The Co-op Food Stores of New Hampshire and Vermont

added 12/17/08

by Victoria Hicks

Wild rice is America’s oldest grain and the only cereal grain indigenous to North America. It is not actually rice, but the annual seed of a wild grass which grows along streams and rivulets in northern areas. Naturally abundant in the cold rivers and lakes of the Great Lake states and Canada, wild rice was a staple in the diet of the Ojibwa, Sioux, and other peoples native to this region. They called it manomin, meaning “good berry,” and introduced it to European fur traders. Early English explorers named it wild rice or Indian rice.

Commercial wild rice production now exists in California, as well as several Midwestern states, but many Native Americans still harvest wild rice the traditional way— from a canoe, utilizing only a pole for power and two rice beater sticks as flails to knock the mature seeds into the bottom of the boat. Because traditional harvesting of wild rice is so labor intensive, the product can be quite expensive. However, if you want the luxurious, nutty, smoky crunchiness of real wild rice, pay for the best hand-harvested, traditional Minnesota wild rice you can find.

In its hulled form, wild rice is a long, slender, coffee-colored kernel that butterflies open during cooking to reveal a cream-colored interior. It’s important to clean wild rice thoroughly before cooking it. Place the rice in a medium bowl and fill it with cold water. Stir and set aside for a few minutes. Any debris will float to the surface, and the water can then be poured off.

Wild rice is very simple to cook. If you want a pure experience of it, simply wash the rice, add it to a large pot of salted boiling water, and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes to an hour, until the rice is done to your liking. Some may prefer it on the al dente side, while others like a more tender bowl of rice, in which many of the grains have burst open. Wild rice is a high-fiber complex carbohydrate, high in quality protein and fat-free.

Check out Victoria’s Demos!

Wild Rice with Herbs and Applewood-Smoked Bacon
This dish is lovely with roast poultry, especially when some kind of fruit appears on the plate. The applewood-smoked bacon lends a lovely sweet-smoky character, but you can use any bacon you like for this great side dish.

Serves 8 as a side dish

6 slices of bacon, cut crosswise into thin strips
1 cup finely diced red onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 cups wild rice, rinsed well under cold water and drained
2 1/2 cups water
2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 small bay leaf
1/2 tsp. salt, or to taste
1 Tbs. minced fresh parsley
1 Tbs. minced fresh rosemary
1 Tbs. minced fresh thyme
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

Cook bacon in a large saucepan with a lid, uncovered, over moderate heat, stirring, until crisp; remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Stir in the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring, over moderate heat until golden, about 5 minutes. Add wild rice, water, broth, bay leaf, and salt. Cover and bring to a boil over moderate heat. Uncover and boil gently, without stirring, 45 to 60 minutes, depending on desired degree of doneness.

Drain, add herbs, season well with pepper, and set over lowest possible heat. Dry out for 5 minutes, shaking the pan. Stir in the bacon and pine nuts, and discard the bay leaf. Serve hot.

—Adapted from The Dean & DeLuca Cookbook, by David Rosengarten

Steeped Wild Rice
An interesting method of preparing wild rice, this recipe from Minnesota really steeps rather than cooks rice. It is extraordinarily good with wild or domestic duck or with goose.

Cover 1 cup washed wild rice with boiling water. Cover the pan tightly and let it stand 20 minutes. Drain, and repeat the process three more times. Salt the water for the last steeping. Drain, and let the rice dry a moment over low heat. Toss in melted butter or rendered chicken fat. Add salt, if needed.

—Adapted from James Beard’s American Cookery

Cinnamon Wild Rice Pudding

8-10 servings

2 cups cooked wild rice
2 cups hot half-and-half
1/2 cup maple syrup
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cup raisins
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Sugar and cinnamon for sprinkling

Combine all ingredients. Turn into a 1½-quart casserole. Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake at 350°F for 1 hour or until set. Serve warm or chilled.

Salmon Wild Rice
This very easy casserole recipe is from the Minnesota Wild Rice Council.

