Is it ultra-processed?
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Is Uncle Ben's Tikka Masala Ready Rice ultra-processed?

Vegetables from Spain Sold in the United States

Pack of Uncle Ben's Tikka Masala Ready Rice

Yes, it's ultra-processed

  1. 1 Unprocessed
  2. 2 Kitchen staple
  3. 3 Processed
  4. 4 Ultra-processed

Signs of ultra-processing in its ingredients:

  • 22 ingredients
  • 4 additives
  • Nutri-Score B

Less processed vegetables from Spain

Less processed isn't automatically healthier, so compare the labels for what matters to you, such as sugar or salt.

Ingredients

Ultra-processing Processing signs are highlighted

water, basmati rice, canola oilt, less than 2% of (sugar), salt, soy lecithin, tomato powder, dehydrated onion, spices, garlic, turmeric (color), chili pepper, maltodextrin, paprika extract (color), butter oil, citric acid, yeast extract, natural flavors, natural smoke flavor

Additives: E160c Paprika extract , E322 Lecithins , E322i Lecithin , E330 Citric acid

As written on the pack

WATER, BASMATI RICE, CANOLA OILT; LESS THAN 2% OF: SUGAR, SALT, SOY LECITHIN, TOMATO POWDER, DEHYDRATED ONION, SPICES, DEHYDRATED GARLIC, TURMERIC (COLOR), CHILI PEPPER, MALTODEXTRIN, PAPRIKA EXTRACT (COLOR), BUTTER OIL, CITRIC ACID, YEAST EXTRACT, NATURAL FLAVORS, NATURAL SMOKE FLAVOR.

What makes it ultra-processed

Cosmetic additives

Added to change how the food looks, feels or tastes, not to keep it safe. A hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • E160c Paprika extract Paprika extract is a red-orange colour extracted from paprika peppers.
  • E322 Lecithins Lecithins are fatty substances extracted mostly from soybeans, sunflower seeds or eggs, used as emulsifiers to keep fat and water mixed, for example in chocolate.
  • Colour Colours are added to restore colour lost in processing or to make a product look more appealing.
  • Flavouring Flavourings are concentrated aroma preparations that add or intensify a taste.

Substances rarely used in home kitchens

Refined or extracted in factories, such as syrups made from starch or isolated proteins. The other hallmark of ultra-processed food.

  • Maltodextrin Maltodextrin is a white powder made by partly breaking down starch.
3 ingredients that would only make it processed

Kitchen staples like sugar, salt and oil. On their own they make a food processed, not ultra-processed.

  • Meals Products in the category "Meals" are at least group 3.
  • Salt Salt, added for taste and preservation.
  • Sugar Sugar refined from sugar cane or beet.

How the NOVA groups work

Among 37 vegetables from Spain

From least to most processed, this one ranks 37th. 49% of the vegetables from Spain here are ultra-processed.

Ranked by NOVA group, then by the number of ultra-processing signs, additives and ingredients. Our ordering, not part of NOVA.

All 37 vegetables from Spain, least processed first

About this information

  • Data from this product on Open Food Facts (barcode 0054800425648, last edited 2 September 2026), available under the Open Database License. If something is wrong or the recipe has changed, you can correct it there.
  • Photo: Open Food Facts contributors, CC BY-SA 3.0.
  • The NOVA group is an automated estimate from crowdsourced data: a missing or mistyped ingredient can change it.
  • NOVA measures processing, not nutrition. For nutrition, Open Food Facts gives this product a Nutri-Score of B (from A, best, to E).
  • General information, not medical or dietary advice. Check the pack if you have an allergy.