Sweet and creamy, made from wholesome ingredients and a dash of nostalgia, rice pudding is comfort food at its finest. It’s also one of the easiest treats to whip up, requiring little more than a little patience and a handful of pantry staples to get right. But which rice makes for the best rice pudding? Choose wisely, and you’ll be rewarded with a dessert that’s so velvety and rich, so creamy and scrumptious that you’ll want to eat it hot or cold, morning, noon and night.
The Right Rice!
As with any recipe, variations for rice pudding abound. In fact, it’s one of the most customizable desserts out there! Once you know the basics, you can play with your rice pudding to your heart’s content — flavoring it with chocolate or fruit, spices, sauces, and more. One thing you shouldn’t mess with? The type of rice you use to make the perfect dessert.
Though leftover rice works well when you’re strapped for time, uncooked, long-grain white rice gives some of the best rice pudding results. Long-grain rice is ideal as, when cooked, it releases starches that help rice pudding become thick and silky, even without cream.
Switch Things Up
Though white rice is a solid match for any flavor of rice pudding, it can be fun to experiment with different rice varieties. Aromatic and fluffy, jasmine rice is a perfect partner to Asian or tropical ingredients, like coconut, mango, pineapple and more. A delicious option, these naturally sweet grains shine when used in desserts.
A go-to for curries and biryanis, basmati rice is also great in rice pudding recipes. In fact, many food historians believe that rice pudding was invented in India — where most of the world’s basmati is grown! Similar to jasmine rice, basmati is floral and a little nutty, and is starchy enough to make fantastic rice pudding. Generously-spiced, cooked gently with cream and dried fruit, it morphs into a beautifully rich dessert you’ll turn to time and time again.
A World of Flavors!
With the essential rice pudding building blocks in place, it’s time to start cooking! Though classic rice pudding is never a bad choice, there’s really no end to the ways you can gussy up this staple sweet. Whether you change up the variety of rice, or the add-ins, you can enjoy a different dessert every time rice pudding is on your menu. Begin with a pudding that grandma herself would be proud to serve, then see where your inspiration takes you!