Wild rice with portabello mushrooms and leeks

Wild rice can be a fragile and delicate dish.  It is much different than many other rices in that is take far more to cook and can get very mushy very easily.  Generally, rice is a 2:1 ratio of water to rice.  Wild rice is not.  Typically, you want to use 1/3 cup of rice with 1 & 1/3 cup of water.  Unlike other rice, you will often need to strain excess water off so that the rice stays tender and does not end up mushy.

This afternoon I made a nice rice dish and wanted to break it down a bit to show off this amazing aromatic and earthy rice. 

Wild Rice with Portabello Mushrooms and Leeks

the rice

1/3 cup of wild rice (rinsed)

1  1/3 cup of vegetable broth
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

In a pot, bring all ingredients to a boil, covered.  Allow to boil for 35 minutes.  Strain off remaining water.  Some of the rice kernels will be split apart mush many should still be tender.

the mushrooms

1 leek
2 large cloves of garlic (chopped)

2 1/2 cups of cubed portabello mushrooms (cubed)

1/2 cup of onion (sliced)

1 tablespoon of oil
1 teaspoon of jalapeno peppers (chopped)

1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of salt


Heat the oil on low.  Add the onion, garlic, jalapeno, and salt.  Cook until onion is tender and translucent.  This should take about 5 minutes.  During this time, slice the leek into 1/2 inch rings and rinse very well.


Once the onion is tender, add the cubed mushrooms and black pepper.  Stir well and allow to cook for 5-8 minutes.  Then add the leeks and stir well.  Cook for 20 minutes on low heat.  The leeks will cook down as will the mushrooms.


Add the 1 cup of wild rice and stir well.  Cook for 10 minutes to allow the flavors to meld.






This was a nice earthy dish full of flavor on a hot summer afternoon.  The mushrooms and leeks are both subtle and earth and compliment the wild rice very well.