On a cold, rainy winter’s day, nothing warms you up at the end of the day like a piping hot home-cooked meal. But what if you’ve had a busy day, working hard, transporting children, and all the other numerous things that keep one away from home, so that when you finally get there at the end of the day, everyone is hungry and you need dinner FAST. More time than I can recall, this rice dish has saved the day.
In the morning before I leave, I get a batch of Nourishing Traditions soaked rice going. It only takes a minute to put rice, water and buttermilk or whey into a pan and cover it to sit until my return. If I’m feeling especially decadent, I’ll throw a handful of our dried chanterelle mushrooms in at this point to soak along with it. I also make sure to have a pound of grass-fed ground beef defrosting from one of our wonderful local farmers. Then, when I get home, I simply turn the burner on, skim the foam, stir in butter and salt, toss in a couple handfuls of fresh cranberries and maybe some diced onion, and let it simmer for 30-40 minutes. Somewhere in there I saute the ground beef and stir it in at the end. Serve it up with a salad on the side, or some homemade kimchi from the fridge, and everyone will be happy and well-fed.
Folks, this dinner practically makes itself.
Nourishing Traditions Basic Brown Rice II (soaked rice)
2 cups brown rice, basmati or wild rice
4 cups water
4 Tbsp whey or buttermilk
1 tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter or coconut oil
Soak rice, warm water and buttermilk or whey in a bowl or pot at room temperature for 7 hours. Bring to a boil, skim, reduce heat, stir in salt and butter and cover tightly. Cook 30-45 minutes until done.
I add the dried mushrooms at the beginning for soaking, or fresh ones with some fresh cranberries when I start cooking it.
This sounds absolutely wonderful!