Tahdig

Scorched rice, also known as crunchy rice, is a thin crust of slightly browned rice at the bottom of the cooking pot. It is produced during the cooking of rice over direct heat from a flame.

Varieties

Cape Verde

In Cape Verdean cuisine, the burned, scorched, or otherwise crunchy rice at the bottom of the pot is referred to as ''kokorota''. It is traditionally cooked outside, or in a semi-enclosed cooking space in a three-legged metal pot over burning firewood. In modern times, butane-powered stoves and store-bought pots are more commonly used in Cape Verde; however, the three-legged pots are still frequently used in the rural areas and when making food for parties, festivals or any occasion where large quantities of food are required.

China

''Guōbā'' ( zh, t=鍋巴, s=锅巴, p=guō bā, l=pan adherents), sometimes known as ''mi guoba'' (, ) is a Chinese food ingredient consisting of scorched rice. Traditionally ''guōbā'' forms during the boiling of rice over direct heat from a flame. This results in the formation of a crust of scorched rice on the bottom of the wok or cooking vessel. This scorched rice has a firm and crunchy texture with a slight toasted flavour, and is sometimes eaten as a snack: many commercial snack food varieties exist, often made of millet instead of white rice.

''Guōbā'' is also used as an ingredient in many Chinese dishes with thick sauces, since the bland taste of the scorched rice takes on the flavour of the sauces. ''Guōbā'' is also served in soups and stews and prominently featured in Sichuan cuisine. Since demand for ''guōbā'' outstrips traditional production and modern ways of cooking rice (in electric rice cookers) do not produce it, ''guōbā'' has been commercially manufactured since the 1980s.

In Cantonese-speaking areas of China, scorched rice is known as ''faan6 ziu1'' (, ) and is a prominent feature of claypot rice.

Ghana

Scorched rice is referred to as ''kanzo'' or ''ɛmo ase'' (bottom of rice) in Twi. It is made by mistake or by chance since it happens when the rice burns while cooking. Some people choose to discard it. However, kanzo has been rebranded as a staple and is now being either sold or made.

Madagascar

Scorched rice is called ''apango'' in Madagascar. It is boiled with water and the obtained drink, is called "ranon'apango" apango" wateror "ranovola", ( olden water in reference to the golden-black color). It serves as the national drink, accompanying every traditional food. The scorched rice, once soften, can also be eaten on its own, in place of traditional rice and is even favored in some regions.

Indonesia

In Indonesia, especially Central Java, scorched rice is called ''intip''. It is a specialty of the Wonogiri Regency area and served as a cracker. The rice cracker is made from the hardened semi-burnt rice that sticks to the inner bottom of rice-cooking vessels. These cooking vessels are filled with water to loosen up the stuck rice. After it is separated from the cooking vessel, the stuck rice is sun-dried until it loses all of its liquid contents. The dried sticky rice is later deep-fried to create a crispy rice cracker.

In Indonesia there is a similar rice cracker called '' rengginang''. Unlike ''intip'', however, it is not made from scorched rice salvaged from the bottom of a rice cooking vessel, but created separately from steamed sticky rice, boiled, seasoned, made into a flat and rounded shape, and sun-dried prior to deep-frying.

Iran

In Iran, ''Tahdig'' (, ''tah'' "bottom" + ''dīg'' "pot") is a specialty of Iranian cuisine consisting of crisp, caramelized rice taken from the bottom of the pot in which the rice ('' chelow'') is cooked. It is a necessary part of every kind of rice cooking and traditionally served to guests at a meal.

Often, instead of a pot of rice the bottom layer of which is crisped, a small amount of oil or lamb fat is first poured in the pot, then various items are placed at the bottom of the pot and then topped with rice, so the bottom ingredients crisp up instead of the rice. Variations of ''tahdig'' include yogurt mixed with saffron, thin bread, toast, potato, pumpkin, tomato, carrots, spinach, lettuce, beetroot, eggplant, and fruits such as sour cherry. Iranians almost always apply this cooking method to spaghetti as well, providing a hardened base.

Iraq

Iraqi rice cooking is a multi-step process intended to produce tender, fluffy grains of rice. A prominent aspect of Iraqi rice cooking is the ''hikakeh'', a crisp bottom crust. The ''hikakeh'' contains some loose rice as well. Before serving, the ''hikakeh'' is broken into pieces so that everyone is provided with some along with the fluffy rice.

Japan

is Japanese food, usually rice, that has been scorched or blackened.

Until electric rice cookers came into common use in the 20th century, rice in Japan was cooked in a ''kamado'', a traditional stove heated by wood or charcoal. Because regulating the heat of a wood or charcoal fire is more difficult, a layer of rice at the bottom of the pot would often be slightly burned during cooking; this layer, called ''okoge'', was not discarded, but was eaten with vegetables or moistened with water, soup, or tea.

''Okoge'' is still eaten in Japanese cuisine, and is an important part of the ''kaiseki'' meal served at tea ceremonies, where it is typically served with hot water and pickles as the final course. It has a crispy texture and a nutty flavour.

