Tilda microwavable rice review

We eat a lot of rice here at The Madhouse and, a couple of years ago, we switched over to microwavable rice - it's so simple, quick and foolproof (no more horribly starchy or overcooked rice) and it is absolutely perfect when the kids are tired and hungry and we need an instant but healthy meal on the table. With a pouch of rice in the microwave for 2 minutes, that just gives me time to chop up some ham, cherry tomatoes and cucumber and open a tin of sweetcorn and that's it, the kids' meal is ready to assemble !

I was therefore really pleased when Tilda offered to send me a couple of pouches of their microwavable rice to try out because it's a brand we never normally buy. Usually, we buy Uncle Ben's microvable mushroom rice because it's tasty, it goes with everything and the kids love it. I admit that we've got into a bit of a rut now and just buy that on automatic pilot. I was keen to see how the two brands would compare.

I immediately liked the fact that Tilda offers different kinds of rice. We received Sweet Chilli & Lime Steamed Basmati Rice (in the red pouch) and Wholegrain Pilau Steamed Brown Basmati Rice (in the brown pouch).

I served up the Wholegrain Pilau at lunch yesterday, as an accompaniment to our sausage, tomato, yellow pepper, onion and mushroom one-pot wonder ! (You can probably tell that this is a totally made-up recipe but it's delicious and is now a family fave here at The Madhouse !) As you can see from the picture, the pouch gives you two very generous servings which could easily serve three people as an accompaniment.

The Wholegrain Pilau is delicately flavoured with exotic spices and tastes and smells divine. The blurb on the packaging explains that "a perfect blend of cumin, curry leaf and fenugreek infuse this delicious wholegrain basmati with flavour". If you're trying to watch your calories and fat-intake, this would be a perfect way of avoiding rich sauces because it would really complement bland dishes such as poached fish or grilled chicken. A 125g serving contains 164 calories and I was impressed to see that it's gluten-free.

The other sachet, Sweet Chilli & Lime, is a steamed and flavoured basmati rice and the packaging says : "A unique blend of fiery red chilli, sweet golden honey and zesty lime creates this distinctive Thai rice". This is again gluten-free and half a pouch contains 186 calories. The flavours are deliciously blended and give your tastebuds a real kick, bringing bland dishes to life. You can make a simple dish by throwing left over cooked chicken (or other meats) into a frying pan with some onions, mushrooms and red/green peppers then adding the microwaved rice to soak up the juices. Absolutely delicious, no fuss trying to get the spices right and it literally took minutes.

Compared to the Uncle Ben's rice we usually buy, the rice seems firmer and less stuck together so I wouldn't have instantly recognised it as microwavable rice, as I would with our normal product. I absolutely love the exotic blends of flavours and the fact that different types of rice are available, even if Madhouse Daddy Mike wasn't keen on the brown basmati, saying he prefers white. I'll definitely be looking out for these in the shops and will be keen to discover other flavours in the range.

star rating : 5/5

RRP : £1.69

for more information : http://www.tilda.com/

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