5 Easy and Super Nutritious Rice Recipes

• 1 cup short-grain brown rice, soaked overnight
• 2 medium carrots, chopped
• Kernels from 1 ear of corn (1 cup frozen works too)
• 2 cups water
• Pinch of sea salt

Drain and rinse the rice, then place in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir continuously until the rice is golden brown and a few kernels begin to pop. Transfer to a pot. Add the carrots and water. Bring to a boil and add the pinch of sea salt.

Simmer until all of the water is absorbed (approximately 15–30 minutes). Add the corn in the last five minutes. Turn off the heat and let rest for another five minutes before serving.

French Onion Rice Soup

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This soup is vegan but you can always add some cheese to it if you want to. For this recipe, I like to use arborio rice because it becomes wonderfully creamy as it cooks and makes the soup comforting and thick. Dried mushrooms add a burst of umami flavor, or use fresh if that’s what you have.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 2 medium onions, sliced (brown, white or red all work)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 2–4 dried shiitake mushrooms (or other dried mushrooms)
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 6 cups water
• Tamari to taste
• Black pepper, optional
• Parsley or basil for garnish

Place the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion slices and stir. Turn the heat to low and place a lid on the pot. Stir every 15 minutes until the onions are caramelized. This takes approximately 40 minutes. Add the water, bay leaves, mushrooms, thyme and rice. Bring to a boil and then simmer for 20 minutes or until rice is soft. If it becomes very thick, you can add more water. Season with tamari to taste. Remove bay leaves before serving. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley.

Crunchy Sweet Rice Salad

You can substitute winter squash chunks for the beet if you want to, but the ruby-red color is striking with the green in this salad. Feel free to add some feta cheese or baked tofu chunks to make it even richer.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 2 small beets, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup sugar snap peas, chopped
• 1 cup roasted almonds
• 4 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 4 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
• 4 tablespoons green onion tops, chopped
• 4 cups cooked rice
• Juice of 2 limes
• 1/4 cup olive oil plus a little more for roasting the beets

Place a small amount of olive oil in a small fry pan and add the beet pieces. Roast for approximately 10 minutes, stirring once or twice. Put all of the ingredients into a mixing bowl and add the beets. Stir and serve.

Smoky Rice Skillet

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Beans, beef, fish or fowl, use what you like in this. I always have a can of beans in the cupboard. This is one of those quick to make and quick to clean up kind of recipes.

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 4 cups cooked rice
• 1 cup beans, or protein of your choice for 4
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 large cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 medium carrots, chopped
• 3 cups spinach or other dark greens, chopped
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 3/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Place the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the paprika, onion, garlic and carrot pieces. Stir for a couple of minutes until the onion cooks through. Add the beans, spinach and about 1/4–1/2 cup of water. Cook for a couple minutes and then add the rice. Stir and mix until the water is all absorbed. Turn off the heat and add the lemon juice.