Cape Verde In
Cape Verdean cuisine, the burned, scorched, or otherwise crunchy rice at the bottom of the pot is referred to as
kokorota. It is traditionally cooked outside, or in a semi-enclosed cooking space in a three-legged metal pot over burning firewood. In modern times, butane-powered stoves and store-bought pots are more commonly used in
Cape Verde; however, the three-legged pots are still frequently used in the rural areas and when making food for parties, festivals or any occasion where large quantities of food are required. in
Valencia.
China Guōbā (), sometimes known as
mi guoba (, ) is a
Chinese food ingredient consisting of scorched rice. In Cantonese-speaking areas of China, scorched rice is known as
faan6 ziu1 (, ) and is a prominent feature of
claypot rice.
Ghana Scorched rice is referred to as
kanzo or
ɛmo ase (bottom of rice) in
Twi. It is made by mistake or by chance since it happens when the rice burns while cooking. Some people choose to discard it. However, kanzo has been rebranded as a staple and is now being either sold or made.
Madagascar Scorched rice is called
apango in Madagascar. It is boiled with water and the obtained drink, is called "ranon'apango" ["apango" water] or "ranovola", ([golden water], in reference to the golden-black color). It serves as the national drink, accompanying every traditional food. The scorched rice, once softened, can also be eaten on its own, in place of traditional rice and is even favored in some regions.
Indonesia In
Indonesia, especially
Central Java, scorched rice is called
intip. It is a specialty of the
Wonogiri Regency area and served as a cracker. The rice cracker is made from the hardened semi-burnt rice that sticks to the inner bottom of rice-cooking vessels. These cooking vessels are filled with water to loosen up the stuck rice. After it is separated from the cooking vessel, the stuck rice is sun-dried until it loses all of its liquid contents. The dried sticky rice is later deep-fried to create a crispy rice cracker. In Indonesia there is a similar rice cracker called
rengginang. Unlike
intip, however, it is not made from scorched rice salvaged from the bottom of a rice cooking vessel, but created separately from steamed sticky rice, boiled, seasoned, made into a flat and rounded shape, and sun-dried prior to deep-frying.
Iran In
Iran,
Tahdig or
Tahdīg (,
tah "bottom" +
dīg "pot") is a specialty of
Iranian cuisine consisting of crisp, caramelized rice taken from the bottom of the pot in which the rice (
chelow) is cooked. It is a necessary part of every kind of rice cooking and traditionally served to guests at a meal. Often, instead of a pot of rice the bottom layer of which is crisped, a small amount of oil or lamb fat is first poured in the pot, then various items are placed at the bottom of the pot and then topped with rice, so the bottom ingredients crisp up instead of the rice. Variations of
tahdig include yogurt mixed with saffron, thin bread, toast, potato, pumpkin, tomato, carrots, spinach, lettuce, beetroot, eggplant, and fruits such as
sour cherry. Iranians almost always apply this cooking method to spaghetti as well, providing a hardened base.
Iraq Iraqi rice cooking is a multi-step process intended to produce tender, fluffy grains of rice. A prominent aspect of Iraqi rice cooking is the
hikakeh, a crisp bottom crust. Until electric
rice cookers came into common use in the 20th century, rice in Japan was cooked in a
kamado, a traditional stove heated by wood or charcoal. Because regulating the heat of a wood or charcoal fire is more difficult, a layer of rice at the bottom of the pot would often be slightly burned during cooking; this layer, called
okoge, was not discarded, but was eaten with vegetables or moistened with water, soup, or tea.
Okoge is still eaten in Japanese cuisine, and is an important part of the
kaiseki meal served at
tea ceremonies, where it is typically served with hot water and pickles as the final course. It has a crispy texture and a nutty flavour. Because the cooking temperature of modern electric rice cookers is precisely controlled,
okoge does not usually form naturally during the cooking process. However, there are rice cookers on the market in Japan that have an
okoge setting.
Okoge can also be made by scorching cooked rice in a frying pan.
Korea Nurungji () or scorched rice
Nurungji can be eaten in its crisp state as a snack or as an after meal rice tea by adding hot water, or reboiled with water to make
nureun bap () or
nurungji bap ().
Nurungji in its broad sense also refers to the crisp crust that forms at the bottom of the pots and pans when cooking various rice dishes such as
dolsot bibimbap () and
bokkeumbap.
Nurungji is traditionally known for its medicinal attributes. According to records in the 17th century medical book
Dongui Bogam,
nurungji was called
chwigeonban () and considered as a remedy "when food does not swallow easily, upsets the stomach and induces vomiting". It is also lauded as a well-being food in South Korea. South Korean companies made
nurungji available in various pre-packaged forms around the mid-2000s.
Nurungji is also used as an ingredient in a variety of new dishes like
nurungji baeksuk and
nurungji pizza.
Latin America Scorched rice is known as
cucayo,
pegao,
cocolón (Ecuador),
concolón,
raspa,
raspado,
graten (Haiti),
bunbun (Jamaica) and
concón (Dominican Republic) in the Caribbean. In
Colombian cuisine, scorched rice is called
cucayo,
pega or
pego. It is often consumed with vegetable toppings as a cracker, or served in soups. It is also eaten alone or used to make leftovers. In
Dominican cuisine, scorched rice is called
concón, though this word can refer to the crunchy, toasted underside of other food types as well, while the same can be said of
graten in
Haitian cuisine. In
Puerto Rican cuisine, scorched rice is called
pegao (shortened "pegado", "stuck"). In Ecuador,
kukayu (cucayo) is the name given to food items that are meant for travel, derived from
kukayu (
Quechua for a ration of
coca). In
Trinidad and Tobago cuisine and other English speaking Caribbean countries, scorched rice at the bottom of the pot is called
bun bun.
Myanmar (Burma) In the
Burmese language, scorched rice is called
htamin gyo (). It is commonly found in
hsi htamin, glutinous rice cooked with turmeric and oil.
Philippines Tutong (Tagalog) or
dukót (Cebuano, "to stick") is used for a wide variety of dishes in
Philippine cuisine, even as flavouring for ice cream. Some people may consider it a
poverty food, but others eat it because they enjoy the taste.
Spain Socarrat (in
Catalan language) refers to the crust that forms on the bottom of the pan when cooking
paella. Locally, it is regarded as a particularly tasty bit. It is also known as
churruscado in Spanish.
Vietnam In
Vietnamese cuisine, it is called ''
(literally "scorched rice") or "nếp chiên" (fried sticky rice) based on regions and cooking methods. It is typically fried in oil until golden brown, then topped with chà bông
(pork floss) or tôm khô
(dried shrimp), mỡ hành
(chopped scallions cooked by pouring boiling oil over them to release their aroma), and chili paste to produce a popular dish called cơm cháy chà bông
or cơm cháy tôm khô
(although both the pork and shrimp may be used, in which case the dish is called cơm cháy chà bông tôm khô
or cơm cháy tôm khô chà bông
). Cơm cháy'' may be made from the crust of rice left over from cooking rice in an iron pot, or, more commonly since the advent of electric rice cookers in the late 20th century, from leftover rice that is fried in oil over high heat to acquire a crispy texture. == See also ==