Black sticky rice is a variety of cultivated rice. What gives it the color, is the presence of an antioxidant called anthocyanin. What gives it the stickiness is the high level of amylopectin, which is a pigment found in fruits such as blueberries. Adding to that, the rice appears to be black also due to high melanin (a natural pigment) content in the bran.
Research has shown that black sticky rice has a higher antioxidant content and higher content of valuable phyto-chemical than blueberries. It is exceptional as it contains a mixture of both water soluble and fat-soluble classes of antioxidants, which is rare even among the best pulses and grains, like quinoa and millets.
In fact, the Chinese emperors so treasured this rice that it was decreed a grain meant to be consumed only by royalty. And this led to the rice being known as the “forbidden rice”.
Black sticky rice is a rich source of antioxidants due to the bran and germ layer found in the outer coating. It is considered a super food due to its high nutritive value and like other rice varieties, it is gluten free!
Vinita Singh –