Rice gone wild

January 18, 2014 10:46 AM

I have a bunch of wild rice and a husband who doesn't like creamy soups, mushrooms, or seafood, which seems to knock out most of the signature wild rice dishes. I need some wild rice recipes that do not involve these things. Bonus points for vegetarian main dishes, one-pot meals that don't rely on meat as the sole protein source (though a bit of bacon or sausage for flavoring is always welcome), and crock pot recipes. I also try to avoid processed food, so, please, no recipes involving cans of condensed soup and/or packages of soup mix.
posted by BrashTech to Food & Drink (22 answers total)

Last week I cooked some amazing egg fried rice using left over wild rice. First I sautéed a ton of garlic and broccoli, threw in some pre cooked carrots and when the broccoli was cooked through I poured on the egg mixture... Kept stirring and once the egg had set I spooned in the rice.
I added butter on top.... Ate with soy sauce. I highly recommend!
posted by misspony at 10:57 AM on January 18, 2014 [2 favorites]

I haven't tried this yet, but it's on my list: Kale and Wild Rice Casserole (Oops, mushrooms on closer viewing. Rats.)
posted by cecic at 11:00 AM on January 18, 2014

We made this wild rice gratin w/ soft-cooked eggs from the Smitten Kitchen cookbook and really liked it.
posted by charmedimsure at 11:00 AM on January 18, 2014 [2 favorites]

Throw a pile of vegetables into the crockpot, add whatever seasoning you want and water, let it sit all day cooking, then, around an hour before you eat, throw in handfuls of the rice.

Then bam - delicious vegetable stew.

And with that, if throw a bit of sausage in as well, and make sure the seasoning is a bit spicy (or shake in some Tony Chachere's), then you have gumbo.
posted by Katemonkey at 11:08 AM on January 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

Quinoa and wild rice pilaf is delicious and, if you time things right, is pretty easy to do in a single pot. Boil broth, add wild rice, wait 20 minutes, add quinoa and veggies, remove from heat when quinoa is done. I like it with bell peppers, but you could probably get creative with the vegetables.

I first had this prepared in a giant stock pot over a campfire, so I can guarantee that it's pretty forgiving. It is also one of the first vegan meals I ever made, because it was so delicious that I had to recreate it.
posted by catalytics at 11:13 AM on January 18, 2014

I recently had a delicious wild rice salad that involved cranberries, walnuts, wild rice, and a balsamic vinegar dressing...also delicious with a bit of crumbled goat cheese!
posted by csox at 11:15 AM on January 18, 2014 [3 favorites]

Wild rice pilaf is delicious with turkey. Saute some carrots and onions in butter until tender, then add the rice and saute for a minute or two, then add chicken stock. You can serve the turkey alongside or cook browned pieces of it on top of the rice and stock in a covered pot.
posted by Lycaste at 11:25 AM on January 18, 2014

Seconding a simple wild rice salad. I just toss the cooked rice in some balsamic vinegar and orange juice, add a generous amount of cranberries, orange slices, and toasted pecans, and garnish with some green onions.
posted by redlines at 11:25 AM on January 18, 2014

In case you want a recipe to follow for csox's nice idea, one of my favorite dishes is this Wheat Berry Salad with Cranberries, Green Onion, Toasted Pecans, and Feta that I bet would be great with wild rice instead of wheat.
posted by taz at 11:27 AM on January 18, 2014

I like to mix wild rice with long grain rice, toasted almond silvers, and peas as a hearty side dish to a chunk of protein, duck goes really well with this.
posted by The Whelk at 11:28 AM on January 18, 2014

This wild rice salad with dates, cashews and chickpeas is THE BOMB.
posted by BlahLaLa at 11:29 AM on January 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

I think Mexican food is your goal here. Refried beans, spanish rice, tacos, quesadillas...
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 11:51 AM on January 18, 2014

I usually throw a handful of wild rice into my regular rice just to mix it up.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 11:52 AM on January 18, 2014

My mom's favorite dessert for a long time was wild rice with milk, sugar, and cinnamon.
posted by baniak at 12:03 PM on January 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

I used to mix it 50/50 with brown rice - you need about 2x the brown rice volume + 3x the wild rice volume of liquid. Add some chopped nuts and use stock (chicken stock if you're willing, or vegetable stock) instead of water.

This is admittedly more of a side dish than an main course.
posted by mr vino at 2:14 PM on January 18, 2014

Mix cooked wild rice with sauteed onions (caramelized is even better, if you've got time), garlic, cubes of sauteed or roasted butternut squash, craisins, chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts work well), and some chopped grilled chicken. Salt and pepper to taste. So yummy.

I also really like a copycat version of Chicken Wild Rice Hash, which is served at a cafe near me. It's just roasted cubes of potatoes and carrots, cooked wild rice, and grilled chicken, all smothered in rosemary gravy. I've improvised the gravy differently each time I've made it, but basically I cook a few tablespoons flour in an equal amount of melted butter for a few minutes, stir in chicken stock and maybe some milk along with lots of chopped fresh rosemary, then stir and cook until it's bubbly and thick. Maybe cook some garlic in the butter before adding the flour, if you like that sort of thing.
posted by vytae at 2:44 PM on January 18, 2014

Oh! Wild rice is also a fabulous base for Smitten Kitchen's Miso Sweet Potato and Broccoli Bowl, which is insanely delicious and also vegetarian.
posted by vytae at 2:45 PM on January 18, 2014 [1 favorite]

Skillet Wild Rice, Walnut and Broccoli Salad
posted by caek at 4:35 PM on January 18, 2014

My grandma makes a great (vegetarian) casserole with orzo and wild rice. It has zucchini, squash, cherry tomatoes, feta, and slivered almonds baked in a casserole dish till it starts to get browned on top. Maybe with black or Klamata olives, and some garlic. Really tasty!

As a simple side, I take 2/3 wild rice and 1/3 white, and mix in a packet or two of Sazon Goya. I add the white rice for the last 20 minutes after the wild has been cooking for about 40 mins. Simple and tasty, if you like Goya like I do.
posted by catatethebird at 4:51 PM on January 18, 2014

A sort-of alternative to vytae's first suggestion is stuffing acorn squash.
posted by valrus at 4:52 PM on January 18, 2014

I really liked this salad with wild rice, mango, red onion and cumin.
posted by vasi at 10:45 PM on January 18, 2014

You say he doesn't like creamy soups... but how about porridge? Hell's Kitchen in Minneapolis makes an AMAZING porridge that I order for dessert every time I go (uh it's actually on the brunch menu but whatever).

Here is the recipe. I made it with family over Christmas and it was sooo good.
posted by stompadour at 8:38 AM on January 20, 2014