Some recipes you know are protective from the moment you take the first bite. This has an amazing blend of flavors that work perfectly together. What’s remarkable is that, despite a fairly long list of ingredients, the flavors remain delightfully distinct once mixed.

Since I’ve never made Wild Rice with Walnuts, Mint, Yellow Raisins, Green Onions, and Orange Zest before, I made the process pretty simple by gathering and measuring all of my ingredients ahead of time.

I immediately made minor adjustments. For example, the recipe called for using only wild rice, but I substituted Lundberg’s Wild Blend, which contains long grain brown rice, sweet brown rice, wild rice, red rice, and black rice, which I found at Cronig’s Market.

The first step is important. Rinse 1¼ cups of rice in a small-mesh colander with cold water for two minutes. Since mine had a little big holes, I placed the strainer over the plate to catch any particles that fell through. Then when I was done I scraped them into the pot along with the ones in the colander.

I started with 2 cups of boiling water. (The recipe calls for chicken broth or water. Since I’m a vegetarian, I used water and the dish was extremely delicious.) Cook the rice over low heat for about 25 to 30 minutes, adding more liquid if necessary, about ¼ cup. increases. Keep checking whether it is cooked or not. You want the rice to be slightly crispy and for all the liquid to be completely absorbed.

While I was keeping an eye on the rice, I measured out 1 cup of yellow raisins. Next, I sliced ​​four green onions and finely chopped ¼ cup of mint. After grating the peel of the orange, I chopped it even smaller. Looking back, I didn’t need to chop it after grating it. Once all the ingredients are mixed together, the crust will not become overpowering.

To bring out the oil and enhance the nutty flavor, I baked the pecan cup in the toaster until well browned. The walnuts were large so I considered cutting them in half but then decided to leave them alone. I’m glad I did this, because their size added the perfect crunch and nutty flavor to each spoonful.

Once the rice was done, I scraped it into the bowl and added all the ingredients listed above, along with ¼ cup olive oil, ⅓ cup orange juice, and salt and pepper to taste.

The recipe says to let the mixture sit for 2 hours and serve at room temperature, but we were too anxious to taste it and were already late for dinner, so we dug in… and I’m glad we did. It was insanely delicious. I can’t wait to see what the leftovers will taste like tomorrow, when the flavors have developed further.

Wild Rice with Walnuts, Mint, Yellow Raisins, Green Onions and Orange Peel
for 4 people.

1¼ cup raw wild rice (or blended wild rice mix)
2 cups water or chicken broth (plus a little more during cooking if needed)
1 cup shelled pecan halves
1 cup yellow raisins
Grated peel of 1 large orange
¼ cup fresh mint, chopped
4 onions, thinly sliced
¼ cup olive oil
⅓ cup orange juice
1½ tsp. salt

Put the rice in a strainer. Run under cold water for about 2 minutes; Rinse thoroughly.

Place the rice in a pot of boiling water (or chicken broth) and reduce the heat. Bake for about 30 minutes, check for doneness after about 20 minutes. (If the liquid has been absorbed but the rice is not yet cooked, add extra water during cooking if necessary.)

Keep checking until it’s done, but not too soft. If there is extra liquid when the rice is ready, strain it before pouring it into the mixing bowl.

Add remaining ingredients and mix gently. Season to taste.

Let the mixture sit for 2 hours for the aroma to develop. Serve at room temperature.