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Here’s how to cook wild rice with a recipe that creates tender, flavorful grains. I’ll share my tested technique plus pro tips for making this nutritious whole grain into an easy side dish.
Wild rice is a tasty whole grain, and guess what? It actually has some nutritional advantages over brown rice! But more than that, it’s a tasty healthy side dish to work into your dinnertime repertoire.
Alex and I often make wild rice soup, but we didn’t often eat it as a side dish—until now! I’ve perfected a version of my mom’s favorite wild rice recipe. It works as a delicious side dish for baked salmon, or you can use it in other recipes like wild rice casserole, wild rice salad, in a grain bowl, and more.
How to cook wild rice
So, you’ve got a bag of wild rice: now what? There are varying opinions on the amount of liquid needed for wild rice. Some say 1:4, others say 1:2. Here’s what I’ve learned about how to cook wild rice:
- Use wild rice, not a blend. Some wild rice is packaged with other types of rice, labeled as a “wild rice blend”. This recipe is for straight wild rice: so make sure to find that.
- Know the ratio: The ratio I use in my recipe is 1 cup rice to 2.5 cups water or broth. Since the recipe calls for 2 cups rice, I like using 4 cups broth (sold as 1 quart) and 1 cup water.
- Simmer covered 45 to 55 minutes: Place everything in a pot, bring to a boil, then cover and simmer. Depending on the brand of rice, it will take between 45 and 55 minutes. The rice is done when it bursts and is tender.
My seasoning tips
You can use the formula above to make this wild rice recipe straight up. But I recommend adding the diced onion and celery to the mix, as my mom’s recipe calls for! It adds just the right flavor and texture contrasts for a healthy side dish.
You don’t even need to sauté the veggies first! Just add them to the rice and broth, and boil them while the rice is boiling. It’s an easy way to add big flavor.
To really take it over the top, you can finish this recipe with a drizzle of olive oil or a tablespoon or two of butter. My mom’s favorite recipe is a little retro: it adds some canned mushrooms at the end with a little butter. Feel free to add that if you want a 1970’s vibe!
5 star reader review
“Made your wild rice recipe tonight as side dish for Coq Au Vin Blanc along with a tomato, Romaine lettuce, onion salad, …and it was GREAT. Perfect balance to the meal. Thank you.” -Richard
Ingredient spotlight: understanding wild rice
Here’s something that surprised me when I first started cooking with wild rice: it’s not actually rice at all! Wild rice is the seed from a grass that grows in lakes and streams, mostly in the Great Lakes region. This explains its flavor profile—earthy, nutty, and slightly mineral-like. But since it looks a lot like rice, wild rice is treated as rice in most cuisines. They’re not truly related, but wild rice is often compared to brown rice. Here’s how they stack up:
- Wild rice has less calories than brown rice, about 66% less! 1 cup of cooked wild rice has 166 calories and 1 cup brown rice has 248 calories. (Source)
- Wild rice has slightly more protein than brown rice. 1 cup cooked wild rice has 6.5 grams protein vs 5.5 grams in brown rice. (Source)
- Both wild and brown rice have the same amount of fiber, about 3 grams per 1 cup cooked.
Ways to serve this wild rice recipe
There are so many ways to serve this wild rice recipe! It’s an easy side dish, or it works well in many other contexts:
- As a classic side dish: I serve this wild rice alongside baked baked chicken breast, pan seared chicken, honey garlic salmon, or baked salmon. The nutty flavor complements both poultry and fish beautifully.
- In grain bowls: Add cooked chickpeas, roasted vegetables, and a drizzle of tahini sauce or green goddess dressing for a satisfying lunch or dinner.
- As wild rice salad: Toss cooled rice with dried cranberries, toasted pecans, and a simple vinaigrette for a make-ahead wild rice salad that’s perfect for potlucks.
- In wild rice casserole: This wild rice casserole combines with broccoli, cheese, and a creamy sauce for the ultimate comfort food side dish.
- In stuffed vegetables: Use as a filling for stuffed bell peppers, stuffed acorn squash, or stuffed zucchini boats.
- With breakfast eggs: I love serving leftover wild rice topped with a sunny side up egg and a drizzle of hot sauce for a hearty breakfast.
Storage and reheating instructions
Cooked wild rice keeps well in the refrigerator for up to 5 days stored in an airtight container. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop with a splash of water or broth to restore moisture.
For longer storage, wild rice freezes well for up to 3 months. To reheat from frozen, I either thaw overnight in the refrigerator or heat directly from frozen in the microwave, adding a bit of liquid as needed.
Dietary notes
This wild rice recipe is vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.
Perfect Wild Rice
Here’s how to cook wild rice with a recipe that creates tender, flavorful grains. This is my favorite way to make this nutritious whole grain into an easy side dish!
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 1 cup small diced yellow onion (1 small onion), optional
- 1 cup small diced celery (about 3 celery ribs), optional
- 2 cups wild rice (make sure it’s all wild rice, not a mix!)
- 1 quart (4 cups) vegetable broth
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
Instructions
- Prep the veggies (optional but recommended): Small dice the onion. Dice the celery.
- In a large saucepan, place the onion, celery, wild rice, vegetable broth, water, and ¾ teaspoon kosher salt. Bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer 45 to 50 minutes, until the rice is split and tender. (Most of the grains will split, but not all: see the photo.)
- Drain excess liquid. Taste and add an additional ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. If you’d like, add a drizzle of olive oil or a tablespoon or two of butter (but it tastes great on its own).
hi Sonja! I knew from your parents that you and hubby had a cooking blog but was pleasantly surprised to find this recipe, scroll down and see your smiling face! Bravo!!
Glad to see you’re doing well –
How funny! It’s so great to hear from you (sorry for the delay) :) So glad you’ve found our space and hope you enjoy the recipe! Sending our regards!!
nice recipe for wild rice. The only thing I do differently is precook wild rice about 1 hour. Drain and rinse. Return to recipe and add wild rice to the mix and boil with all this mixing for another hour.
All of the wild rice will burst and absorb the flavors.
I like to make this 1-2 times per month. Each batch makes about four meals for me.
I cannot wait to start cooking wild rice. I just bought a 25lb container of it from fall world wild rice. Yummy
https://frwr.com/
Also, …we added a pinch of Italian truffle salt at the mid-point in cooking.
Made your wild rice recipe tonight as side dish for Coq Au Vin Blanc along with a tomato, Romaine lettuce, onion salad, …and it was GREAT. Perfect balance to the meal. Here in MT it took about 1.5 hours to cook perfectly.
Thank you.
Since I’m not sure digestive tract can handle this, how do I fix a much smaller amount? Just cut down the rice to 1/2 Cup & the liquid to 1 3/4 Cup? It seems like the liquid would boil away long before the time estimate about for cooking it. TY
We haven’t tried it but the ratio would be 1/2 cup rice to 1 cup broth. You could try in a small sauce pan. Since you are simmering with the pan covered not much boils out. Just keep an eye on it!
Is it ok to heat in microwave before serving? Thanks
Yes