Rice: we love you too

Rice again? The figures confirm it: the beloved wild grain is grown in thirty-four countries; its fields cover more than 10% of the world's arable land, and it feeds more than half of the world's population, according to the FAO, surpassing wheat or corn. It is rich, practical, and with a couple of ingredients, it becomes an elegy. Literally, everyone eats rice. The poor, the rich, the petite bourgeoisie, the Asian, the Central American, the African. In Europe, the Spanish have dedicated some of their best dishes to it. In Mexico, even songs. It is our thermometer to know if a woman—and a man conversing about equality—can marry. It is thrown at weddings like confetti as a symbol of abundance. It is present on altars around the world to attract prosperity. Its cultivation in Japan is part of an ancestral tradition that transcends cultural matters: currently, there is a price war favoring the local market through a tariff increase on importers. Its cultivation in Southeast Asia is a hereditary craft and a beautiful sight in its terraced mountains.There is not just one type of rice. There is white, brown, sticky which is short and sweet, aromatic varieties like basmati or jasmine, and speckled ones like wild rice, which tastes better when combined with nuts, mint, and olive oil. Its own anatomy and its culinary geolocation will make it more or less common to serve it steamed like gohan, fried like yangzhou in Cantonese style, or enriched with butter, oil, or broths like risotto Italian: broth, white wine, parmesan cheese, and mushrooms sautéed in butter are the path to the heavens of umami.Rice is present at all hours on tables around the world. At breakfast, in several Asian countries, especially in China, congee parades: a sweet or savory mash of rice with more than two thousand years of history. In Mexico, we infuse it with sugar to make arrocenas, serving it in bowls with puffed cereal and a splash of milk. Athletes turn it into their favorite snack as it contains no gluten: they spread a rice cake with hummus, another with avocado, cherries, and olive oil. At lunchtime, the best expression of rice is achieved in its soupy or creamy version. There is the one made with seafood, rabbit, and sausages in Valencian paella, or the black one, whose color and flavor come from squid ink. It should be eaten on a terrace on the Catalan coast to feel that there is no better dish. If it is soupy, do not miss the typical arroz a la tumbada from Veracruz that burns the mouth like few others, or with chicken and beans as in the Spanish cuisine of the Levant.In Cuba, it is mixed with beans to represent moros con cristianos; in Peru, tacu-tacu is prepared with leftover lentils or beans and a sauté of yellow chili. In a chifa menu—what Peruvians call Chinese cuisine—arroz chaufa will be present, fried with diced vegetables and stir-fried with egg to amalgamate. It tastes better with soy sauce and a good dose of fat. In the Dominican Republic, another major producer of our beloved grain, it is prepared with seafood, with pigeon peas, or in a sauté of vegetables and bacon for Christmas. Loaded on ships from Spain and Portugal, rice landed on the continent. Today, Caribbean cuisine would not be understood without it. In each country, endemic spices and popular sausages are added to give it the flavor of local dishes. In Colombia, it is present in its quintessential breakfast dish, bandeja paisa; it also appears in arroz atollado with chicken, onion, potatoes, and peppers, or with coconut to accompany a fried snapper and tostones. In Korea, bibimbap is a true k-pop, a bowl of rice always sold in stores, served with proteins and vegetables mixed with sesame oil and gochujang. In Mexico, we give our rice gentilicios: “a la mexicana,” “poblano.”  Rice is the indispensable dish of fonditas. It should have a fried egg on top, and fried plantain. Cream, of course. There is no better investment than those extra $15 on the menu price.The Maxweel Food Centre in Singapore is a delight: on a plastic plate, there is a mountain of rice topped with poached chicken with ginger, cooked in its juices. Juices and more juices. In alcoholic drinks, do not miss it. Japanese sake makes everyone shout ¡kampai! regardless of the preparation technique and its very intricate meanings.If someone prefers sweet, rice will not disappoint. In Japan, there is no more common dessert than mochi, a small cake made from glutinous rice that can be filled with a paste of soy, red beans, or ice cream. Locally, we make it in atole, or with milk and boiled with cinnamon and sugar. At Kiwilimón, we have even made it into a tart with a cookie base. We have made it in every way because like with rice pudding, we want to marry… with it. Do you think we missed any? Please tell us which one you would like.