|  | Diet Nutrition | Nutrition

Techniques in Enriching Rice

Enriching rice is a method of replacing the nutritional value that is removed by processing. What remains is a starch. Rice in its harvested form is not eatable and requires processing for human consumption. Nutrients removed are replaced by mixing the processed rice with vitamins and minerals. In some cultures, rice is an essential part of the daily diet and nutrition is an important aspect to the food supply.

  1. Techniques for Enriching Rice

    • White rice is coated with a powder or sprayed directly with vitamins and minerals replacing removed nutrients without changing its appearance or characteristic of grained rice. Some of those nutrients, include iron, niacin, thiamine, and folic acid, which are lost during the processing stage. One of the imperfections to the coating technique is that the coatings can be washed away, either reducing the nutrients or eliminating them a second time.

    Converting Grain Rice into Pellet

    • Rice pellets have gone through experimentation that changes the appearance and form so that micro-nutrients of vitamins A and B and minerals can be added. This process includes adding proteins, essential amino acids, fatty acids, and antioxidants with pro-biotic and pre-biotic ingredients. The results do produce a more nutritional rice and the re-hydrating with water restores the rice like texture and appearance.

    Gramineae

    • Vegetable germs, and rice germs such as wheat and grain are used to replace the nutrients depleted through processing. The enrichment technique of using the by produce of germ to replace the nutritional value changes the color of the rice to a golden hue. The germ process increases the cooking time but retains the added nutrients. Culinary dishes find this process least favorable, because the rice does not absorb seasonings.

    Cooking Methods

    • Reduction of water in all rice preparation is apparently the key to cooking nutritionally enriched rice. Rinsing the rice may remove the starches it also removes the added coatings. Steam cooking rice involves evaporation and nutrients may be dissolved. Try using a minimum amount of water to cook the rice, it will help to preserve the enrichment.

Nutrition - Related Articles