Because the cooking temperature of modern electric rice cookers is precisely controlled, ''okoge'' does not usually form naturally during the cooking process. However, there are rice cookers on the market in Japan that have an ''okoge'' setting. ''Okoge'' can also be made by scorching cooked rice in a frying pan.

Korea

''Nurungji''
* () or scorched rice is a traditional Korean food made of scorched rice. After boiling and serving rice, a thin crust of scorched rice will usually be left in the bottom of the cooking pot. This yellowed scorched state is described as ''nureun'' () in Korean; ''nurungji'' derives from this adjective.

''Nurungji'' can be eaten in its crisp state as a snack or as an after meal rice tea by adding hot water, or reboiled with water to make ''nureun bap'' () or ''nurungji bap'' (). ''Nurungji'' in its broad sense also refers to the crisp crust that forms at the bottom of the pots and pans when cooking various rice dishes such as '' dolsot bibimbap'' () and '' bokkeumbap''.

''Nurungji'' is traditionally known for its medicinal attributes. According to records in the 17th century medical book ''Dongui Bogam'', ''nurungji'' was called ''chwigeonban'' () and considered as a remedy "when food does not swallow easily, upsets the stomach and induces vomiting". It is also lauded as a well-being food in South Korea.

South Korean companies made ''nurungji'' available in various pre-packaged forms around the mid-2000s. Besides sweet fried ''nurungji'' snacks and instant ''nurungji'' to make ''nureunbap'', many ''nurungji''-flavored products were also developed such as candies and tea. ''Nurungji'' is also used as an ingredient in a variety of new dishes like ''nurungji'' '' baeksuk'' and ''nurungji'' pizza.

Mentions of ''nurungji'' in folklore are common, the most famous being a folk song recognizing the difficulties of memorizing the Thousand Character Classic. The lines are changed from the original chant to a clever rhyme that loosely translates into "sky ''cheon'' (天), earth ''ji'' (地), ''nurungji'' in the ''gamasot'' (cauldron pot)". (Korean: "하늘 천, 따 지, 가마솥에 누룽지").

Latin America

Scorched rice is known as ''cucayo'', ''pegao'', ''cocolón'' (Ecuador), ''concolón'', ''raspa'', ''raspado'', ''graten'' (Haiti), ''bunbun'' (Jamaica) and ''concón'' (Dominican Republic) in the Caribbean. In Colombian cuisine, scorched rice is called ''cucayo'', ''pega'' or ''pego''. It is often consumed with vegetable toppings as a cracker, or served in soups. It is also eaten alone or used to make leftovers. In Dominican cuisine, scorched rice is called ''concón'', though this word can refer to the crunchy, toasted underside of other food types as well, while the same can be said of ''graten'' in Haitian cuisine. In Puerto Rican cuisine, scorched rice is called ''pegao'' (shortened "pegado", "stuck"). In Ecuador, ''kukayu'' ''(cucayo)'' is the name given to food items that are meant for travel, derived from ''kukayu'' (Quechua for a ration of coca). In Trinidad and Tobago cuisine and other English speaking Caribbean countries, scorched rice at the bottom of the pot is called ''bun bun''.

Myanmar (Burma)

In the Burmese language, scorched rice is called ''htamin gyo'' (). It is commonly found in '' hsi htamin'', glutinous rice cooked with turmeric and oil.

Philippines

''Tutong'' (Tagalog) or ''dukót'' (Cebuano, "to stick") is used for a wide variety of dishes in Philippine cuisine, even as flavouring for ice cream. Some people may consider it a poverty food, but others eat it because they enjoy the taste.

Spain

''Socarrat'' (in Catalan language) refers to the crust that forms on the bottom of the pan when cooking paella. It is appreciated as a particularly tasty bit. It is also known as ''churruscado'' in Spanish.

Vietnam

In Vietnamese cuisine, it is called ' (literally "scorched rice"). It is typically fried in oil until golden brown, then topped with ''chà bông'' ( pork floss) or ''tôm khô'' (dried shrimp), ''mỡ hành'' (chopped scallions cooked by pouring boiling oil over them to release their aroma), and chili paste to produce a popular dish called ''cơm cháy chà bông'' or ''cơm cháy tôm khô'' (although both the pork and shrimp may be used, in which case the dish is called ''cơm cháy chà bông tôm khô'' or ''cơm cháy tôm khô chà bông''). ''Cơm cháy'' may be made from the crust of rice left over from cooking rice in an iron pot, or, more commonly since the advent of electric rice cookers in the late 20th century, from leftover rice that is fried in oil over high heat to acquire a crispy texture.

See also

* Cooked rice
* ''Sungnyung''
* Tahchin

External links

References

{{Cuisine of Iran, polo

Chinese rice dishes
Sichuan cuisine
Cape Verdean cuisine
Colombian cuisine
Chilean cuisine
Cuban cuisine
Dominican Republic cuisine
Ecuadorian cuisine
Ghanaian cuisine
Guyanese cuisine
Haitian cuisine
Indonesian rice dishes
Iranian cuisine
Iraqi cuisine
Jamaican cuisine
Japanese rice dishes
Korean rice dishes
Philippine rice dishes
Puerto Rican cuisine
Spanish cuisine
Trinidad and Tobago cuisine
Vietnamese rice dishes