Faq THE FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS OF OUR CUSTOMERS PUT US ... (THIS PAGE IS CONTINUOUSLY UPDATED)

Q. On the labels all the rices are indicated almost all for risottos. Why?

A. You should know that the rice we grow, transform and pack directly on the farm are rices that have the size of the grain between medium (S. Andrea) and large (Arborio, Carnaroli and Baldo) and therefore, more or less, they are suitable for the preparation of risotto. However, this does not mean that you can use the same cooking times and the same techniques for all laughs without distinction as they obviously have different characteristics.

Q. Why is it that gluten-free is never written on rice packages?
A. On rice we cannot write it on the label because it is forbidden to write gluten-free rice (on the contrary it is mandatory to write that it can contain if in the same establishment cereals with gluten were also packaged). You can write if rice is one of the ingredients of the product and the producer can guarantee the presence of gluten less than 20 ppm (parts per million) - see gluten-free

Q. Are the cooking minutes shown on the labels correct?
A. The cooking times indicated on the labels are boiling times in salt water. But cooking a risotto, you have to keep in mind that the fat contained in the broth slows the absorption of the liquid in the grain and therefore always takes 4-5 minutes more.

D. Store in a cool, dry place? How fresh and how dry?
A. See the answer on how to store rice in the conservation section.

A. The cooking times indicated on the labels are boiling times in salt water. But cooking a risotto, you have to keep in mind that the fat contained in the broth slows the absorption of the liquid in the grain and therefore always takes 4-5 minutes more.

Q. What are the right cooking times for the various rices?
A. Boiling times. 11-13 minutes for small-grain rice (Balilla, Originario), 13-14 minutes for medium-sized ones (Sant’Andrea, Ribe) 16-17 minutes for those with large grains (Arborio, Carnaroli, Baldo). If you are making a risotto, take 3 to 5 minutes longer, as explained above.

Q. Why does brown rice take so long to cook?
A. We are talking about 40-45 minutes of cooking (boiling in salted water). Brown rice is a rice that has only undergone processing (the decortication, that is the deprivation of the skin). However, the rice grain is made up of many layers, more or less hard, and one of these is made up of the glumelles that cover the chaff (ie the integral layer, which contains oil, mineral salts, vitamins) which is a very hard layer. So the water (worse still the broth because it contains the fats that slow down cooking) takes longer to "soften this layer and penetrate inside the grain.

• all our rice, let's talk about Carnaroli rice, Arborio rice, Baldo rice, Sant'Andrea rice, Whole rice, Venere black rice, Ermes red rice, Apollo rice
• rice flours are gluten-free
• but also the rice cakes, the rice pasta (certified gluten-free and also suitable for those who are allergic to nickel), the rice biscuits are gluten-free and the risottos are ready (except the panissa that contains it in the sausage)
  
  

Q. Why are there very marked differences in price between one rice and another and, sometimes even if we talk about the same rice, do we find differences of even a few euros per kg?

A. Rice in Italy is mainly produced in the North (Novara, Vercelli and Pavia the major provinces), but it is also cultivated in Calabria, Sardinia, Emilia Romagna and in other regions with differentiated climate. So the productions and the quality of the rice can vary from area to area, determining a variable on the price. In addition, the manufacturing companies, as in other sectors on the other hand, to distinguish themselves from each other, implement the most varied marketing and promotion techniques, inventing new production techniques with higher costs, or investing heavily in advertising, is the case for example of the 2 big names of the rice in Italy (Scotti and Gallo) where a part of the price paid by the consumer (we could hypothesize € 0.50- € 1.00 per kg) is given by the very high advertising cost.

Q. Why does Carnaroli cost so much compared to other rice?
A. Carnaroli rice (we are talking about true Carnaroli, see faq on similar rice) has a price difference compared to other rice determined by:
lower productivity in the countryside. With the same number of cultivated hectares and cultivation techniques (same doses of sowing, fertilizing etc ...) we collect in September about 20-25% less than the other rices and this determines a higher production cost.
It is little loved by farmers because it is more difficult to grow and therefore it is sown in very low percentages compared to other more productive rice 3) It is a rice of undoubted quality, among the best in Italy together with Vialone Nano and Arborio, and this of course helps to "keep" the price high.

Q. Why then did the Carnaroli paddy rice on the markets of the various commodity exchanges have the same price as the Arborio?
A. The price of rice (and cereals in general) on commodity exchanges has suffered reversals in recent years comparable, if not worse, to global stock exchanges. The price that is paid to the farmer, at times and in some periods of recent history, has been either so low as to fall below production costs or so high (only for a few months unfortunately for some) that the rush to the Uncle Scrooge's Klondike gold. As on the actions (some will surely not agree) the prices almost always return to the real values, leaving someone with the match in hand. Our father, and even before his grandfather, taught us to be farmers, not stockbrokers, and therefore we never looked at the prices of raw materials but at the real value of the product. This is how we try to give a quality product at the price that we believe is right for us and for our customers, not for the market.

