Recipes with rice
Half of humanity eats rice every day, and yet almost none of the recipes below treat it the same way. The grain you pick, the water you give it and the moment you stop stirring are enough to produce dishes with nothing left in common.
On one side are the kitchens that want separate grains: vegetable biryani, jollof rice and Thai fried rice all call for a long grain, rinsed until the water runs clear, and above all cold before it meets the pan. On the other are those that want the exact opposite and cultivate the starch: Italian risotto, Chinese congee and Sri Lankan kiribath are stirred, fed with liquid, and are meant to cling.
Between the two, rice works as social glue more than as an ingredient. Egyptian koshari stacks it with lentils and pasta, Lebanese mujaddara marries it to lentils and fried onions, Costa Rican gallo pinto and Cuban moros y cristianos give it beans. Japan turns it into something you hold in your hand with onigiri, and Thailand into a dessert with mango sticky rice.
- Recipes on the site
- 41
- Countries represented
- 27
- Ready in 30 minutes or less
- 3
- Vegan
- 29
- Gluten-free
- 33
The best represented countries: India (5) · Costa Rica (3) · Japan (3) · France (2) · Greece (2) · Italy (2)
These recipes also use: lentils (7) · beans (6) · lemon (4) · coconut (4) · tomato (4)
The recipes
China⏱ 85 minVegetable congee
Rice simmered for an hour into silk, scented with shiitake and ginger, peppery with white pepper and spring onion.
Costa Rica⏱ 25 minGallo pinto
Costa Rica's breakfast of choice: day-old rice tossed with black beans, onion, sweet pepper and tangy Lizano sauce.
Costa Rica⏱ 55 minHeart of Palm Rice
Creamy rice baked with hearts of palm under a cheese crust, a Costa Rican party dish born of Pacific palm groves.
Costa Rica⏱ 50 minVegetarian casado
The Costa Rican plate lunch, rice and black beans gathered around a fried ripe plantain and a fried egg.
Cuba⏱ 65 minMoros y cristianos
Cuba's black beans and rice, simmered together in a sofrito of onion, pepper and garlic with cumin and oregano.
Egypt⏱ 70 minKoshari
Koshari, Egypt's national dish, layers rice, lentils, macaroni and chickpeas under a vinegar-sharpened tomato sauce and crisp fried onions.
Finland⏱ 85 minKarjalanpiirakka
Finland's Karelian pasties: a paper-thin rye crust pinched around a creamy rice porridge and brushed with hot butter.
France⏱ 80 minVegetarian stuffed courgettes with rice
Vegetarian stuffed courgettes with rice, their own flesh, red pepper, tomato, herbs and parmesan, baked until golden. A meat-free filling that holds together when cut.
France⏱ 75 minVegetarian stuffed tomatoes with rice and lentils
Vegetarian stuffed tomatoes baked in the oven: a filling of rice, green lentils, mushrooms and fresh herbs, meat-free and gluten-free.
Greece⏱ 95 minDolmades
Vine leaves rolled around herby rice with dill, mint and pine nuts, gently simmered in olive oil and lemon and served cold.
Greece⏱ 40 minSpanakorizo
The beloved Greek home classic combining tender medium-grain rice with wilted fresh spinach, abundant dill, fragrant olive oil, and bright lemon.
Hungary⏱ 80 minHungarian vegetarian stuffed peppers
Whole peppers filled with paprika-spiced rice and lentils, stood upright and poached in a sweet-sour tomato sauce.
India⏱ 75 minIdli sambar
Steamed cakes of fermented rice and urad dal, served with a tamarind sambar of toor dal and drumstick.
India⏱ 40 minKhichdi
This khichdi recipe cooks rice and moong lentils down together until soft, turned gold with turmeric and finished with cumin ghee.
India⏱ 70 minMasala dosa
A thin, crisp fermented rice crêpe rolled around a soft turmeric potato filling, straight from South India.
India⏱ 22 minPoha
A turmeric-yellow breakfast of flattened rice studded with crunchy peanuts, curry leaves and plenty of lemon.
