Do you cook with wild rice?

That’s the question I posed earlier this week,

On our Top Shelf Facebook™ page.

We had more No’s than Yes’…

With the most common reason being…

“I don’t know what to do with it!”

Wild rice was exactly that for me 3 or 4 years ago.

But since I’ve got onto it…

I gotta say that I prefer it to both regular & brown rice.

Why?

My top 1 reason for opting for wild rice over the others is taste!

It’s nutty, earthy, toasty & chewy all at once.

And it’s not rice at all…

But actually a grass!

Wild rice rich in protein,

High in fibre…

And fills you up without spiking your insulin!

The only thing going against it compared to more traditional rices…

Is that it does take a little longer to boil (30-45 minutes)

But on the flip side,

It can be pre-boiled for dishes like the one I prepared today,

Meaning you could prep it earlier,

And then mix in the rest of the ingredients,

For a quick and ready meal.

Joe picked out Darwin KP Mangoes as his pick of the week.

Given I’ve been on a bit of a dessert path over the last month,

I wanted to put together something a little savoury this week.

Confusion rained…

But as I walked through the store,

Inspiration came by way of peashoots!

I just felt they’d work well with the mango….

And a salad started looking the goods!

It wasn’t until I got home…

That I realised that mango and peashoots was not even close to a complete concept.

Opening the fridge I saw some feta and immediately thought that could pair well with mango!

I had some spring onions too…

And being feta’s good friend,

I added them to the salad mix!

Cos leaves and rocket weren’t screaming out to me…

But chilli and mango I was sure of…

Making me feel really close to the final concept.

All this thinking of food was making me hungry…

And without a carb or protein,

My mango and feta salad was more like a chutney than dinner!

The pantry was where I turned for a possible answer.

Although on a lower shelf…

Chick peas kinda popped out at me…

And they could have worked,

But having eaten them a few days earlier I was disenchanted immediately.

Two shelves up…

Just at eye vision,

And behind the organic popcorn bag…

A 150gm of Wild Rice caught my eye!

“That’s the one!” I exclaimed!

But could I wait for the wild rice to boil?

It seems that I could.

Whilst the rice boiled away…

I got all my ingredients prepped,

Found some mint leaves, almonds and other goodies to give the salad some more flavour, texture and lift…

And before I knew it,

I was enjoying my Wild Rice, Mango & Feta Salad.

It may take a little longer than white or brown rice…

But Wild rice is definitely simple, healthy and delicious,

So if you haven’t tried it already give it a go.

There’s no better time than now….

With KP Mangoes eating so good!

All that’s left to say is…

Buon appetito!

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Ingredients

150gm wild rice cooked as per instructions on pack and set aside to cool
1 cup chopped mint
½ cup spring onion sliced finely on a diagonal
1 long red chilli sliced finely on a diagonal
50gm peashoot tendrils (extra for serving)
50gm crumbled dodoni feta
2-3 mango cheeks diced into squares
½ cup coarsely chopped almonds
Juice of half a (small) lemon
2tbs olive oil
Salt, pepper to taste

Method

Gently mix through all the chopped ingredients to the cooked wild rice after it has cooled. Aim to get height on the plate for better visual appearance and garnish with more peashoots, mango and chopped almonds for colour and crunch! Serve immediately!