Rice is the most important cereal food crop of the world. It is the staple food for more than half of the world’s population. Rice has been cultivated for thousands of years under widely different geographic & agroclimatic regions. Andhra Pradesh is known as Rice Bowl of India. In Andhra Pradesh East Godavari District is known as Rice Bowl of the Andhra Pradesh.
Parboiling of Rice: Parboiled rice also known as ukda chawal
It is a hydrothermal treatment followed by drying before milling. During parboiling gelatinization of starch & disintegration of protein bodies in the endosperm take place and starch & protein expand & fill the internal air spaces. The fissures & cracks in the endosperm are sealed making the grain hard as a result of which breakage of grain during milling is minimized.
Benefits:
Parboiled rice takes less time to cook,cooked rice is firmer & less sticky, dehusking is also easy, loss of protein & starch in cooking water is low. Water soluble B vitamins & other nutrients diffuse into the endosperm hence loss of nutrients is less even after polishing.
In India, parboiled rice is very popular in the southern states. It is preferred for making idlis&dosas, as well as kanji for babies & elders, as it is easier to digest & better in terms of nutrition than raw rice.
Major steps in parboiling:
-
Soaking in normal water
-
Steaming is in hot water under pressure
-
Drying is done until the moisture content comes down to 18-20% then heap for few hours & again dry for 1-2 hours to bring down the moisture content to 14-16%
-
During milling rice recovery is 65-75%, husk 20-25%, bran 5-7% & brokens 2-4%
