Rice and easy: 2 brilliant festive recipes using rice

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Rice is an ingredient that most South Africans have in their pantry. It's easy to cook, budget-friendly and is ready to serve in minutes. It's the fast side you can whip up to accompany a midweek stew, curry or stir-fry, and it makes a mean grain salad. But it can also be made into a showstopping meal when you're entertaining. This festive season, use Spekko rice to make a deliciously decadent dessert and a moreish appetiser for your summer sundowner get-together. Easy doesn't always have to mean boring!

Crispy rice bites

This an easy take on sushi that doesn't require any special expertise! If you're a fan of crispy rice, you're going to love these crispy rice bites. You can make the rice from scratch, but this recipe works best with leftover rice. Fry blocks of rice until crispy and top with spicy prawns, avo and mayo. For a vegetarian version, swap prawns for soy-marinated cucumbers.

Get the recipe for crispy rice bites here.

Bruleéd rice pudding

This creamy, sticky dessert is inspired by South-East Asian sticky rice pudding. It's usually served with mango (think mango sticky rice) but feel free to top with your favourite summer fruit. For extra pizzazz, we've poured the rice pudding into individual ramekins and bruleéd the top for a satisfying crack. Don't have a blow torch? Bruleé the tops in the oven on high heat for a few minutes.

Get the recipe for bruleéd rice pudding here.

Spekko’s exceptionally high standard of rice gives you the confidence to roll up your sleeves and get cooking. When you know you have the best rice, you can cook outside the box and try new things. You are free to put a fresh spin on the ordinary and come on a taste adventure!

Learn more about Spekko rice here.