Different Types of Rice and Their Uses
How to use the most popular rice you can find at the local store.
A few days ago, I read a very helpful article by Lucy The Eggcademic (she/her) on how to make fried rice. I love fried rice, but I’ve noticed that the rice I get from the Chinese restaurant is different from the one I use at home, so I asked Lucy which one she uses. After a couple of messages, I was more confused than before since new types of rice popped-up, creating thousands of possible fried rice variations in my head.
How many types of rice that I still don’t know are out there? Well, I challenge you to try them all since there are over 40,000 varieties of rice! Crazy right?
Types of Rice
Rice can be classified according to different characteristics such as length, shape, texture, color, and flavor.
Length and shape
Rice can be divided into long-grain, medium-grain, and short-grain. Long-grain rice has a long and cylindrical shape; it’s three to four times as long as wide and, when cooked, remain separate due to starch’s high presence. Medium-grain rice it’s a little shorter and wider than the long one. Once cooked, it’s soft and moist, and the grains easily stick together. Last, the short-grain rice is twice as long as…
