# Brown rice



## Cosmas1

Hello forum friends,

How does one say "brown rice" in Greece. I remember being puzzled by this last time I was there.

Thank you.


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## cougr

Cosmas1 said:


> Hello forum friends,
> 
> How does one say "brown rice" in Greece. I remember being puzzled by this last time I was there.
> 
> Thank you.



Hi Cosmas1,

It's called _μαύρο ρύζι _and sometimes it's referred to as _άγριο ρύζι_,


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## winegrower

Brown rice is, I think, rice that has not had its brown-colored bran covering removed, so it can be also called  "μη αποφλειωμένο ρύζι".


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## cougr

Actually, "μη αποφλοιωμένο ρύζι", strictly speaking, refers to unhusked rice. Brown rice is what is produced when the husk is removed.


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## Acestor

As "μαύρο ρύζι" would correspond to "black rice", wouldn't it be wiser to pick "καστανό ρύζι" for "brown rice"?


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## cougr

In that case I suppose we shouldn't overlook _καφέ ρύζι_ and _καφετί ρύζι_ but for some reason the term  _μαύρο ρύζι _appears by far to be the more common choice. The same thing occurs with _μαύρο ψωμί_.


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## Nightelf

I work in a food company and I am very well aware of this product. I buy tons of them.

So the proper Greek term for brown rice is : _Ρύζι καστανό_ or _Ρύζι αναποφλοίωτο_. Brown rice has nothing to do with black rice. Black rice is a special rice varitey

Sometimes you need to make further distinctions such as Round rice brown (= ρύζι κοντό καστανό) Long rice brown (=ρύζι μακρύ καστανό). When  we say in Greek καστανό ρύζι  it is pretty much the same by saying: ρύζι αναποφλοίωτο.

I am very confident of what I say but any objections are welcome


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## Nightelf

cougr said:


> In that case I suppose we shouldn't overlook _καφέ ρύζι_ and _καφετί ρύζι_ but for some reason the term _μαύρο ρύζι _appears by far to be the more common choice. The same thing occurs with _μαύρο ψωμί_.


 
Dear cougr,

What you said is correct in a manner. Common Greek people may refer to rice brown as "ρύζι καστανό" or "ρύζι μαύρο" or even "ρύζι καφέτι" as a matter of a popoulist expression and description of this product. 

However, once they have to buy it from a super-market or in terms of trade in general, the most appropriate terms are: "Ρύζι καστανό" and "Ρύζι αναποφλοίωτο".

Regards


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## cougr

It appears that _ρύζι καστανό _is coming into vogue more and more in which case some English-Greek dictionaries (including our own here at Wordreference) will soon be required to modify their translation of the term (ie brown rice).

I also understand that there is a tendency by some quarters to refer to brown rice as _μη αποφλ__ο__ιωμένο_ or _αναποφλοίωτο __ρύζι, _however this is erroneous as both these terms, when correctly applied, refer to "unhusked" or "paddy" rice. These are different to "brown rice" which by definition is rice which has had it's husk (and only it's husk) removed. In Greek, the correct term for this is _αποφλειωμένο __ρύζι _ie husked rice (which is synonymous to brown rice). Further processing then leads to "milled rice" or _λευκασμένο ρύζι _which is basically the common white rice which most people are used to.


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## Cosmas1

This is interesting. Am I right in saying that Greeks don't think much about brown rice vs. white rice just as they don't seek out whole wheat bread over white bread?  Or is that changing with consciousness over health?  I remember last summer looking at the racks of rice in the supermarket and not really seeing much in the way of brown rice.  Thank you everyone.


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## Nightelf

Cosmas1 said:


> This is interesting. Am I right in saying that Greeks don't think much about brown rice vs. white rice just as they don't seek out whole wheat bread over white bread? Or is that changing with consciousness over health? I remember last summer looking at the racks of rice in the supermarket and not really seeing much in the way of brown rice. Thank you everyone.


 
@Cougr
Yes, I strongly believe that the definition needs to be rectified. Or, as I said it can be said as "μαύρο ρύζι" among common people and they indeed perceived it as "αναποφλοίωτο". Maybe it has to be a distinction.

@Cosmas1
I believe that most Greeks do not really bother if the rice will be white or brown. This concern is mostly related with the people who are also interested in buying organic products. Suffice it to say, that only the 1-3 % of Greek food market is related with organic products. The rest goes to conventional.
However, most supermarkets have brown rice on their disposal. Maybe some small supermarkets may not have. It  depends on the local demand. Some supermarkets that are located in rural areas or islands may also not have. But you will definitely find in big supermarkets at big cities.


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## Nightelf

cougr said:


> It appears that _ρύζι καστανό _is coming into vogue more and more in which case some English-Greek dictionaries (including our own here at Wordreference) will soon be required to modify their translation of the term (ie brown rice).
> 
> I also understand that there is a tendency by some quarters to refer to brown rice as _μη αποφλ__ο__ιωμένο_ or _αναποφλοίωτο __ρύζι, _however this is erroneous as both these terms, when correctly applied, refer to "unhusked" or "paddy" rice. These are different to "brown rice" which by definition is rice which has had it's husk (and only it's husk) removed. In Greek, the correct term for this is _αποφλειωμένο __ρύζι _ie husked rice (which is synonymous to brown rice). Further processing then leads to "milled rice" or _λευκασμένο ρύζι _which is basically the common white rice which most people are used to.


 

Yes, indeed. I also believe that the term ρύζι καστανό is more precise than ρύζι μαύρο or ρύζι καφέ. 
In the company that I work (organic trading company) we officially call these products as Ρύζι καστανό or Ρύζι αναποφλοίωτο.

Greetings from rainy Athens!


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## Cosmas1

Thank you, all. This is fascinating. It all makes sense. When we arrive in Athens next month, I won't feel like such a foreigner when I stumble around looking for the wrong rice in the wrong place.
Thank you.


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