Ever since I had it at a vegan Chinese restaurant in Toronto (Vegetarian Haven, I miss you!!), I had always wanted to learn how to make purple rice. Purple rice (also known as Forbidden rice) is a beautiful and nutty change from your usual white rice! It adds a touch of extra fibre, antioxidants, and of course, a lovely colour.
According to NPR, purple rice, aka forbidden rice, was reserved only for the rich because black rice was considered more nutritious. The black colour comes from the plant pigment anthocyanin, which is also present in blueberries, red cabbage, and blackberries. When I shared it in my IG stories, I had a lot of people ask me how to cook purple rice–so here’s a quick little recipe for ya.
Purple rice has been a favourite way to add a bit of extra nutrition and a pop of colour! I bought some short grain black rice a few weeks ago from Zero Waste Bulk. I think it’s the same as glutinous black rice, but I’m not sure. In any case, I’ve been loving adding a tbsp to my normal pot of rice to yield this gorgeous purple rice!
How to Cook Purple Rice
Black rice still has an outer hull and bran, so it takes extra time for the water to penetrate the grains. It’s best to soak the rice for at least a couple hours, (up to overnight) to have tender, cooked rice!
If you’d like to have even darker purple rice, use 2 tbsp instead of 1 tbsp of black rice. I usually subtract the equivalent amount of rice from my white rice since I use a rice cooker. Use equal amounts rice and water (e.g. 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp of both rice and water), and you’ll be rewarded with fluffy, tender rice!
I only know how to cook rice in a rice cooker (aka rice + water + turn on the rice cooker). Lisa from Okonomi Kitchen shares how she cooks rice in her donabe (clay pot) over the stove! I believe you can also cook rice in a cast iron enamelled pot (or even a regular pot) with the same method.
Does it taste any different?
Aside from the colour and a slightly nuttier flavour, purple rice is the same as regular steamed rice! I’ve been loving using it in vegan dolsot bibimbap. It’s also great to use in onigiri for a contrast in colour
Purple Rice aka Forbidden Rice
Purple rice (aka Forbidden rice) is a beautiful and nutty change from your usual white rice! It adds a touch of extra fibre, antioxidants, and of course, a lovely colour.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup short grain white rice, minus 1 tbsp
- 1 tbsp short grain glutinous black rice
- 3/4 cup water
Instructions
In a bowl, combine white and black rice. Cover with water and rinse for 20 seconds, then drain. Repeat until the water is no longer cloudy (this usually takes me 2-3 rinses).
Drain well and add 3/4 cup water. Cover and let the rice soak for 2-4 hours so that the black rice will cook through.
After the rice has soaked, cook in rice cooker according to manufacturer's instructions (my rice cooker just has a "cook" button). Once cooked, don't open the lid and allow the rice to rest for 20 minutes on the keep-warm setting. This will yield a nice and fluffy rice!
Fluff with the rice paddle and enjoy :)
Michelle L Ammons says
Yes, I have tried some of your recipes. I made, and loved, your pickled dikon.
Sarah Schmidt says
Do you have a good source for forbidden rice? Amazon has reviews that say it seems like dyed white rice:(
Lisa Le says
Technically forbidden rice is dyed purple from black rice. You’ll want to look for black glutinous rice (as mentioned in the blog post). I buy from my local bulk food store, but most Asian grocery stores should carry some form of black rice :)
Karen says
Can this be made in a clay pot on the stove like if I were to make some kind of bap dish? I plan on making bibimbap with the purple rice. Thank you
Lisa Le says
Definitely! I usually just put the cooked rice in a dolsot and layer the banchan on top though!