I was sitting in a cafe today taking a break when I came across an article about cooked rice in a tattered magazine that caught my attention. Now let me share this info which I think it is important to you. It said that this Bacillus Cereus, (Here is what it looks like) a bacterium found in soil loves to hitch a ride on this staple grain - RICE and spread bacteria among the grains to produce spores.

Here I was taken by surprise — that cooking the rice won’t destroy these spores! And so, if the cooked rice is left out for more than a couple of hours the bacteria will continue to multiply. This emits poisons that will cause severe stomach cramps, nausea and diarrhea. Interestingly, all this while, I have always kept my leftover cooked rice overnight in the rice pot but I usually use our local unpolished red rice and they look the same the next day. Now, when come to think of it, most probably this may concern polished white rice? At times, when I cannot buy unpolished rice, I have no choice but to settle for white rice and in the mornings I would find the cooked white rice soggy and very soft which left me puzzle each time. Now I think I know the cause of it.

So it is advised to refrigerate the leftover rice immediately, ideally at a temperature below 5 degrees. At the same time, make sure that the container is clean when you store the cooked rice and properly covered to prevent cross-contamination.

Health & Wellness Today’s Tip :
I put cinnamon sticks in my rice bin to keep away weevils and other insects.