Black Rice Bibimbap

| San

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I love rice, any rice. Long grain/ Short grain. Polished/ Unpolished. White/Red/Brown/Black. High GI/ Low GI. That how much I like them.

I also substitute rice recipes with a variety of grains, such as this Bibimbap, made with black rice.  It is really tempting to make Bibimbap whenever I see cucumbers and carrots in my fridge.

For a meatless version, I add mushrooms, spinach, and a fried egg.  Otherwise, simply replace one vegetable with a stir fried meat of any kind.

I used to fry the individual vegetables with cooking oil, and then mix with some sesame oil.  Recently, I came across a Korean recipe book that stated cooking the vegetables in sesame oil instead.  I thought that could reduce the total amount of oil used in this dish, and have been using this method since.  I still add a small quantity, about a teaspoon and a half, of sesame oil before serving as I like that distinctive sesame fragrance that tend to get lost after cooking.

BLACK RICE BIBIMBAP
ADAPTED FROM MAANGCHI
SERVES 2 GENEROUS PORTIONS
INGREDIENTS

2 cups black rice, wash and soak overnight
1 bunch of spinach*
1 small cucmber, julienned
1/2 carrot, julienned
5 fresh shitake mushrooms, sliced
2 fried eggs
Sesame oil
Korean hot pepper paste
For garnish :sesame seeds

INSTRUCTIONS

01. Cook black rice with 2 cups of water, till they turn soft but remain chewy.

02. On a pan over medium heat, pour enough sesame oil to cook the bunch of spinach till they wilt.  Transfer spinach to a plate, set aside.

03. Repeat step 2 to cook the rest of the vegetables and mushrooms, separately.  Set them all aside on individual plates.

04. To assemble, put rice first in a serving bowl and arrange cooked vegetables/mushrooms neatly on top to cover the rice.  Drizzle a bit of sesame oil.  Place the fried egg,  sprinkle with sesame seeds, and finally a tablespoon of hot pepper paste.

05.  Stir to mix and eat immediately.

NOTES TO SELF

* I prefer leafy spinach variety to make this dish.
* I do not add salt or soy sauce as I derive most of my Bibimbap kick from the hot pepper paste, which to me is salty enough.
* More on black rice here.  Do not be confused with black glutinous rice used in Pulut Hitam.

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