Husking and Milling Rice

Newly harvested rice, once it has been threshed off the straw, is known as rough rice, or paddy rice. The grains are still in the husk. The preliminary cleaning of the grains, or husking, produces unmilled rice, usually known as brown rice in North America, though it can be other colors. Most rice is then milled to remove the bran and germ layers, leaving it white. White milled rice is usually polished to remove the last traces of bran. In India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, some of the rice crop is parboiled (see Parboiled Rices) before husking and milling.