75 International Rice Recipes from Around the World (2024)

Post in collaboration withThe Rice Association

Take a culinary journey around the globe in rice with 75 international recipes which showcase the versatility of rice from breakfast through to lunch, dinner and dessert Featuring dishes from India, Mexico, Greece, Asia, Spain, Japan, Thailand and more. Whether you’re looking for inspiration to use up leftovers, rustle up a quick midweek meal, or discover a new go to salad there’s something for you below in this selection of globally inspired rice based dishes.

#RiceWeek2018 National Rice Week is this year being celebrated between Monday 17th and Sunday 23rd September with an exotic journey around the world via rice. Rice is the perfect partner for any dish and is enjoyed all over the globe from risotto in Italy to curry in India. You can quite literally travel the world in rice dishes. In the UK we now eat five times more rice per person than we did forty years ago and consumption is still on the rise as more of us enjoy its taste, versatility and take advantage of convenient microwaveable packs. Surprisingly, as its not grown in the UK, rice is a true British favourite and features in so many of our most loved dishes from egg fried rice and chicken tikka masala to Granny’s favourite rice pudding! Outwith the home kitchen rice based restaurant eating accounts for 21% of all restaurants in the UK – with Indian food being the most popular, followed by pizza then Chinese.

Rice really is a staple in my cooking repertoire and there are at least half a dozen different varieties in my larder. As a store cupboard ingredient it is a genuine life-saver. A cheap and long-lasting culinary basic it can feed a room full of hungry students, provide a much needed Friday night treat or can be used to impress at a dinner party. My roundup below comprises of 75 rice based recipes from across the globe featuring everything from basmati, brown and pudding to the more exotic black, red and sushi rice. Whether you’re looking for inspiration to use up leftovers, rustle up a quick midweek meal, or discover an entirely new cuisine there’s sure to be something for you below. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the post for all the fantastic rice desserts. But before the recipes I'm a sucker for a fun fact so here's nine things you may not know about rice. Number nine is my favourite...

Rice is the main food for half the world’s population
Rice is cultivated on every continent except Antarctica
The UK uses 700,000 tonnes of rice per year, and has 11 rice mills
India, Pakistan and Thailand are the biggest sources, although the UK buys from around 50 origins. One third comes from the EU, mainly Italy and Spain
A one kilogramme bag of rice contains approximately 50,000 grains
There are said to be more than 40,000 different varieties of wild and cultivated rice.
Whilst most rice is white, some varieties are black, purple or red in colour. Yellow rice is made by cooking with tumeric, saffron or another spice which colours the grain
Rice is the symbol of life and fertility, which is why it is thrown at weddings
The Chinese word for rice is the same as their word for food

INDIAN