Spring 09 - In the black

Keeping up with food trends is hard enough, but when the head chef at the Gilgamesh restaurant in London’s Camden Town came up with a low fat alternative to white and brown rice, he knew he was onto a good thing.

Most people would be surprised if they visited their local curry house and their favourite creamy chicken korma was served on a bed of black rice; and how many times does this rice appear as an option when you’re walking the supermarket aisles looking for something to go with chilli con carne.

The answer is not very often, according to Gilgamesh restaurant’s head chef Ian Pengelley, who says that few people are aware of the rice, let alone use it in their cooking.

Black rice is widely cultivated across Asia, with Korean black rice often the most popular for its “slightly nutty flavour”. It first made its way to Britain in the 17th century and until now has been largely used in sweet puddings.

Gilgamesh’s variety comes from China. The ingredient contains more nutrients than white and brown rice and it has high levels of the antioxidant anthocyanin, which is often found in super food.

It has also been proven to be significantly low in cholesterol and doesn’t contain the high levels of bran found in brown rice – perfect for those following a low carb diet. Black rice does however take slightly longer to cook.

Pengelley has drawn on his past Hong Kong experiences to introduce this menu. “Black rice is starting to become more trendy especially in this day and age where people are becoming more concerned about what they are eating.

“I have introduced an Asian black rice menu because it is highly nutritional and I wanted to create something healthy. I also wanted to show different styles of cooking with the rice and what can be done with it,” he explains.

Gilgamesh, which sells itself on its “unique Eastern gastronomic experience”, is offering five eclectic dishes. These include risotto with king crab, yuzu, truffle and bonito; black rice stir fried with Chinese sausage, prawn and egg; and black rice sushi roll with spicy toro, sweet tofu and pickled daikon. Other specialities are tempura of warm Chilean sea bass with black rice nigiri, and sticky rice with chicken, salted duck egg and barbecued pork wrapped in bamboo leaf.

Dishes are priced individually and are slightly more expensive than ones using white rice because of its rarity, says Pengelley. Prices range from £5.50 to £12.

The menu went live at the beginning of March, and he plans to see how customers react to it. “I will keep these dishes for a month and just see how well it sells. If it proves to be a success I will think about keeping it on a long term basis.

“I think customers will take to the black rice idea simply because it is unusual, good for you and is more accessible for diners as they can choose individual dishes instead of having a full meal.”

Pengelley is continually looking at novel ways of improving his food offering and is considering introducing locusts, crickets and scorpions. “Our customers are a creative bunch and are always up for trying new dishes and I would really like to have the opportunity to create something Asian with each species,” he says. “It’s just a thought but we will have to wait and see how the black rice goes down first.”

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