Wild Rice Cooking Instructions

Wild rice can be found in the western Great Lakes region of the US and Canada.

Wild rice (Zizania palustris) is a natural grass that is indigenous to the lakes region of the Upper Midwest and central Canada. The aquatic plant has long been a food staple for the Ojibiway, Menominee and Cree peoples. Until 1965 all wild rice was harvested from wild stands with a canoe. But beginning in the 1960s American growers began to cultivate the plant. In the first decade of the 21st century, fields of this tasty grain were under cultivation in Minnesota, California, Idaho, Oregon and Wisconsin. In Canada, all wild rice is harvested from natural sources, although some seeding of lakes and marshes does take place.

Things You'll Need

• Wild rice
• 4-quart cooking pot
• Water
• Gas or electric range

Instructions

Basic Cooking Instructions

1. Begin with processed wild rice. When first harvested wild rice is green, but after drying, curing, fermentation, hulling and packaging, the grain becomes black in color and has a cooking time similar to brown rice.

2. Combine the uncooked wild rice with uncooked long-grain wild rice in whatever mixture you desire. Any mixture between 50-50 and pure wild rice will have contain wild rice's signature rich, nutty flavor. For a simple dish wild rice can be simmered in a covered pot for 45 minutes. For a 50-50 mixture, use four parts of water to one part rice. If you are cooking with pure wild rice you might need six cups of water to one cup of rice. Add the rice after the water reaches a full boil, and then reduce the heat to a simmer.

3. Remove the rice from the stove after the water has evaporated and some of the wild rice has split open. Serve hot with salt, pepper and butter.

A Wild Rice Recipe

1. Cook one cup of raw wild rice as described in the first section.

2. Mix the rice with two large, grated carrots, 3/4 cup golden raisins, 3/4 cup mayonnaise and 3/4 cup Russian or Catalina dressing.

3. Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving. This mixture may keep in the ice box for up to a week.

Tips & Warnings

• Wild rice can be cooked directly in hot oil like popcorn. (see Resources).

• Don' t harvest your own wild rice, as it may be illegal.

References

• Purdue University: Wild Rice
• Canadian Living: Discover Wild Rice

Resources

• Far North Wild Rice: Wild Rice Recipes