Serves 4-6

1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 10 1/2 oz. can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 cup milk
2 Tbs. minced onion
2 cups cooked wild rice
2 Tbs. flour
1 pound canned salmon, drained, boned, and flaked
1 tsp. salt
dash of pepper
8 oz. shredded American or cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350° F. Melt butter or margarine in saucepan. Sauté celery and onion until onion is transparent. Stir in flour and seasonings. Add milk and soup, stirring until sauce is smooth. Blend sauce with remaining ingredients and pour into a 3-quart casserole dish.

Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Wild Rice with Smoked Fish and Snap Peas
Wild rice has an affinity for fish. Crisp snow peas and wedges of hard-boiled egg round out the salad, and a refreshing dill vinaigrette brings all the flavors together.

6 to 8 servings

2 3/4 tsp. salt
2 cups wild rice (¾ lb.)
1 lb. sugar snap peas, trimmed
3 Tbs. cider vinegar
3 Tbs. coarse-grain mustard
2 1/2 tsp. sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
1/2 lb. hot-smoked salmon or smoked trout, skin discarded and fish flaked into 1/2-inch-wide pieces
4 scallions, thinly sliced crosswise (about 1 cup)
6 hard-boiled large eggs, quartered lengthwise

Bring 4 quarts water and 2 teaspoons salt to a boil in a 5-quart pot. Add wild rice and simmer, partially covered, until rice is tender and grains are split open, 1 to 1¼ hours. Drain rice well in a large sieve or colander.

Meanwhile, cook snap peas in a 4-quart saucepan of salted boiling water until crisp-tender, about 2 minutes, then transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice and cold water to stop cooking. Drain peas, then pat dry between paper towels and cut each pod diagonally in half.

Whisk together vinegar, mustard, sugar, and remaining 3/4 tsp. salt in a bowl, then add oil in a slow stream, whisking until combined well. Whisk in dill.

—Adapted from Gourmet, June 2006

Basmati and Wild Rice with Blood Oranges
Basmati, so rich and aromatic in flavor, combined with the earthy nutty-flavored wild rice and the tang of citrus and crunchy pecans, is irresistible. Serve at room temperature. 4-6 servings as a side dish or salad

Wild Rice
1 cup wild rice
4 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt

Thoroughly rinse the rice in a strainer under cold running water. In a large heavy saucepan, bring the water and salt to a boil. Add the rice, reduce the heat to a gentle simmer, cover the pot, and cook until the rice is tender but still toothy, about 45 minutes. Pour off any remaining water. Cover, and let the rice sit for another 5 minutes. Place a thin, clean dish towel inside a colander and turn the rice into it to drain. Fluff with a fork and transfer to a large glass or ceramic bowl.

White Basmati Rice
1 cup white basmati rice
3 cups water
1/2 tsp. salt

Thoroughly rinse the rice in a strainer under cold running water. In a large heavy saucepan, bring the salted water to a boil. Add the rice, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, covered, until rice is tender but toothy, about 10 to 12 minutes. Drain off any remaining liquid and turn the rice into a colander lined with a thin towel to drain. Fluff with a fork.

1 large blood orange
1 cup pecan halves
1 cup golden raisins
4 scallions, trimmed and thinly sliced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 bunch opal basil or other fresh basil

While the rices are cooking, grate the zest from the orange. Toast the pecans on a baking sheet in a preheated 350-degree oven, or in a dry skillet on the stovetop, until lightly darkened in color and nutty-smelling, about 8 to 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on them as nuts can burn easily. Set aside.

Turn the basmati rice into the wild rice while both are still hot and toss together. Add the golden raisins, orange zest, scallions, olive oil, and lemon juice. Toss together gently. Add salt to taste. Set aside to stand for 2 hours to allow flavors to develop fully. Peel the blood orange, removing the outer white pith. Cut into sections and remove membranes and seeds. Chill.

When ready to serve the rice, cut the basil into long thin strips. Stir the pecans into the rice. Arrange the blood orange sections prettily on top, and garnish with the basil.

—Adapted from Babe’s Country Cookbook

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