Basmati (Urdu: باسمتی,Hindi: बासमती, Telugu: బాస్మతి,Bengali: বাসমতী) is a variety of long grain rice, notable for its fragrance and delicate flavour. Its name means “the fragrant one” in Sanskrit, but it can also mean the “soft rice.” Pakistan and India are the largest cultivators and exporters of this rice – primarily grown through paddy field farming in the Punjab region.

The grains of basmati rice are longer than non-basmati varieties. Cooked grains of Basmati rice are characteristically free flowing rather than sticky. Cooked basmati rice can be uniquely identified by its fragrance. Basmati rice is available in two varieties – white rice and brown rice.