Nutty Vegetable Pilaf

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cups coarsely chopped broccoli
2 medium carrots, julienned
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
½  teaspoon dried basil leaves
½  teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cups cooked brown rice
½ cup chopped pecans, toasted**

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add broccoli, carrots and onion. Cook and stir 5 to 7 minutes or until broccoli and carrots are tender and onion is beginning to brown. Add mushrooms, garlic, thyme, basil, salt and pepper. Cook and stir 2 to 3 minutes or until mushrooms are tender. Add rice and pecans; cook 1 to 2 minutes, stirring, until well blended and thoroughly heated.

Rice recipes reprinted with permission from the USA Rice Federation
 www.usarice.com  

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend grains as the foundation of a healthy diet. In fact, the new Dietary Guidelines and MyPyramid recommend at least three servings of whole grains daily, or making half your grain servings whole, with the other half coming from enriched or whole grains. Yet currently, only one
in 10 Americans eat three servings daily and one in
four don’t consume any.  

 

There are three general types
of brown rice:

Long Grain Rice: has a long, slender kernel three to four times longer than its width. Cooked grains are more separate, light and fluffy.

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Medium Grain Rice: has a shorter, wider kernel two to three times longer than its width. Cooked grains are moist and tender and have a greater tendency to cling together.

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Short Grain Rice: has a short, plump, almost round kernel. Cooked grains are tender, cling together, and are slightly chewy.