rice-pudding

rice-pudding

A child enjoys a bowl of rice-pudding for dessert.

Definition
  1. Noun:
    • A sweet dish: "rice-pudding" is a dessert made by cooking rice with milk, sugar, and often flavorings such as vanilla, cinnamon, or raisins. It can be baked or simmered on the stovetop until the rice is soft and the mixture thickens into a creamy or firm consistency.
Usage Examples
  • Noun:
    • My grandmother makes a delicious rice-pudding every Christmas. (A sweet dessert made from rice and milk.)
    • For a simple treat, you can prepare a rice-pudding with leftover rice and condensed milk. (A creamy dish using rice as the main ingredient.)
Advanced Usage

  • "Rice-pudding as comfort food": In many cultures, rice-pudding is associated with childhood nostalgia or warm, soothing meals.

    • After a long day, nothing beats a bowl of warm rice-pudding. (The dish is seen as emotionally comforting.)

  • "Rice-pudding consistency": Used metaphorically to describe something thick, soft, or sticky.

    • The mixture had the consistency of rice-pudding, making it easy to spread. (The texture was thick and smooth like the dessert.)
Variants and Related Words

  • Rice pudding (n): a common alternative spelling without the hyphen; refers to the same dish.

    • The restaurant serves a classic rice pudding with a caramel topping. (Same dessert, often written as two words.)

  • Pudding (n): a broader term for any sweet or savory dish with a soft, creamy texture, but often specifically refers to desserts like rice-pudding.

    • This cookbook has a section on traditional puddings, including rice-pudding. (Pudding as a category of dishes.)
Synonyms
  • Creamy rice dessert: a descriptive synonym highlighting the texture and main ingredient.
  • Rice custard: a synonym emphasizing the egg-based thickening used in some versions of rice-pudding.
Related Idioms

  • As thick as rice-pudding: a simile used to describe a very thick or viscous substance.

    • The sauce was as thick as rice-pudding, making it hard to pour. (The sauce had a dense, pudding-like consistency.)

  • To stir the rice-pudding: an informal phrase meaning to keep things calm or to maintain peace in a situation.

    • She always tries to stir the rice-pudding during family arguments by telling jokes. (She tries to defuse tension, like gently stirring a pudding to prevent burning.)