South African Yellow Rice

history of South African yellow rice

Yellow rice, which is also known as ''geelrys'', has its roots in the Cape Malay cuisine. Translated from Afrikaans, the name geelrys simply means yellow. The Cape Malay cuisine is a fusion of traditional South African dishes, Malaysian, and Eastern cuisines.

The Cape Malay cuisine, which is known for its bold use of spices, dates its history to the slavery and colonization years in the 16th century when European settlers (through the Dutch East India Company) took slaves from East Africa, Madagascar, and as far as the East Indies to work in the Cape colonies. With time, there was a fusion of cultures, including food and religion, and this is how the Cape Malay cuisine came by.

Popular amongst the cuisine are dishes such as yellow rice, bredie, frikkadels, several types of stews, and curries. While yellow rice is traditionally served alongside bobotie, it is absolutely versatile and goes well with most stews and curries.

ingredient notes

This is a summary, see the detailed recipe card below for full measurements.

• basmati rice - or any white long-grained rice.
• cooking oil - (not pictured) feel free to use your favourite cooking oil, such as butter or ghee.
• golden raisins or sultanas.
• brown sugar - enhances the sweetness of the raisins.
• turmeric - feel free to use curry powder, if you do not have turmeric. This gives the rice the intended yellow colour.
• salt.
• ground cinnamon - alternatively, you can use a few cinnamon sticks.
• and some water or broth to cook the rice in. Pay attention to the amount of sodium in your broth, in case you choose to use this, and bear in mind that you may need to use less salt.

how to make South African yellow rice with raisins

I call this the easiest and tastiest rice recipe. Here is how to go about making it:-

1. Properly clean the rice until the water is no longer cloudy.
2. In a medium-sized pot or pan, combine the rice, salt, turmeric, brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, butter, and water then bring to a boil uncovered. Once it comes to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, and allow the rice to simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until all the water has been absorbed and the rice is fluffy.
3. Once cooked, remove the pot or pan from the heat and fluff with a fork. Keep warm or serve immediately.

what do I serve it with?

Serve yellow rice warm, with bobotie, fish, chicken, or meat-based stews and curries. It also goes well with a variety of vegetable stews and curries.

refrigeration and freezing

Refrigerate leftovers as soon as they have cooled down. The leftover rice will keep in the fridge for up to four days and in the freezer for up to one month. To use, simply heat using your microwave. Do not reheat rice more than once.

variations and useful tips

• rice variety -the best variety of rice to use is basmati or white, long-grain rice. While you can still use brown rice, which obviously has more health benefits, it takes longer to cook and simply does not soak up the colour from the turmeric, as much as basmati rice does.
• variations - this recipe uses raisins but feel free to substitute this for your preferred dried fruit or vegetables, such as green peas. You can also use curry powder, in place of turmeric. Just bear in mind that you will need to use double or even triple the amount of curry powder, to obtain the golden yellow colour that you would get from turmeric.
• as a useful tip, cut a piece of aluminum foil around the cooking pot, once you have reduced the heat to a low. This creates a tight seal that helps steam the rice.

more delicious African recipes to love