Brown Rice Pilaf
In the same vein as my favorite culinary magazine, Alton Brown’s Good Eats takes the science of cooking seriously. His series of episodes on rice, in particular, struck a chord with me. Now-obvious bombshell number one: you gotta cook rice in the oven. There’s just no better way to keep everything at a consistent temperature. Bombshell number two: when cooked properly, brown rice actually tastes good.
Why the sudden proclivity toward brown rice? I’ve been doing my darndest to eliminate processed flours and sugars from my diet, so simple, reproduceable dishes made of whole grains are now at the top of my recipe file.
Alton’s base recipe for brown rice (quoted below) is very straightforward. Note that medium- or short-grain varieties are critical. Long grain simply will not work. (In these parts, Whole Foods has the best selection of smaller-grained rices, but Shaw’s at least carries short-grain Nishiki-brand brown rice in the Asian food section.)
• 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.
Bring the water, butter, and salt just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. Once the water boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.
His recipe is surprisingly resilient. I’ve successfully used olive oil instead of butter, used chicken broth in place of the water, butter, and salt, and doubled the recipe for larger gatherings. I’ve successfully left the freshly prepared rice on the warming tray until Shabbat dinner, and frozen leftover rice for reheating later in the week.
His recipe also cries out for embellishment. One simple option: add the zest of a lime and a dried chile or two to the cooking liquid, and serve with Mexican fare. What follows is something a bit more complex, but worth the effort. The cranberries and sage make it a healthful replacement for stuffing alongside that yom tov or Thanksgiving turkey.
BROWN RICE PILAF
• 1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
• 2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1/2 cup dried, sweetened cranberries
• zest of half an orange
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 8 oz. sliced mushrooms
• kosher salt
• 4 fresh sage leaves, thinly sliced
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Place the rice, zest, and cranberries into an 8-inch square glass baking dish, or a 1.5 qt. ceramic dish.
Bring the broth just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. Once the broth boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.
While the rice is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large skillet on a medium flame. Add the diced onion, celery, and a heavy pinch of kosher salt, then saute until soft and golden, about 15 minutes. Empty pan into a large bowl, then add sliced mushrooms with another heavy pinch of kosher salt. Saute until mushrooms release their juices and then cook off, about 10 minutes. Add mushrooms to bowl.
Remove rice from oven. (At this point, I let the rice sit, covered, for 1 hour, because I’m unsure of Alton’s intent in repeating “after one hour.”) Remove cover, pour cooked vegetables and sliced sage over rice, and toss everything together. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or keep warm until ready to eat, or freeze pre-portioned quantities and reheat in the microwave.
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