How many calories does one serving of Beetroot Rice have?

One serving of Beetroot Rice gives 215 calories. Out of which carbohydrates comprise 134 calories, proteins account for 13 calories and remaining calories come from fat which is 68 calories. One serving of Beetroot Rice provides about 11 percent of the total daily calorie requirement of a standard adult diet of 2,000 calories.

See recipe Beetroot Rice | beetroot rice recipe | quick beetroot rice | beetroot pulao | beetroot fried rice | with 18 amazing images

A nice, bright pink rice that is sure to attract your kids, the Beetroot Rice is an attractive preparation of rice and grated beetroot perked up with assorted spices.

Onions add flavour and crunch to this sumptuous dish, which is quick and easy to prepare in the morning. Ensure that the Beetroot Rice is completely cool before you pack it in the box.

Sipping Mint Chaas along with the Beetroot Rice is sure to satiate your kids taste buds and tummy! So do pack some in a thermos flask.

Check out our collection of many more amazing tiffin box recipes like Rice and Moong Dal Idli, Pasta in Tomato Sauce, Stuffed Hot Dog Rolls, Broccoli Paratha and many more.

Is Beetroot Rice healthy?

No, this is not healthy. Let's see why.

Let's understand the Ingredients.

What's good.

1. Beetroot : The Nitrates present in beet aid in detoxification and helps lower bad cholesterol (LDL) levels. The high Nitrate content of  Beetroots which get converted to Nitric Oxide result in the expansion the blood vessels and thereby lowering the blood pressure and ensuring proper oxygen flow to all parts of the body. If you often notice signs of high blood pressure, start your day with a glass of beetroot carrot tomato juice. See detailed benefits of beetroot. 

2. Peanut Oil : Peanut oil has the highest amount of MUFA (around 49%) amongst most Indian common cooking oils. The remaining 51% is PUFA and SFA. Most households in western Indian use peanut oil as a cooking medium. If you have to choose amongst the cooking oils, after avocado oil and coconut oil, this peanut oil gets a spot-on. But when compared to other MUFA based oils, this oil is considered to be high in omega-6 fatty acids, which often may tend to harm your body without you realizing it. Read the super article of  which oil is the healthiest avoid vegetable oil. 

3. Benefits of Cardamom, Elaichi : Cardamom has essential oil which is known to be effective is killing bacteria. This antimicrobial power of cardamom helps in relieving some stomach problems like stomachache, cramps, flatulence etc. The sweet yet strong aroma of cardamom makes it perfect to control Halitosis (bad breath). The mineral manganese in cardamom may help in the lower blood sugar levels and good for diabetics. See detailed benefits of cardamom.

4. Benefits of Cloves : Cloves are the immature unopened flower buds of a tropical tree. The four-pointed flower bud with a tapered stem measures 12-16 mm, and looks like a small nail.  Indians have long used cloves to treat indigestion, diarrhoea, hernia, and ringworm, as well as athlete's foot and other fungal infections. India's traditional Ayurvedic healers have used cloves since ancient times to treat respiratory and digestive ailments and its oil for toothache. It has powerful antiseptic and mild anaesthetic actions. When boiled with water and gargled, cloves are a good antibacterial mouthwash, which can help to combat bad breath and relieve a sore throat. Cloves are said to restore the appetite, and hence recommended for people with digestive disorders. Cloves are effective at clearing up a number of skin disorders such as acne, sores or ulcers. It has antioxidant properties, owing to the compound eugenol in it. Eating cloves is said to be aphrodisiac.

5. Benefits of Cinnamon, dalchini, cinnamon powder : Cinnamon with its antioxidant power has the ability to reduce inflammation in the body and thus reduce the risk of various chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, cancer etc. Cinnamon since ages has been known to be beneficial for diabetics. Diabetes is a disease which occurs due to insulin resistance. Intake of cinnamon is said to reduce this resistance and instead improve insulin sensitivity in cells thereby helping to maintain normal blood sugar levels. cinnamon helps to reduce the blood cholesterol and triglyceride levels and thus prevents clot formation. See detailed benefits of cinnamon.

6. Benefits of Bayleaf (Tejpatta) : The properties of bayleaves make it useful for treating high blood sugar, migraine headaches, bacterial and fungal infections, and gastric ulcers.  Bay leaves and berries have been used for their astringent, carminative, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, emetic and stomachic properties.  Bayleaf contains eugenol, which has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Bay leaf is also antifungal and antibacterial. Traditionally, it has been used to treat rheumatism, amenorrhea, and colic pains.