India⏱ 80 minVegetable biryani
This vegetable biryani recipe parboils basmati with whole spices, layers it over spiced vegetables and fried onions, then seals it in a pot to finish.
Iran⏱ 145 minVegetarian Ghormeh Sabzi
A long-simmered herb stew, dark and tangy, built on kidney beans, mushrooms and sour dried black limes.
Italy⏱ 50 minMushroom and chickpea risotto
A creamy risotto with button mushrooms and dried porcini, with chickpeas added to make it a full meal.
Italy⏱ 70 minSupplì
Tomato risotto balls hiding a core of mozzarella, crumbed and fried, sold in every friggitoria across Rome.
Jamaica⏱ 45 minJamaican rice and peas
Coconut rice scented with thyme and allspice, cooked with kidney beans and a whole scotch bonnet for fragrance without fire.
Japan⏱ 50 minKappamaki
Thin rolls of vinegared rice and cucumber wrapped in half a nori sheet, the plainest maki on any sushi counter.
Japan⏱ 80 minSekihan
Glutinous rice stained pink by the cooking liquid of azuki beans, steamed and served with toasted sesame salt.
Japan⏱ 45 minVegetable onigiri
Warm triangles of Japanese rice filled with pickled vegetables and umeboshi, wrapped in a crisp strip of nori seaweed.
Lebanon⏱ 55 minMujaddara
Cumin-scented lentils and rice crowned with a mountain of crisp fried onions. The Levant's beloved everyday dish.
Malaysia⏱ 60 minVegetarian nasi lemak
Coconut and pandan rice served with a sweet-hot sambal, toasted peanuts, golden tofu and a jammy boiled egg.
Nepal⏱ 55 minDal bhat
Steamed rice with a turmeric lentil soup, finished with a sizzling tempering of ghee, garlic and cumin.
Nepal⏱ 50 minSel roti
Rings of fried rice-flour bread sweetened with ripe banana and cardamom, crisp outside and tender within.
Nigeria⏱ 70 minJollof rice
Rice cooked in a blended tomato and red pepper sauce with scotch bonnet, thyme and curry powder until the bottom catches and smokes. West Africa's icon.
Peru⏱ 45 minTacu tacu
Day-old rice and canary beans mashed together and pan-fried into a browned oval with ají amarillo, served with salsa criolla.
Portugal⏱ 55 minArroz Doce
Portuguese rice pudding scented with lemon, enriched with egg yolks and finished with cinnamon patterns drawn on top.
Puerto Rico⏱ 55 minArroz con gandules
Puerto Rican rice with pigeon peas, tinted by achiote oil and seasoned with sofrito, olives and capers.
Romania⏱ 130 minMushroom Sarmale
Cabbage leaves rolled around rice, mushrooms and dill, then simmered slowly in a gentle tomato broth until meltingly tender.
Senegal⏱ 95 minVegetable tiep rice
Senegal's national dish without the fish, red rice cooked in the tomato broth of the vegetables, with cabbage, carrot and sweet potato.
South Korea⏱ 55 minMayak gimbap
Mini seaweed rolls of rice with carrot, yellow pickled radish and spinach, dipped in a mustard soy sauce.
South Korea⏱ 50 minVegan bibimbap
The Korean mix-it-yourself bowl, hot rice, sautéed vegetables fanned on top, golden tofu and a sesame gochujang sauce.
Spain⏱ 60 minVegetarian paella
Saffron rice cooked in a fragrant broth with peppers, green beans, artichokes and peas, right down to the golden crust at the bottom.
Sri Lanka⏱ 35 minKiribath
Sri Lankan rice cooked in coconut milk, pressed flat and cut into diamonds for new months and new babies.
Thailand⏱ 50 minMango sticky rice
Warm glutinous rice steeped in sweet-salty coconut, served with ripe mango and toasted mung beans for crunch.
Thailand⏱ 25 minThai fried rice
The khao pad of street canteens, this Thai rice is day-old rice wok-fried with egg, crunchy vegetables, soy sauce and Thai basil.
Vietnam⏱ 50 minBánh xèo
A turmeric-yellow rice crêpe, crisp at the edges, folded over beansprouts and mushrooms and wrapped in lettuce.