CA & MN Wild Rice Faceoff

California wild rice on left & Minnesota wild rice on the right. 

A couple weeks ago, Kate from Les Petites Images inquired whether the wild rice we sold was from CA or if it was the “real deal” from MN. After I told her that it apparently wasn’t the real deal, she was kind enough to send us some.

So, on Thursday, we did a little taste test. We cooked both wild rice varieties simultaneously, without salt to best understand exactly what each one brings to the pallet on its own.

Our office was split, with half preferring the deeper nutty flavor and more pronounced chew of the California wild rice and the other half (the half that I was in) that preferred the minnesota wild rice which was softer and fluffier, with longer almost tube-like grains.  I thought that it had a cleaner, sweeter, more subtle flavor.

So, now we just need to find a vendor for the “real deal”…anyone know one?  Thanks, Kate, for bringing this excellent product to our attention and for sending us some…As always, we’re open to product suggestions, so keep them coming!