Fried wild rice

This delicious recipe combines the techniques of Chinese fried rice with ingredients that are indigenous to Canada. Wild ginger, wild garlic, and ramps can be found at farmers’ markets when in season.

Prep time
15 min
Cook time
40 min
Servings
4
Prep time
15 min
Cook time
40 min
Servings
4

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (250ml) uncooked wild rice
  • 15 mL (1 tbsp) sunflower oil
  • 5 mL (1 tsp) wild ginger, finely diced
  • 5 mL (1 tsp) wild garlic, finely diced
  • 60 mL (¼ cup) ramps, white and light green part only, finely diced
  • 250 mL (1 cup) canned sweet corn kernels
  • 85 mL (⅓ cup) dried cranberries
  • 15 mL (1 tbsp) soy sauce
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. In a medium-sized pot, bring 1 L (4 cups) of water to a boil. Once boiling, add dry wild rice and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until the rice just starts to open and is chewy. Remove from heat, strain in a fine-mesh sieve, and run under cold water to stop the cooking process. 
  2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil, ginger, garlic, and ramp and sauté for 2 minutes. Add corn and dried cranberries and sauté for another minute.
  3. Mix in cooked wild rice.  Add soy sauce and toss. Scrape the bottom of the pan to mix up all the tasty bits.
  4. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe highlights

Slide
1 of 3
Drain cooked rice and run under cold water.
Slide
2 of 3
Finely dice ramps or leeks.
Slide
3 of 3
Add corn and dried cranberries and sauté.

Tips

  • Serve with a protein food such as cooked eggs or firm tofu. Mix in at step 4.
  • You can substitute commercial ginger, garlic and leeks for wild ginger, garlic and ramps.
  • You can replace the ramps with leeks or shallots.