Q. Why is PDO rice more expensive?
A. The PDO Baraggia di Biella and Vercelli rice is a rice which, from sowing to processing and packaging, is subjected to preventive and post-sale inspections which certify that the one inside the packaging is first and foremost true Carnaroli, Arborio, Baldo , S.Andrea etc ... (see FAQ on similar rice), cultivated, processed and packaged entirely in the area of Baraggia Biellese and Vercelli (28 municipalities scattered between Vercelli and Biella). It is more expensive because it is qualitatively different from rice grown in other areas. The territory of the Baraggia is at the foot of the Biella pre-Alps, the average temperatures are around 2 degrees lower than Vercelli and Pavia, the water is colder because it is still very close to the source, the soils are very clayey, fine. Due to these characteristics, the rice grown in these areas is less productive (less rice is harvested), the grains, compared with the same varieties of Vercelli or Pavia or Mantua, are slightly smaller, but decidedly more consistent, ie they retain a lot moreover the cooking, and also the organoleptic characteristics (even if for some imperceptible) are undoubtedly different. All this, accompanied by a very strong and secular rice-growing tradition of Baraggia, has led to recognizing as a profoundly different rice that of Baraggia Biellese and Vercelli, until obtaining the European PDO brand. All the above can not be recognized even in the price, when the consumer buys rice.

Q. What does it mean that your rice is PDO?

A. Protected Designation of Origin. Each phase of the product's life must be done within the territory that it is intended to protect (in our case, the Biellese and Vercelli Bararese, made up of 28 municipalities). This obviously applies only to the packages that have followed the certification path (for example, the line of cotton bags is not PDO certified).

Q. What are the characteristics of Baraggia rice?
A. The PDO Baraggia Rice Biellese and Vercellese during cooking maintains a greater consistency of the grain and a lower stickiness compared to other rice grown outside the Baraggia. The territory of the Baraggia is at the foot of the Biella pre-Alps, the average temperatures are around 2 degrees lower than Vercelli and Pavia, the water is colder because it is still very close to the source, the soils are very clayey, fine. Due to these characteristics, the rice grown in these areas is less productive (less rice is harvested), the grains, compared with the same varieties of Vercelli or Pavia or Mantua, are slightly smaller, but decidedly more consistent, ie they retain a lot moreover the cooking, and also the organoleptic characteristics (even if for some imperceptible) are undoubtedly different.

Q. Why is PDO rice more expensive?
A. The PDO Baraggia Rice Biellese and Vercellese rice is a rice which, from sowing to processing and packaging, is subjected to preventive and post-sale inspections which certify that the one inside the packaging is first and foremost true Carnaroli, Arborio, Baldo , S.Andrea etc ... (see FAQ on similar rice), cultivated, processed and packaged entirely in the area of Baraggia Biellese and Vercelli (28 municipalities scattered between Vercelli and Biella). It is more expensive because it is qualitatively different from rice grown in other areas. The territory of the Baraggia is at the foot of the Biella pre-Alps, the average temperatures are around 2 degrees lower than Vercelli and Pavia, the water is colder because it is still very close to the source, the soils are very clayey, fine. Due to these characteristics, the rice grown in these areas is less productive (less rice is harvested), the grains, compared with the same varieties of Vercelli or Pavia or Mantua, are slightly smaller, but decidedly more consistent, ie they retain a lot moreover the cooking, and also the organoleptic characteristics (even if for some imperceptible) are undoubtedly different. All this, accompanied by a very strong and secular rice-growing tradition of Baraggia, has led to recognizing as a profoundly different rice that of Baraggia Biellese and Vercelli, until obtaining the European PDO brand. All the above can not be recognized even in the price, when the consumer buys rice.

Q. What is the shelf life of the rice?

A. On our packs we indicate 12 months from the processing (not from the harvest, but from the moment in which it is then "piled") for non-vacuum packs (fabric, cellophane, paper) and 18-24 months for vacuum packing. The whole rice (Integrale, Riso Venere, Riso Rosso Ermes) are all vacuum packed as they contain a little oil in the outer part of the grain, which in contact with the air would tend to oxidize and become in a few months the "rancid" taste.

