri uses smeared wasabi paste on the top of the rice ball along with raw fish or other seafood. It is pressed into a mound that’s bite-sized.
Another version of this dish is called Maki, which is complex to prepare. It uses seaweed-wrapped rice rolled around a fish or vegetable core. While the nigiri contains the fish slice at the top, maki contains its filling.
05. Diri ak pwa (Haiti)
In Haiti, diri ak pwa is a stable dish prepared with rice and beans daily. This national dish uses a variety of beans, mostly kidney beans, black beans, and pinto, making it nutritious. For the people of Haiti, meals with rice are a rich source of protein, iron, and vitamin B. Beans also contain more protein and iron than rice.
06. Paella (Spain)
Paella is a Spanish dish prepared using saffron-scented round-grain rice, varieties of green beans, seafood, meat, and other vegetables. Since it is cooked on a shallow frying pan, which is known as ‘Paella’ in Valencian language. The rice used is called Bomba rice.
07. Nasi lemak (Malaysia)
Nasi lemak is a Malay cuisine made using fragrant rice, which is cooked in coconut milk. The dish uses the flavouring of pandan leaf as well.
While serving the dish, people put sliced cucumber, peanuts, boiled eggs, and fried anchovies alongside it. Then, a spicy paste, sambal, made of red chili papers, fish sauce, tamarind, and shrimp paste, is served hot on top of the dish.
08. Risotto (Italy)
In Italy, risotto is another popular dish besides pizza and pasta. To prepare it, you first slow-cook Arborio rice, an Italian short-grain variety. Then, add the rice, parmesan cheese, mushrooms, and seafood.
There are several popular versions of risotto. These include risotto ai frutti di mare, a seafood-heavy version; risotto alla milanese, a saffron-infused risotto made with beef marrow; and risotto al limone, a simple dish prepared with lemon juice.
09. Hainanese Chicken Rice (Singapore)
Hainnanese chicken rice preparation requires poaching a whole chicken in boiling water for about 50 minutes. The rice used in this dish is the chief attraction. Singaporeans fry the rice in chicken fat, then cook it in chicken water.
They add spices such as garlic, ginger, and screwpine leaves for aroma. Then, serve the dish with bean sprouts, sliced cucumbers, or pickled vegetables.
10. Kabuli pulao (Afghanistan)
As its name suggests, Kabuli pulao originated in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan. It is a pilaf dish with tender chunks of lamb simmered and marinated in clove, cumin, cinnamon, and cardamom.
Then, raisins, toasted almonds, and julienned carrots are added to the rice and lamb. This dish's slow cooking method makes it unique in flavour.
11. Bibimbap (South Korea)
Bibimbap is a colorful bowl-style rice-based recipe from South Korea that is popular on the Korean peninsula. To make this dish, first use white rice to top it with seasoned spinach, bean sprouts, mushrooms, and carrots. Then, add a sunny-side-up egg to the vegetable in the middle of the bowl.
All the variants of this dish use bibimbap sauce, a mix of sesame oil, mirin, garlic, soy sauce, and gochujang.
12. Nasi goreng (Indonesia)
Nasi goreng is the Indonesian version of a rice-based breakfast dish. The recipe uses Indonesian sweet soy sauce called kecap mani, chicken, shrimp paste, onion, and curry powder. The soy sauce turns the rice dark brown.
After frying the rice and chicken, they serve the dish with tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, shrimp, or chicken satay skewers,
13. Plov (Uzbekistan)
Plov, the national dish of Uzbekistan, is sometimes known as pilaf. This recipe is also popular in the countries bordering Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan.
The chef prepares it using long-grain rice, mutton, carrots, onions, and aromatic spices such as bay leaves and cumin. The ingredients are then left to simmer for about an hour before serving.
14. Jollof rice (West Africa)
The West African recipe Jollof rice is another popular dish. Many countries like Senegal, Liberia, Ghana, and Nigeria claim to have the best version of this rice and tomato dish. These versions have their type of rice and fillings used in the preparation.
The rice dish mainly includes curry spices, hot peppers, and meat, while many versions have fermented conch, fish, and vegetables. However, most shefs cook rice, vegetables, and meat on a tomato base.
15. Xôi ngũ sắc (Vietnam)
In Vietnamese, xôi ngũ sắc means sticky rice with five colors. This bright native dish has a salty taste. The rice used in the dish preparation comes in different colors, each with a particular meaning.
The red color of the rice symbolizes fire, while green stands for wood. Yellow is the color of the earth, black is for water, and white stands for metal. However, only natural colors extracted from fruits and leaves are used.
16. Pineapple fried rice (Thailand)
This Thai dish features chunks of pineapple mixed in fried rice with sweety, salty, and spicy ingredients such as white paper and curry powder. It also has cashews, eggs, and protein such as chicken, tofu, or shrimp.
First, the cook fries the rice in soy sauce and fish sauce and then add pineapple, cashews, and green onions along with the scrambled eggs.
17. Gyūdon (Japan)
Gyudon is a Japanese beef rice bowl. In its simplest form, the dish is prepared by topping the rice with the beef and mixing it with onion. The cook simmers it with sugar, mirin, soy sauce, and dashi sauce.
You can add some raw egg yolk and a poached egg. Additionally, you can include sesame seeds, crushed red pepper, and shredded scallions for flavour and enhanced taste.
18. Arroz de pato (Portugal)
In Portugal, arroz de pato is a popular everyday dish that should be on your list when exploring Portuguese foods. This dish's name means duck rice. To prepare it, first cook the duck meat and then use the native port wine to deglaze the pan.
Next, simmer the poultry with chorizo, Carolino rice, broth, and bay leaf. Then, heat it in the oven for 15 minutes. Serve the dish piping hot.
19. Red beans and rice (United States)
Red beans and rice are another popular rice-based dish in the USA. This dish became especially popular in New Orleans during the 1930s as a Monday night meal for homemakers. They could quickly prepare the dish, setting the ingredients on the stove.
This dish preparation uses green bell paper, yellow onion, cooked rice, smoked sausage, and Creole seasoning. These and some more ingredients simmer for five hours to make the beans tender.
20. Galinhada (Brazil)
Galinhada is a Brazilian comfort food made of rice and chicken. The rice and chicken stew is cooked on slow heat for over 2 hours. It is full of carrots, peas, garlic, and onions. Since it’s a one-pot recipe, you can cook it easily.
21. Mansaf (Jordan)
Mansaf is Jordan's national dish, cooked in fermented dried yogurt. It’s relished by families and prepared on special occasions such as weddings and birthdays. The dish retrieved its name from the term “large tray.”
These delicious rice recipes come from different countries, each with a unique flavour and use of ingredients. You can experiment with the recipes to see which one best suits your taste buds.
Visit Jasn Foods for a variety of other basmati rice-based recipes.
Wrapping Up
Rice-based dishes are amongst the most popular in most countries. There is not just a variety of rice used in preparing these recipes. Besides the rice, multiple spices for different aromas are also featured in dish preparation. These popular rice recipes are the most sought-after, and you can learn a lot to come up with your unique idea.