“what’s the harm” in eating this and that, I figured ever so often I’d give a “lesson”, if you will, on why we’ve switched or are now incorporating (or no longer eating) certain things.
First up – Rice!
It’s one of those foods that has a “high GI” (Glycemic Index) which is a fancy way of saying that it can fluctuate your blood-sugar levels due to the fact that it is easily digested and absorbed by the body. Let’s think in terms of potentially developing or managing diabetes. Since I am at risk for Type II diabetes (due to gestational diabetes during pregnancy) I need to choose foods that have a low GI. Since all forms of rice are rated as high GI I’d better choose one that is rated the lowest or not eat it at all.
Fast forward to 2013 and I decided to give Uncle Ben’s Brown Rice a try. It’s parboiled brown rice and supposedly it’s the most nutritious rice you can eat. Basically the rice is soaked and steamed before being dried which allows some nutrients (particularly B vitamins niacin, thiamine and riboflavin = energy) to transfer from the hull into the grain, giving a more nutritious product than untreated rice.
To me it sort of has the same consistency as white rice and looks a bit like brown and white rice mixed together. The taste is actually great, in my opinion, and my husband’s, which is a major plus. The only issue we have (or should I say my husband has) is that it has a somewhat gritty texture (he says gritty, I say sticky) as if the rice hasn’t been cooked long enough. I did a small experiment where I cooked it 15 minutes longer than recommended and guess what, the texture was still the same. A few Google searches later I found out that that’s just the way it is and cooking it all day probably wouldn’t change that. So it’s something to get use to, but we’ll live (literally)!
Hopefully, I haven’t bored you with my rice talk and if you’ve learned something, great! If you didn’t, great ;)! I’d love to hear your thoughts on white rice vs. brown rice and whether or not you think it matters!
Source(s) : Livestrong.com, Science Daily
Oh and this is as good a time as any to throw out a disclaimer! I’m not a doctor, registered dietitian, or fitness expert! I know, you’re like: Say what?!? I plan to share what has worked for me and my family and my experiences with food, fitness, and life through this platform—not to dole out advice. When it comes to your health and fitness your best bet is to do your own research. Recipes that I post are ones that I have come up with or have personally tried and / or adapted. Sometimes I screw up when I cook so I’m not responsible if you do too :)! Besides, every recipe is not for everyone!
I've been eating more brown rice and LOVE it 🙂
Yes, Michele, I'm definitely starting to love it as well!!!
I'm not a fan of brown rice, but we almost exclusively eat basmati rice, which even though it's not brown, it has a lower GI than regular white rice so I consider it a compromise!
I've never heard of Basmati rice, I'll have to look into…off to Google :)!
I buy Uncle Ben's brown rice as well. I know my husband doesn't like it very much, but it's hard to notice the difference when it has flavorful sauce over it 🙂
floral&fudge
Same here, Rachel, the hubs isn't the biggest fan so I usually mask it with some type of sauce. I'm hoping it'll just be one of those things he'll get use to the more he eats it because we're never going back!
ahh…I try so hard to do brown rice instead of white but it's an inner battle, haha…maybe I should give it another try 🙂
-Emma from little motley
Hey, I've so been there, Emma! Maybe I'm just getting old and my palate is starting to expand because I could not do brown rice before. But, it may also be the brand and kind that you've tried. Check out the Uncle Ben's parboiled rice, it really is quite similar to white rice, in my opinion!
i will eat either…it depends on who makes it!!
It's so neat that you don't really have a preference. I finally don't mind brown rice but it hasn't always been that way!
I couldn't wait to comment on this post!! I tried brown rice one time…and decided I didn't like it. I think it was just the brand…or the fact that my mom had it sitting in the pantry for a while and decided to give me all of it because she didn't like it either. I will say that Chris cooks it (because he's doing the healthy thing too) and I LOVE it when he makes it. I guess you're right. It depends on the brand and how you flavor it.
I hope you know I wrote this post with you in mind! I can't wait to discuss white potatoes vs. sweet potatoes!!!
Now, I agree that it had to be the brand that I tried the first time too b/c it was just unbearable. But then again our palates could just be expanding as we're getting older. I hated broccoli and tomatoes when I was a younger but now their in my favorites list! So it's hard to tell!
I'm starting to think that Chris can really cook after all I've been hearing :)!!!