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Rice is boring?
No one told me! I remember my parents served it plain with butter as a side dish, but I honestly can't remember a time recently that I have eaten plain rice...I make plain, that then gets great Indian or Asian or Mexican food dumped on it/served right with it. Nothing boring there.

At it's plainest I mix it with just beans, onions, salt and pepper...

But really, everything from fried rice to Spanish, lots of Cajun dishes, with saffron for Indian, made into a million kinds of pilafs, tossed in soups, even sweet puddings and with milk, sugar and cinnamon...

Rice is one of the best bases for a zillion dishes, not boring at all!

Stir fried rice, the combinations are endless.

I dont eat white rice normally, I get short grain brown rice at an oriental grocery nearby, and pay 1/2 of what I'd pay for long grain white at the regular store. I dont find plain rice boring at all, but I do love to toss it with some toasted sesame oil and rice wine vinegar dressing, add some crispy tofu and I'm a happy camper. Also love it as a rissotto with lots of good parm and asparagus.

Count me in with rice lovers. I eat it almost daily. A long-cherished recipe is to boil a box of chicken broth or stock with a bunch of cut up scallions, and add a cup and a half of white rice. One cut up chicken breast optional, Bell and Evans if I can get it. Simmer until liquid is absorbed. Top with a dollop of sriacha.

This is one of my faves and cheap to prepare. Unfortunately, I was eating this the day my dad passed away, when I got the phone call, and have never had the heart to make it since.

mmm jasmine rice...throw some scallions in just as it finishes and let it steep...or add in some coconut milk...Yum.

No one has mentioned rice pudding (I may have missed it.) I'm talking about the oven cooked arborio rice, with some sugar, spice, raisins and cream - when it is baked, it forms a lovely skin on top, has a wonderful smell while baking and a beautiful creamy consistency. I remember my brothers and sister and I racing home from school to get some.

Plain rice with butter/salt/what the heck have you drives me NUTS.
I can't even begin to contemplate salted, buttery rice >_

Fried rice is fine for using up old rice, fresh rice just won't do.

Rice casseroles (bo zai fan in Canto) are nice for some variation. They can be made right in the rice cooker, but a cast iron or a clay or stone pot is better if you have the time. The rice cooker won't give you the crispy crackly bits or that toasty aroma throughout.

You can just throw a couple lengths of lap cheong right on top of the raw rice and water right before you shut the lid. Once the rice is done, the lap cheong is warmed through and tender. If you're inclined, drizzle the rice with some sweet soy, chop some scallions and eat.

Or you can quickly toss some chopped chicken, shitake, ginger and scallions with sesame oil, soy, a dash of rice wine and a splash of fish sauce. Lay this mixture over your rice when it is part way cooked, shut the lid and cook until the chicken is fully cooked.

Same principle for any number of toppings including frog, fish, duck, veggies, etc.

I mix in butter and cracked black pepper as it cooks. When it's close to be done, I stir in grated carrot and a squeeze of lemon juice. The carrot adds some nice color and the lemon juice brightens it up. And butter makes everything better! (Fyi, I cook my rice on the stove top, as I don't own a steamer.) This makes a great side dish, or base for something else.

I also love red beans and rice.

Sometimes when I'm broke and/or lazy. I just eat white rice with soy sauce and sesame oil. I'm told this is what really poor Koreans ate back in the day when they had no food which is why my grandma would yell at me whenever I ate it as a kid. But I didn't care. I loved it. You can step it up a notch by scrambling up an egg with the rice, soy sauce and sesame oil. Or by adding a can of tuna.

Kimchi spam fried rice is also good... I use short grain rice though, which is different but I'm sure long grain is fine as well.

I tried making rice pudding once and just burnt the crap out of my pot. It was sad.

Family classic for lent: tuna muffins. Rice, tuna, egg, cheddar, black olives, rehydrated dehydrated onion, a little seasoning salt, and a splash of milk (I use the milk to rehydrated the onion in the micro). Scoop into muffin cups and bake. Top with lemon butter sauce and it's heavenly. Hubby just discovered these and asks for them all the time. OH, and super cheap.

Pasta sauce. Or throw it in tomato soup (or any kind of soup really). Cheap, easy, yet pretty tasty considering the level of effort that goes into it.

chopped parsley and scallions gently sweated in lots of butter, and a big handful of freshly grated parmesan.

I like rice such as jasmine by itself. For plain long grain rice (also like it plain) I sometimes add sauted vegetables, onion, shredded cabbage or carrots, etc.

@ccbweb: I'm a little (ha..) obsessive about my rice. It's used similar to the white in a painter's palette. I use the rice to balance saltiness, flavor concentration, and texture. In a sense, I place greater importance on rice than the dish. If my rice bowl is empty, I stop eating -- a good thing these days. :P

Still, with this "logic" firmly in my mind, I rather enjoy making takikomi gohan (rice steamed in shiitake, gobo, carrot slivers, shoyu, and mirin) or chirashizushi (cooked rice with toppings like egg, sesame seeds, shiitake, unagi, and nori -- I do not use sashimi).

rice is great with leftovers - I don't have, or want, a rice cooker. A pot on the stove is more than adequate and much easier to clean.

Thanks to all of the above for the suggestions on using rice to augment a meal. Cooking for one after work is my style and rice is great for using leftovers from the frig to round out a meal.

I often steam rice in home made stock. Chopped scallions and/or parsley are terrific flavor enhancers. The possibilities are endless.

Brown rice with soy, rice wine vinegar, sriacha (sp?), nori and a lightly-fried egg on top. Yumming and actually good for you. Pair it with Maki's sugar-free carrot kinpira, and you have a complete and cheap meal.

I'll let you know as soon as I make a pot of rice that doesn't turn out like joint compound (sniff).