Rice and beans

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Beans and rice
Rice and beans, Hotel in Itatiaia.jpeg
White rice topped with brown beans served with meat and potatoes in a hotel in the southeast Brazilian countryside.
Course Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Region or stateWorldwide
Main ingredients Rice, beans
VariationsRegional variations

Rice and beans, or beans and rice, is a category of dishes from many cultures around the world, whereby the staple foods of rice and beans are combined in some manner. The grain and legume combination provides several important nutrients and many calories, and both foods are widely available. The beans are usually seasoned, while the rice may be plain or seasoned. If the beans do not top the rice, the two components may be mixed together, separated on the plate, or served separately.

Contents

Description

Kidney beans and rice Rajma, kidney beans, served with chawal, rice.jpg
Kidney beans and rice

The dish usually consists of white or brown rice accompanied by cooked brown, red or black dry beans (typically Phaseolus vulgaris or Vigna unguiculata ) and seasoned in various ways. This dish is also commonly served with sides of stewed chicken, pork, beef, potato salad, boiled potatoes, and many other sides from many different cultures. In many areas, beans and rice are often served side by side rather than combined. Either way, they may be considered a meal, frequently with a topping of meat or chicken. Meat or other ingredients are sometimes placed atop beans and rice or, less frequently, mixed into it.

Different regions have different preferences. In Nicaragua, for example, red beans are more popular while cooking Gallo pinto, while in Costa Rica black beans are. Also, in Brazil, black beans are more popular in Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina, while in most other parts of the country these are mostly only used in feijoadas. The New Orleans specialty known as "red beans and rice" is often accompanied by a side of smoked sausage or a fried pork chop.

History

The Americas

Genetic analyses of the common bean Phaseolus shows that it originated in Mesoamerica, and subsequently spread southward, along with maize and squash, traditional companion crops. [1] Asian rice was introduced to Latin America during the colonial era by the Spanish and the Portuguese. However, it has recently been discovered that the indigenous peoples of the Amazon had already cultivated a distant relative of Asian rice of the same genus Oryza some 4,000 years ago, [2] and were growing it alongside maize and squash, traditional companion crops of beans, which were also by that time present in South America. Some recent scholarship suggests that enslaved Africans may also have played an active role in the establishment of rice in the New World. [3] [4] It is also one of the most common foods in some Spanish-speaking countries.

Nutritional significance

Beans and rice are both nutritious ingredients. Rice is rich in starch, making it a good source of energy. Rice also has iron and some protein. Beans also contain iron and a greater amount of protein in comparison to rice. Together they make up a complete protein, which provides large quantities of each of the amino acids the body cannot produce by itself. [5] Their amino acid profiles complement each other when combined, meaning that such dishes were acknowledged as beneficial protein in vegetarian terms.

Culture

In some Latin American states and countries, beans and rice are commonly eaten as everyday lunch, along with a different variety of meats and vegetables. It is also common to prepare dinner using the lunch leftovers. Beans and rice are especially popular in Brazil, which is the world's third largest producer of dry beans [6] and the largest consumer of rice in the Americas. [7]

International dishes and variations

Red beans and rice Red Beans and Rice.jpg
Red beans and rice

Worldwide, there are many dishes with a base of beans and rice, which vary in their cooking and additional ingredients. Variations exist regionally, as cultures shape the dishes to their own preferences. In countries near or in the Caribbean, these dishes are simply known as rice and beans, in which the dish is cooked in coconut milk, the following is a list of variations:

Other languages

Enchiladas, Mexican rice and refried beans Enchiladas rice beans.jpg
Enchiladas, Mexican rice and refried beans

Rice and beans is referred to as arroz y habas, arroz con habichuelas, arroz con frijoles, gallo pinto, recalentao or similar in Spanish; arroz e feijão, arroz com feijão or feijão com arroz in Portuguese; sos pwa in Haitian Creole; and avas kon arroz or avikas kon arroz in Judaeo-Spanish.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Bitocchi, Elena; Nanni, Laura; Bellucci, Elisa; Rossi, Monica; Giardini, Alessandro; Zeuli, Pierluigi Spagnoletti; Logozzo, Giuseppina; Stougaard, Jens; McClean, Phillip; Attene, Giovanna; Papa, Roberto (2012). "Mesoamerican origin of the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) is revealed by sequence data". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 109 (14): E788 –E796. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1108973109 . PMC   3325731 . PMID   22393017.
  2. ↑ Hilbert, Lautaro; Neves, Eduardo Góes; Pugliese, Francisco; Whitney, Bronwen S.; Shock, Myrtle; Veasey, Elizabeth; Zimpel, Carlos Augusto; Iriarte, José (2017). "Evidence for mid-Holocene rice domestication in the Americas". Nature Ecology & Evolution. 1 (11): 1693–1698. Bibcode:2017NatEE...1.1693H. doi:10.1038/s41559-017-0322-4. hdl: 10871/33891 . PMID   28993622. S2CID   256727214.
  3. ↑ Carney, Judith A. (2001-04-30). Black Rice: The African Origins of Rice Cultivation in the Americas. Cambridge, Mass. London: Harvard University Press. ISBN   978-0-674-00452-8.
  4. ↑ National Research Council (1996-02-14). "African Rice". Lost Crops of Africa: Volume I: Grains. Vol. 1. National Academies Press. ISBN   978-0-309-04990-0 . Retrieved 2008-07-18.
  5. ↑ Schacter, Illana (2021-08-28). "The Role of Rice and Beans: Nutrition as Medical Treatment". The Cornell Healthcare Review. Cornell University . Retrieved 2023-05-04. Forming a complete protein and supplying all nine essential amino acids, rice and beans have been a staple food for millennia.
  6. ↑ "Countries by commodity -- Beans, Dry". FAOSTAT. FAO. 2016. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  7. ↑ "Rice around the world -- Brasil". International Year of Rice. FAO. 2004. Archived from the original on 19 August 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2018.

Bibliography

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