Wild rice is a food which you would have thought that foodies would have embraced years ago. Yet, it isn’t even mainstream in the health food shops. The plants I’m referring to are more commonly called Zizania and are wild grasses found throughout North America and China. We also know these grasses as water oats, Canada rice and Indian rice. Having stated they are a rice they are not really related to the cultivated rice we know and love the Orzya species which is a staple of many people’s diets.
In North America, especially Canada, we grow three of the species whilst the fourth is only really found on the Chinese mainland. This Chinese native is perhaps one of the most important and is Zizania latifolia. It has long been held as an important grain in their culture but has fallen out of favour because of the cheapness and ready availability of Oryza. Paddy fields have taken over the wilderness in which the wild rice once inhabited. Z. latifolia is now a persistent weed in New Zealand.
Wild rice however still has a following. Most wild rice is commercially grown in the US, Canada, Eastern Europe especially Hungary and in Australia. It is grown to some extent for its stems which are enjoyed especially and one Canadian species Z. palustris is still part of the indigenous American tribal cuisine. Here, the grain has strong cultural and mystical associations.
From a health perspective, there is one species in particular called Zizania caudiflora (Turczaninow) which is believed to relieve stress. Its worth knowing more about (Kim et al., 2012).
References
, , , , . (2012) Anti-fatigue effect of Zizania caudiflora (Turczaninow) Nakai. Am. J. Chinese Med. 40(01) pp. 111–20.
I reckon wild rice is tastier than other more normal rice because it has been processed too much, it has more flavour and seems altogether a much healthier option than the normal white rice I buy. Why is it so expensive ? I’m sure it needn’t be but I guess there isn’t enough being produced.