On our way home last weekend after visiting friends we stopped at Horrocks in Lansing.  I’ve always loved that place!  Their website says they are a Farm Market but they are so much more.  A huge selection of beers and wine, all sorts of packaged products including a lot of organic items, meats, cheeses, and, of course, produce.  Many things that you might not find in your average grocery store.  We were with another couple and my friend Jane and I can both spend a LONG time reading labels and looking for new and unusual items to try.  We met a woman in the rice and pasta aisle who is apparently a kindred spirit.  She  was looking for Forbidden Black Rice.  She said she loves the taste and consistency.  We had never heard of it or seen it.  So naturally, each of us bought a bag.  On the way home we looked up recipes for preparing black rice and found instructions for the pressure cooker.

A little more research told me that black rice is a superfood.  It has more anatioxidants than blueberries.  Its always a bonus when something tastes good and is good for you.  Legend has it that it was grown only for the emperors of ancient China and was called “forbidden” because it was off limits to the general public.

Last Wednesday I cooked my bag of black rice.  I served it with chicken with a mushroom sauce and asparagus.  And we loved it.

Ingredients:

2 cups black rice

2 3/4 cups water

1 T olive oil

1 tsp salt

The instructions are pretty straight forward.  Combine the rice, water, olive oil and salt in the pressure cooker.  Select high pressure for 22 minutes.

Allow for 10 minutes of natural pressure release.  After the 10 minutes, release any remaining pressure.  Keep the rice warm until you’re ready to serve.

Black rice is not as fluffy as white and it has a rich nutty taste and a chewy texture.  We liked it much better than brown rice.  I think it would be excellent in a stir fry or a cold rice salad.  I had quite a bit leftover and took the advice of the lady we met in Horrocks and froze it.  Maybe I’ll use it in soup next.

The day after I had cooked my black rice I got a picture and a text message from my daughter.  Unbeknownst to me, they had cooked black rice as well.  Great minds apparently think alike.  And from the looks of their dish they liked it as well.

Thank you Kate.  I’m glad we met you in Horrocks and love that you introduced us to forbidden black rice.