This is a very versatile dish, a really tasty and elegant way to start the day, and the rice with ghee and milk is a wonderful sort of ‘canvas’ or background for playing with flavours. It can also be a lovely desert if you want something light with digestion-friendly spices. It would be my choice over fruit or something very heavy and creamy, both of which would fall under the “improper food combining” category of Ayurvedic no-nos when following a meal.
Here’s a list of spices that I’ve put in my breakfast rice over the years: saffron, cardamom, fennel, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, fresh/powdered/candied ginger, allspice, star anise, coriander, even a bit of black pepper now and then.
Optional toppings or other ingredients include: ghee, butter, chopped dates, roasted coconut flakes, soaked peeled & chopped almonds or walnuts or others nuts & seeds, orange zest, rose water, vanilla pods, almond/vanilla/orange extract…you get the idea. This is yet another opportunity to play with your food.
The following recipe is how I made my breakfast rice today, taking the season and my constitution (Pitta) into account. It’s warm and breezy, so I wanted spices that would aid digestion without creating too much heat, so I chose cardamom, saffron and fennel. I had just been for a run, and so I wanted some ghee to nourish my joints (ghee is also great for digestion). Saffron and fennel help to digest toxins in the body without creating additional fire, so they’re perfect for me. Cardamom is one of the main Ayurvedic digestives, along with ginger, coriander and others, and I just love the way it tastes – definitely more pungent than saffron or fennel. It also helped with the fact that I used raisins, which is a fruit and best eaten alone, but cooking the rice and fruit together for a long time with spices aids the digestibility of foods that may be less than optimal together. This dish is tridoshic, meaning good for all constitutions. Kapha should use goat’s milk or water, less ghee and less sugar, and perhaps add some powdered ginger.
Breakfast Rice for Summer
Originally adapted from The Ayurvedic Cookbook by Amadea Morningstar
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1/2 tsp cardamom seeds
pinch of saffron threads (maybe 5-10 threads)
1 TBS ghee
2.5 oz pudding rice or basmati rice
1 pint (2 cups) of water, milk (rice, cow, goat, etc), or a mixture of the two
1 TBS unrefined sugar, honey, or maple or rice or agave syrup
2 chopped dates (or 2 TBS sultanas)
2 tbs shredded unsweetened coconut
With a mortar and pestle, grind the fennel and cardamom well, for about a minute. Put them and the saffron into a small saucepan and gently dry-roast on medium/low for a few minutes, until they release their aromas. Add the ghee, let it melt. Then add the rice and stir for several minutes, until well coated. Add all the rest except the coconut. If you are using honey to sweeten, do not add it until you’re ready to serve. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 45 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed enough to create a pudding-like consistency.
Meanwhile, heat a small pan to just below medium and add the coconut. Toast the coconut, tossing it in the pan every 30 seconds or so to keep it browning evenly and to avoid burning it. When done, scrape the coconut out of the hot pan.
Check the rice after about 45 minutes, or right when it seems that the steam has stopped coming out from under the lid. When the liquid is absorbed, spoon it out into bowls and stir in the honey if you’re using it. Top with the coconut. Heavenly. Serves 2-3.