7. Benefits of Cumin Seeds ( jeera) : The most common benefit of jeera known to many is to soothe the stomach, intestine and the entire digestive tract. Cumin seeds are apparently a very good source of iron. A tbsp. of cumin seeds can fulfil nearly 20% of days iron requirement. Even small quantity of cumin seeds has huge amounts of calcium ( see calcium rich Indian foods ) – a bone supporting mineral. They aid is digestion, weight loss and help reduce inflammation. See detailed benefits of cumin seeds, jeera. 

8. Onions (pyaz, kanda) :  Raw onions are a very valuable source of vitamin C – the immune building vitamin. Along with other phytonutrients from onions, it helps to build WBC (white blood cells) which serves as a line of defence against illness. Yes, it’s a source of many antioxidants, the most important one amongst them being Quercetin. The quercetin in Onions promotes production of HDL (good cholesterol) and lowers total cholesterol in the body. The sulphur in onions act as a blood thinner and prevents blood clotting too. This in turn would lower blood pressure and good for heart,  diabetics. Read the benefits of onions. 

9. Kashmiri chilli: Like red chillies, Kashmiri chillies also have vitamin C, though in smaller quantites than the fresh red chillies. This helps to boost immunity and improve skin health. They also have minute amounts of copper, potassium, manganese, magnesium and iron along with B vitamins. Small amounts of Kashmiri chilli powder can aid digestion, but more quantity can affect the lining of the digestive tract.

10. Turmeric Powder (Haldi) : Turmeric helps in digestion of food thus helping to overcome indigestion. Haldi may help in reducing the growth of fat cells in the body. Turmeric, being rich in iron, is highly valuable in the treatment of anaemia and both the root as well as the powder should be a regular part of an anaemic diet. One of the health benefits of turmeric is it’s anti-inflammatory property due to the active compound, Curcumin, which helps to relieve inflammation of the joints and thus is a ladder to relieve pain related to arthritis. The curcumin in haldi also helps to ward of the bacteria’s causing cold, cough and throat irritation.  Turmeric benefits in diabetes management by lowering blood glucose levels. Its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects are useful in the treatment of diabetes patients.  It is known to be a good brain food and keep diseases like Alzheimer’s at bay. See here for detailed turmeric benefits. 

11. Coriander (kothmir, dhania) : Coriander is a fresh herb often used as a flavour enhancer in Indian cooking. It is mainly used as a garnish. This is the best way to use it - no cooking. This preserves its vitamin C content which helps to build our immunity and bring that sparkle to the skin. The antioxidants vitamin A, vitamin C and the quercetin present in coriander works towards strengthening our immune system. Coriander is a fairly good source of iron and folate – the 2 nutrient which help in the production and maintenance of red blood cells in our blood. Good for reducing cholesterol and good for diabetics. Read 9 benefits of coriander to understand details. 

What's the problem?

Rice : Here are the pros for rice. Rice is a great source of complex carbohydrates, which is an important source of energy for our body. Moreover it is gluten free. Rice is low in fibre and therefore a good option for people suffering from diarrhoea. But rice is a good source of protein and B vitamins. 

What's not good in rice. Foods like rice are high in Glycemic index are not suitable for weight loss, heart patients,  diabetics as they affect the blood sugar control levels. However if rice is combined with high protein or high fibre foods, the glycemic load can be balanced. Thus its combo is a better choice as we have done in the recipe of panch dhan khichdi and toovar dal khichdi. See details of is white rice and parboiled rice good for you?

Note : 1 cup = 200 ml (standard cup available in the market). The weight in grams varies for each ingredient.

Can diabetics, heart patients and overweight individuals have Beetroot Rice?

No, this recipe is not good for diabetics, heart and weight loss. We would like diabetics, weight loss and heart patients avoid rice. 

Can healthy individuals have Beetroot Rice?

Ideally no. Always try and avoid white rice as it's high in GI are not suitable for weight loss. 

What is a healthier option than using rice? 

We suggest the following healthy khichdi like Tomato Methi Rice (Iron Rich Recipe), fada ni khichdi recipe, vitamin khichdi recipe, buckwheat moong dal and vegetable khichdi, bajra moong and green peas khichdi, barley khichdi and vegetable biryani from brown rice. Most of these recipes have ZERO usage of rice and portion control is suggested for diabetics.

