Asparagus Aspirations: Wild Rice and Asparagus Salad

I admit that I always keep a bag of wild rice on hand, not only for the taste of it, but because it makes any dish seem special.   We eat regular rice at least 3 or 4 times a week, so wild rice is a nice change.  It looks pretty served with brightly colored foods, such as this simple salad made with asparagus and sesame seeds.   Wild rice, which is really an aquatic grass, is native to North America.   Even though I live in California, where almost 80% of wild rice is produced, I buy my rice from Minnesota sources where, by law, rice is cultivated and harvested according to traditional Indian methods.   My paternal great grandmother was Native American, so I have a personal interest in the controversy that surrounds wild rice production.   For some tribes, wild rice is a much needed source of income.  Genetic engineering has also reared its head in this, with many tribes concerned that genetically engineered wild rice threatens the future existence of truly wild rice.  Finally, it may be my imagination (or bias) but I think Native American grown and harvested wild rice is better looking.  For more information about true wild rice go to Slow Food. 

OK, back to our regular programming!  This dish also qualifies me for Asparagus Aspirations, which is the brainchild of Kevin at Seriously Good. He has a plethera of asparagus dishes at his site which you may want to check out.

This is a very easy salad to make, particularly if you have leftover wild rice.  The salad tastes best if the rice is warm when you toss all the ingredients together, because the heat of the rice will make the flavors of the dressing really bloom.  The recipe calls for dark, as well as light sesame seed oil.  The light oil is the one people are most familiar with when cooking food. The dark oil is more pungent, but not always available in regular grocery stores. If you can't find the dark oil, increase the total amount of the light sesame seed oil to 5 tablespoons.      

Wild Rice and Asparagus Salad  (Deborah Madison)

1 cup wild rice

1 quart water

salt

1 to 1-1/2 lbs. asparagus

2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted

3 or 4 handfuls of napa cabbage, cut into squares or watercress

whole cilantro leaves

Rinse the rice and put it into a pot with the water and salt. Bring to a boil, cover the pot, reduce heat and simmer for about 40 minutes until rice has absorbed water and expanded.  Drain it well.

Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus and cut them into small pieces, at an angle or in rounds. Leave the tips a little longer than the stems. 

Drop the asparagus into boiling salted water and cook them until they are still firm, but a little soft. The time will depend on the size of the asparagus, but it's usually around 2 minutes.   Drain the asparagus and plunge it into cold water, then put on paper towels.

Make vinaigrette and toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet or the oven for about 2 minutes until they are lightly browned. Combine the asparagus, sesame seeds, and wild rice with about 2/3 of the vinaigrette and toss well.  Mound the rice on a plater and surround with the cabbage or watercress leaves.  Drizzle the rest of the dressing on the cabbage/watercress and serve.

Vinaigrette

2 scallions, finely chopped

1 tablespoon finely sliced orange zest

5 tablespoons orange juice

3 tablespoons light sesame seed oil

2 tablespoons dark sesame seed oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon basalmic vinegar

1 tablespoon grated ginger root

2 teaspoons minced garlic

pinch of sugar

2-3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

Combine all the ingredients and taste carefully to see if you need to adjust the taste. I usually add a little more soy sauce and vinegar. 

Comments

[s'kat]

I'm not big on regular rice or pasta, but I love*love*love the crunchy yumminess of wild rice. The salad looks killerf!

Asparagus aspirations is almost over at Seriously Good- you should send this to Kevin for the round-up!

[anne]

As always, gorgeous photos. Mouthwatering.

Also, I love that you are buying from MN and the traditional ways of harvesting - by doing so, not only are you supporting people, you are also supporting a more natural ecosystem.

I made your corn cakes, by the way. They were fabulous! Thank you for a recipe I will be keeping for all time.

[Glenna]

Seriously yum!

[steven]

Sounds delicious, but then Deborah's food always is. I think I'd opt for the watercress over the cabbage, as much as I like cabbage.

[sher]

s'kat,

Thanks for telling me about Kevin over at Seriously Good. As you can see, I took your advice and sent my link over there. :):)

Anne,

I'm so glad you enjoyed the corn cakes. It's always gratifying to see that others enjoy a recipe too. Sometimes I worry that people will fix something I raved about and say, "She thought this was good??"

Glenna,

Thank you, Ms. G!!!!

Steven,

I was thinking this morning how watercress is better than the cabbage. For one thing, it looks better. And it has more taste. I'm a big fan of water cress.

[Shannon]

This looks like yet ANOTHER Sher keeper! Oh, I too will be making the corn cakes sometime this week! I'm sure they'll be great.

[ann]

where can you buy this wild rice?
is it something to look for on the box, or is it somethind i'd have to order over the internet?

[sher]

Shannon,

Not only are the corn cakes delicious--they are very easy. That's always a good thing. Let me know how they turned out.

Ann,

Some stores do carry wild rice from Minnesota, where Native American harvest it. It will state that on the label. I've found it in my grocery store, and at my local Farmer's Market. You can also get it over the Internet, but I would bet you can find it in a store in NYC. Of course, I always think NYC must have everything!! :):) But, I've never lived there, so what do I know!

[Gerald]

Looks really good, I love raw napa cabbage.

[kalyn]

I love the sound of this. Also I need to look for dark sesame oil, so thanks for the reminder.

[aria]

this looks so delicious! your blog is beauiful, great pics. i love the seasonal recipes. u have officially been bloglined :)