Roasted Brown Rice Tea--A "Simple Saturday Sipper" to Help You Find Your Zen Happy Place

After two weeks of cocktails as my "Simple Saturday Sippers" it is time for something a little different, a little healthy and something to help me find my zen happy place after a long day/week. I decided to try the Roasted Brown Rice Tea from "Grub: Ideas for an Urban Organic Kitchen" by Anna Lappé & Bryant Terry. Not actually tea or genmaicha (Japanese toasted brown rice with mixed with green tea), this one is made with just three ingredients; brown rice toasted in a pan until it's nice and roasty, rice milk and pure maple syrup (yes, Natashya, the maple syrup is from Canada) ;-) plus some water.

Bryant Terry says, "I can't decide if I like to drink brown rice tea more for its nutty fragrance or its flavor."

Roasted Brown Rice Tea

"Grub" by Anna Lappé & Bryant Terry

(Makes 12 cups)

Prep Time: 5 min / Cook Time: 15 min

1 cup brown rice

6 cups rice milk

3 Tbsp pure maple syrup, plus more to taste

Roast the rice in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring often with a wooden spoon to prevent from burning, until the rice is fragrant, about 3-5 minutes.

Combine the rice, 6 cups of water, the rice milk, and maple syrup in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, partially covered, for 15 minutes.

Strain the tea into a pitcher and serve hot in mugs. Have some extra maple syrup on hand for your guests to sweeten their cups as they like.


Notes/Results: Good! It's creamy and sweet with a nutty-roasted flavor. Mild and soothing to the mind and soul. I added a bit of pure vanilla to the tea before serving and liked it even more. I just made a half-batch to try it because I wasn't sure how well I would like it, but I will make more. The tea is also good cold and I may simmer some with green tea and taste it that way. It's a dairy-free drink option that tastes great and is comforting on a cold evening.

Happy Saturday!