The Time of Food : Something Wild

Teals’ Super Valu

Box 660

Cass Lake, Minn. 56633

(218) 335-2249

Check or money order

There are two kinds of wild rice grown in Minnesota. Paddy rice (the kind that is also grown here in California), is cultivated in artificially seeded ponds that are machine-harvested by farmers. True wild rice, however, grows in shallow lakes and streams and must be hand-harvested by people in canoes. For centuries this has been done by the Ojibwa nation, for whom wild rice is a staple food.

You can tell just by looking at the rice whether it has been hand-harvested or not. Paddy rice is left out in the weather to cure, which causes the kernels to harden and darken. The hand-harvested variety, on the other hand, is parched immediately, giving it a lighter color. This varies from grayish-green to reddish brown, but hand-harvested wild rice is never black. Hand-harvested rice also has a softer texture. And there’s a taste difference too: Hand-harvested rice is much milder, with a far more subtle flavor.

Because of Minnesota’s reputation for wild rice, many California ricers used to ship their rice to Minnesota so that “Minnesota” could be added to the label. But in 1989, Minnesota passed a law stating that rice grown in other states must be labeled as “cultivated” wild rice and the word “Minnesota” cannot be used in the label. The law went further. Minnesota ricers must indicate whether their rice is paddy-grown or hand-harvested. If there is a picture of an Indian on the package, the rice must actually have been hand-harvested by Indians. And if the label says “wild rice,” the rice must have been hand-harvested on a Minnesota river or lake. Paddy-grown rice is labeled as “cultivated wild rice” or “paddy-grown wild rice.”

Paddy-grown rice is easy to find. Hand-harvested wild rice is another matter. One of the best sources is Teals’ Super Valu Store, which buys between 6,000 and 8,000 pounds of the carefully processed, top No. 1 grain rice each year. The price of hand-harvested rice varies from year to year, depending upon weather and availability. This year, Teals’ Super Valu is selling a one-pound bag of rice for $4.99, plus postage.