Tomato Methi Rice (Iron Rich Recipe)

8 Pointers to get healthy on a Indian diet

1. Eat healthy and say yes to good home cooked food. Prefer whole grains like oatmeal, quinoa, buckwheat, barley and healthy flours like bajra flour, jowar flour, quinoa flour, wheat flour etc. rather than refined ones like maida. Have healthy Indian fats like ghee, coconut, coconut oil in your diet. 

2. Opt out of junk food, packaged food, deep fried foods. Prefer steamed snacks and other non-fried snacks. Check out some Healthy Indian Snacks. Remember to eat small frequent meals through the day as that will keep you always full and prevent your blood sugar from dropping. By starving your body through some diet, will not help you one bit. In fact, dieting will make you binge on 2 to 3 meals which is not good. 

Skip having Indian junk foods like pav bhaji, bata vada, pakoras, gulab jamun as they cause your body to have insulance resistance. The resultant is your body will store more carbohydrates as fats, causing storage of fat in the stomach causing a paunch and slowing down of our fat burning process. So its a bad cyle which causes you more more hunger and fatigue every time you eat junk food. 

3. Have 4 to 5 servings of vegetables and 2 to 3 servings of fruit is a must. Follow the logic of a vegetable in each main meal of the day and a fruit in-between meals. Check out a few Healthy Indian Soups and Healthy Indian Salads  recipes using this food group.           

4. Cut down on sugar and salt in your diet and pick honey ( very small amounts) or dates to sweeten your food. Slowly cut the sugar habit as this is not going to happen over night. Sugar  is also called white poison. It is a simple carbohydrate with zero nutritional value. On intake, sugar will cause inflammation of the body which will last for many hours. It will spike your blood sugar level and shut down the fat burning process. This also causes high blood sugar levels in your body. The development of prediabetes comes from uncontrolled eating sugar and refined food products for many years and the classic symptom is if you have excess belly fat. This leads to diabetes and further onwards to heart attack, high blood pressure, strokes, impotence and kidney damage. 

Salt and blood pressure. Apart from stress and obesity, one of the main reasons for high blood pressure is excessive sodium and salt intake. Most people find it difficult to limit the amount of salt in their cooking, thinking it will affect the taste of their favourite dishes. 

This is not true. Bajra and jowar are rich in potassium and critical for those with High Blood Pressure as it lessens the impact of sodium. Eating more Potassium Rich Foods will remove more sodium from your body through urine. So include the basic bajra roti and jowar roti in your daily diet to have with Lower Blood Pressure Subzis Recipes. 

5. Befriend a few healthy seeds and nuts like chia seeds, flax seeds, sesame seeds, walnuts and almonds. Stress. The easiest way to kill your immune system is chronic stress. 

6.  Sprouts are called ‘living food’. They are high is most nutrients and easy to digest as well. Let them feature in your meals at least thrice a week. Also Read : All Benefits about Sprouts. 

7.  Exercise 45 minutes every day. No excuse. You can walk fast, run, do weights, play your favourite sport or go to the gym. No activity reduces muscle tissue which will lead to muscke loss and all kinds of problems with that. Workout builds immunity and keeps virus or bugs away. 

8.  Sleep early and get up early. Get your body into rhythm and it will function best. Sleep helps your body to recover and makes you look much younger. Also getting good sleep prevent muscle loss, builds immunity and keeps virus or bugs away.

One serving of Beetroot Rice is high in

1. Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) : Vitamin B2 enables the production of red blood cells that contribute to the rise in your energy levels. So have more milk, curds, eggs and green leafy vegetables.

2. Vitamin C :  Vitamin C is a great defence against coughs and colds.

3. Magnesium : Magnesium is required for formation of bones and teeth. It helps in the metabolism of calcium and potassium.

4. Phosphorus : Phosphorous works closely with calcium to build bones. 

Note : a recipe is deemed high in a Vitamin or mineral if it meets 20% and above the recommended daily allowance based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

How to burn 215 calories that come from one serving of of Beetroot Rice?

Walking (6 kmph) = 1 hour 5 mins
Running (11 kmph) = 22 mins
Cycling (30 kmph) = 29 mins
Swimming (2 kmph) = 37 mins

Note: These values are approximate and calorie burning differs in each individual.