紫米の稲も紫!Purple Rice is really, err, Purple

July 9, 2008: 長野に来る理由 Reasons to Come to Nagano

Look, purple rice!

亀清旅館の売店で紫米を売っています。クロスロードと言う身体障害者の為の施設が作っています。古米の一種で普通のお米にちょっとだけ入れたら全部が紫になります。
そこまで私が分かっていました。この間は近場の田んぼで、いつもの緑色の中で紫の色もあって、びっくりしました。考えてみれば、紫米の稲も紫だと言うことが当たり前です。でも、始めた見ると驚きますよね!
At our little sales counter here at Kamesei Ryokan, we sell Purple Rice. A local facility for mentally impaired people produces it. It's an ancient strain of rice, and when you add a little bit with normal rice when you cook it the whole thing turns purple.
That much I knew. The other day, I happened to see a rice paddy nearby that, among the normal green rows, had some dark purple rows, too. If you think about it, it makes sense that purple rice would have purple stalks, but it was still surprising to see it for the first time!





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