What to Do With Leftover Rice

October 24, 2011, By Jessica Pals 0 comments

One of the great things about getting Chinese takeout is that you almost always have leftovers. However, one of those leftovers is often plain white rice. If you're not a big rice fan, you probably let it go to waste. Before you toss it, consider a few meals you could make from it instead.

Breakfast and Dessert

Rice is versatile. Use it in anything from breakfast to dessert. Try reheated rice for breakfast with just a little butter and honey on top. It's tasty, cheap, and is actually fairly healthy. Eat a piece of fruit with it and maybe a scrambled egg to start your day off with a well-balanced meal.

For a sweet treat, mix the rice with milk, butter, sugar, vanilla extract and cinnamon in a pot and boil for one minute. In just sixty seconds, you've got rice pudding. Serve it hot or cold, add fruit or top it off with whipped cream. This treat is a great option for dessert, especially if you're winging it and need to make something quickly.

Mexican

When you're in the mood for something a little more south of the border, mix the rice with salsa, onions and minced garlic for Mexican rice. Heat all the ingredients in a pan until hot. This is a great side for tacos, fajitas, and lots of other Mexican cuisine. Another option: Take the plain rice and add taco seasoning, ground beef and beans for burrito filling.

Soup

On cold nights when you're in the mood for soup, add rice to vegetable soup just as it finishes cooking (don't add it too soon or the rice will get mushy from over-cooking). The rice helps bulk up the soup and makes it more filling. Rice works in other soups as well, such as chicken and rice, vegetable beef soup and alphabet soup. Try adding rice to different kinds of soup and see what works for you. You might be surprised.

Add Some Southern Flare

In the south, there are a several classic dishes that involve rice, such as jambalaya, red beans and rice, or chicken, rice and broccoli. Any of these dishes should be much easier to prepare if you already have your rice cooked for you and ready to go.

Chinese

Finally, one of the best uses for leftover cooked rice is Chinese fried rice. Heat a large wok or deep non-stick pan over medium heat, add a teaspoon of sesame oil and toss the rice in the oil. Add minced garlic and diced onions while you continue to stir. Shake on some salt and pepper to taste then load it up with as many vegetables as you please. Add leftover meat of just about any kind and finally, a couple of drops of soy sauce to finish.

Got rice? Don't toss it out. It could easily save you some time in the kitchen and it might even make your meal go much further than it would have originally.