Healthy Recipe #1 - Rice Coffee: A Healthy Alternative to Caffeinated Coffee

For the first time, I’m featuring a recipe I know that is healthy and very simple to make.  In fact, this recipe is so simple that it only has 1 ingredient (LOL!) and that is…unpolished rice!

Are you the type of person who loves to drink coffee but is wary of taking in (too much) caffeine into your body?  Well, here’s a wonderful alternative to the regular caffeinated coffee – RICE COFFEE!  There’s even an organic store I know that sells this kind of coffee.  But let me just share to you now how I prepare it at home.

Unpolished red rice variety

First things first, it’s best to use organic and unpolished rice.  Although I read somewhere that there are now violet, pink and black varieties, brown or red are the more common unpolished rice varieties in the supermarkets and groceries nowadays.  Using organic and unpolished rice is a lot better than the regular polished white rice because of its health benefits.  For one, it’s pesticide-free and is loaded with more micro nutrients (vitamins and minerals) and rich in fiber and essential oils compared to white rice.

Procedure:

In a frying pan without oil, roast over low heat the red or brown rice grains (not cooked!) until the grains become dark, nearly black, as coffee beans.  Make sure not to burn or over-roast the rice grains as your coffee will taste bitter like charcoal.

Before roasting...

After roasting...

Pour it over hot water in a pot or kettle and boil.  Tip:  Do not pour too much water in the pot or kettle as your coffee will not look like coffee but tea!  You can try the 1:1 ratio, that is, for every 1 cup of rice, use 1 cup of water.  You can then adjust the amount of water after boiling.

When the color of the water has turned black (color of black coffee), turn off the heat as it is now ready.  Here’s another tip:  Do not over-boil the rice grains as it will absorb the water and cook the rice.

Use a strainer in transferring to your cup or mug.

And it’s ready to drink!  You may add sugar (brown or mascuvado or coconut) or honey, if you like.

Happy healthy drinking! :-)
More healthy recipes to come...stay tuned!

P.S.

Don't throw away the rice grains.  You can continue cooking the rice so nothing is wasted.  In case you don't know how to cook unpolished rice, you can check this out from PinoyOrganics.