Rice, the most common staple food in China, has been with us for thousands of years. The Chinese definition of rice has long since ceased to be a single fruit food, but a kind of Chinese culture that has been passed down for thousands of years.

And the history of rice eating can be traced back to the myths of the pre-Qin period.

Shennong, who was rumored to have tasted all kinds of herbs, was the first person in Chinese mythological history to be recorded as eating rice, and his invention of the "burnt grain on the stone" method of rice making is still used in Shanxi today, where the famous Shanxi snack, stone cakes, is made using this ancient cooking method.

While the story of Shennong's rice eating is only a historical legend in the eyes of modern people, it was discovered through the research of a Chinese archaeological team at the Hemudu site in Yuyao City, Zhejiang Province, in 1973.

Proof that as early as 7000 years ago, China's ancestors in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River have mastered the technology of rice cultivation, and has been rice as the main food for consumption, which also directly proves that China is the world's history of the earliest planting of rice country.

indica, japonica and glutinous rice, the life of the most commonly consumed two kinds of rice is indica and japonica, and glutinous rice in our daily diet is more to dessert type of "spices" identity, such as rice dumplings, dumplings, rice cakes, rice wine and so on. Japonica and indica rice, two widely eaten rice, although the nutritional value of the two are the same, but because of the two kinds of rice in the viscosity, planting differences, flavor and many other aspects of the difference.

Sticky rice balls

Southern people are accustomed to eating indica rice, northerners prefer with round-grained rice, so people on the two kinds of rice favorite debate like sweet and salty dumplings chatter, so the two kinds of rice in the end, which one is more delicious?

In fact, which one is more delicious this problem, is not a very subjective issue, as Shakespeare's famous line

"A thousand readers will have a thousand Hamlets. --Shakespeare

Each person has a different palate and a very different favorite for that type of rice.

So what are the specific differences between Japonica and Indica rice? Which kind of rice is better? More nutritious?

Shape

From the appearance of conditions, indica rice shape is long oval or elongated, the length of the width of about 3 to 5 times, so we also known as long grain rice, indica rice color white transparent more, there are also translucent and opaque.

Indica rice

Based on the different harvest period, the type of indica rice is also divided into two kinds of early indica rice and late indica rice

Early indica rice is short and wide and thick, the color of the pinkish-white, the belly of the white is large, powdery, so early indica rice is very fragile, easy to break when processing. The viscosity is less than that of late indica rice, and the quality is poorer.

Late indica rice grains flat and slender, the color is generally translucent or transparent, white small, hard grain, processing is not easy to break, viscosity is greater than the early indica rice, the quality of indica rice types in the best rice species.

Japonica rice because of the appearance of round fat round fat, also called round grain rice, japonica rice grain plump fat, the whole was oval or oval, cross-section nearly round, hard texture, color white as jade, cooking out of the meal rice bright and sweet, fragrance, we are most familiar with the "wuchang rice" is a kind of japonica rice.

Japonica rice after hulling

Indica rice is suitable for planting in low latitude areas, like Thailand, Burma, Vietnam and the south of China is the most typical representative of the majority of indica rice planted in the south of China belongs to the two-season or three-season rice, meaning that it can be harvested twice a year to three times the yield is amazing in the south of China's seven provinces and cities are planted.

Japonica rice is suitable for planting in high latitude or low latitude on the higher altitude of the region, because of high latitude Japonica rice and indica rice has a clear difference, Japonica rice are a season of rice can only be harvested once a year. China's northeastern region is the main planting area of japonica rice, Heilongjiang is still China's first province of grain production.

Because of the two kinds of rice growing region is slightly different, rice in the "characteristics" are not the same, the so-called "characteristics" is simply the two kinds of rice contained in the starch of the different.

There are two kinds of starch in rice, one is called straight chain starch, and if the content of straight chain starch in rice starch is low, the taste of rice will be very hard and not elastic.

The other kind of starch is called branched-chain starch, the higher the content of branched-chain starch, the higher the viscosity of the rice, the cooked rice swells a lot, looks full and rich. So how the taste of rice is completely by the structure of how much of the two starch content and absolute.

Southern indica rice, straight-chain starch content is generally between 20%-24%, so the texture is more fluffy when eaten, while the round-grained rice in the northeast, straight-chain starch in the 15-18% or so, so the taste of the northeast of the rice in order to elasticity and lubrication of the mouth is known throughout the country.

Due to the difference in growing time, there are quite a few differences in the nutritional value of Japonica and Indica rice.

South of the climate relative to the north, the temperature difference between day and night is small, indica rice growth cycle compared with japonica rice is much shorter, generally about three to five months to mature, and most of the crops of the accumulation of nutrients are mainly derived from the accumulation of time, like herbs, which is why the longer the year the more potent herbs.

Rice is the same, the longer the growth time to absorb the nutrients is also the more adequate, the Northeast rice growth cycle is generally about five months, some varieties and even in about six months, so the japonica rice vitamin B2, dietary fiber, vitamin B1, vitamin E, calcium and other trace elements content to be much higher than indica rice.

In fact, rice this food is not so-called fixed good and bad, whether it is indica or japonica rice, as long as they like to eat is good rice.