Q. I'll put it in the fridge, will I do it well?
A. Rice has very little moisture, around 13-14%, and is water-repellent, meaning if you place it near a source of moisture, it absorbs it. So putting it in a very humid environment like the fridge, it can be good in the summer period as long as it always stays there. In fact the fridge is obviously also very fresh, but the moment you take it out of the fridge and leave it in the pantry, then it is an aliemnto that has definitely changed compared to the original state, as its humidity will certainly be very high and at room temperature also of 18-20 degrees.

Q. But then, how is rice preserved, without problems?
A. Go to our page on how to store rice optimally.

Q. Is brown rice healthier?

A. Certainly, those who eat brown rice are fed correctly, taking all that the rice food can offer them. We assume that only the skin (husk) that is woody and cannot be eaten is removed, and compared to white rice, it preserves mineral salts, vitamins, oils and the precious gem (or germ or embryo) which is the living part of the bean and therefore able to germinate and give birth to a new plant. All these parts, in white rice there are not, remains the "poor" part that is starch (carbohydrates for 80-90%), some protein.

Q. Why do they recommend eating whole wheat and especially brown rice?
A. Because in fact eating whole rice we take fiber, oil, mineral salts, vitamins that we would not eat eating white rice. We can also realize this by cooking 80 grams (which represents a normal portion) of white rice and 80 grams of brown rice. By eating the second you will have the feeling of having eaten more as it "sates" better than white rice.

Q. Why then do we consume little brown rice and do not, for example, make risotto with brown rice?
A. Because brown rice has a cooking time of 40-45 minutes and is therefore "discarded" for this reason. White rice is certainly faster to cook, and if you think that sometimes rice (white) is put into second place compared to pasta just because of cooking times ...

Q. Is brown rice suitable for everyone?
A. Like all foods, if there are no contraindications from the doctor or serious diseases, brown rice (as well as white rice) can be consumed by everyone. Perhaps I would exclude children under the age of 2-3 for safety reasons as the whole grain is always rather "crunchy".

Q. What do the various names of rice, Carnaroli, Arborio etc ... derive from?

A. Normally the names of the varieties are given by the "father", that is, by those who select and "discover" in a certain sense the new variety to be cultivated. Thus, for example, the rices take the surname of those who discovered them, such as the Maratelli rice, the same Carnaroli, the pink Marchetti, or from the country in which it is selected, as in the case of the Arborio (small town of Vercelli), or in other much more recent cases, we give fancy names or ones that are inspired by the gods or mythology, such as Venus rice, Hermes rice, Apollo rice.

Q. Why is rice thrown to the spouses?
A. The custom is traced back to an ancient Chinese legend. It is said that one day a good genius saw the peasants afflicted by famine and took pity on them. He tore his teeth and threw them into a swamp. After this unusual sowing, many seedlings were born whose fruits, after removing the skin, resembled the whiteness of the teeth. Since then wherever there is a rice plant there can be no hunger, but only abundance.
Rice symbol of abundance. Casting rice on spouses is therefore a symbol of prosperity. In the East, rice has been a fundamental food for thousands of years. In fact, there is a Chinese saying to express its importance: "One works and nine eat rice". In other words, if rice is grown there is food for everyone.

Q. Rice is more digestible than pasta or isn't it?
A. Well, here we enter an area that does not belong to us, namely the medical-nutritional one. Some studies, however, have shown that rice and pasta are almost identical under the caloric intake (about 360 Kcal every 100g) and have different glycemic indexes depending on the pasta and the type of rice used. Surely the rice starch takes less time to be digested by the intestine, and therefore gives us less sense of heaviness.

Q. Is it true that rice was born in China?
A. It is not easy to establish the origins of rice with precision. It is believed that the first varieties emerged over twelve thousand years ago along the southern slopes of the Himalayas (a mountain range in Asia, between Nepal and India). Some archaeological finds show that already in the VI millennium BC both wild and cultivated types of rice existed in China. Some Indian texts of 1300 BC accurately describe the transplant phases while others from 1000 BC have a catalog of different plant species! Tradition has it that it was Alexander the Great (4th century BC), through the conquest of India, to make rice known to the Western world. However, rice was not cultivated either by the Romans or by the Greeks, but it was thanks to the Arabs that it spread in the Mediterranean basin. Documents from the 1200s testify that already at that time, in Italy noble families used them and that rice was cultivated in convents and monasteries. In 1250 it was spoken of as a prized and expensive food, excellent for preparing sweets. It is precisely in the Po Valley, in the Pavia area, that rice was intensively cultivated for the first time. Since then, rice farming in Italy has become increasingly important!

Q. Why should I use a wooden spoon to cook risotto?
A. We are talking about culinary tenacisms, but because the temperature of the broth and rice is always constant, it is necessary to use the wooden spoon which is a very bad heat conductor. In fact, using the steel spoon, a lot of heat is lost, and the risotto will obviously not be perfect !!!