Rice is the backbone of millions of household meals across Africa, Asia, South America. Hundreds of delicious dishes are made with this white grain as the main ingredient, such as biryani, fried rice, Jollof, etc. But do you know about the various other surprising uses of rice? Some of the rice’s non-cooking-related uses can really come in handy in day-to-day life. We list some of these uses below:
1. To Clean Your Mixer Grinder
You can use rice grains to clean your mixer grinders from the inside. Just fill ¾th of the grinder with uncooked rice and give it a whirl for a few seconds. This will clear up the residue from under the blades as well as the walls of the mixer. Go ahead, try it out!
2. To Nourish Your Skin and Hair
One of the various uses of rice is as a moisturizer. Rice contains many nutrients that work well for the hair and skin. Powdered rice or rice water helps to reduce skin inflammation and improves hair texture. And of course, it is completely natural!
3. To Help Ripen Fruits Faster
It is an ancient tradition in some cultures to use a bowl of rice to ripen fruits faster. Just bury the fruits in a bowl of uncooked rice, and wait for the rice to do its magic!
4. To Soothe Sore Muscles
We don’t always have access to the required medical equipment in case of a slip or fall. But once again rice comes to the rescue as an effective makeshift ice pack. Just fill a sock with uncooked rice, tie a knot in the end, and store it in your freezer until you need it. Your instant ice pack is ready!
5. Save your tools from rusting
On contact with moisture, metal tools rust and become degraded, dangerous, and useless. If you add a couple of cups of rice to your toolbox, you can solve this issue. Rice naturally wicks away moisture, making rust a non-issue for your precious tools.
As we can see, rice is not only an amazing primary source of food (and tasty to boot!) but also extremely versatile in unexpected ways in day-to-day situations. It’s not for nothing that rice has found its way into so many nations and traditions!