Wild Rice Pilaf

Wild rice is not rice. It’s a grass grain, once found almost exclusively in the upper Midwest and the southern portions of Ontario. Today, there are many varietals on the market: some brown, some black, many grown in California. This recipe was designed for black wild rice, the sort that splits when cooked to reveal a creamy, white core.
There’s something of a reversal in this technique: The wild rice is cooked under pressure, then the other ingredients are added to the pot. We found that keeping the apple and scallions out from under the pressure gave them a better texture to match the wild rice.

Cuisine

Modern

Course

Side Dish

Difficulty

Easy

Diet

Vegetarian

Cooking Technique

Max Pressure Cook, Pressure Cook

Keywords

6 servings, butter, celery stalk, contributed, cook 50 min, easy, firm, green apple, max pressure cook, modern, packed fresh sage leaves, prep 5 min, pressure cook, raw black wild rice, scallions, side dish, sour, such as granny smith, table salt, vegetarian, walnuts

Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

50 min

Servings

6 servings

Ingredients

1 cup raw black wild rice
3 tbsp butter
1/2 cup walnuts
1 firm, sour, green apple, such as Granny Smith
2 medium scallions
1 medium celery stalk
1 tbsp packed fresh sage leaves
1/2 tsp table salt

Instructions

Pour the wild rice in the cooker, add 1 tablespoon of the butter, and fill the cooker with water until the wild rice is submerged by 2 inches. Lock the lid onto the pot.
Optional 1 Max Pressure Cooker
Press Pressure cook on Max pressure for 28 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off.
Optional 2 All Pressure Cookers
Press Pressure cook (Manual) on High pressure for 40 minutes with the Keep Warm setting off.
Use the quick-release method to bring the pot’s pressure back to normal. Unlatch the lid and open the pot. Drain the wild rice from the hot insert into a fine-mesh sieve such as a chinois or through a colander lined with a single layer of cheesecloth. Rinse out the insert and return it to the machine.
Press Saute, set time for 10 minutes.
Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter in the pot, then add the walnuts, apple, scallions, and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the scallions soften, about 3 minutes. Stir in the cooked and drained wild rice, then add the sage and salt. Cook, stirring all the while, to blend the flavors, about 1 minute. Turn off the SAUTÉ function and remove the hot insert from the pot to stop the cooking. Serve warm.

Notes

Beyond
• For a sweeter finish, substitute 1 firm ripe pear, cored and chopped, for the apple.
Feel free to substitute pecans or even skinned hazelnuts for the walnuts.

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