黑米 (hēimǐ) · black rice, purple rice

Meanings

1 black rice
2 purple rice

About the ingredient

粮食 Grains and noodles

Unpolished rice with a black bran, usually not glutinous, so it stays firmer than 紫米. It is soaked for a few hours, then cooked with other grains in porridge or mixed into white rice, which it dyes purple.

Used in 1 dish

黑米粥 hēimǐzhōu

Characters

Examples

HSK 4

她在超市买了一袋黑米。

Tā zài chāoshì mǎi le yí dài hēimǐ.

She bought a bag of black rice at the supermarket.

HSK 6

黑米煮粥比白米更有营养。

Hēimǐ zhǔ zhōu bǐ báimǐ gèng yǒu yíngyǎng.

Black rice porridge is more nutritious than white rice.

Tips

culture

Also called 贡米 ('tribute rice') because it was once sent as tribute to the emperor; in English it is sold as 'forbidden rice'. Cooking turns it deep purple. Common in northern porridges and the Cantonese dessert 黑米露.