Try this Best Ever Wild Rice Stuffing recipe, or contribute your own.
- salt and pepper
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 8 oz mushrooms sliced
- 4 slices bacon chopped
- 1-1/2 cups wild rice blend (i like lundberg wild blend)
- 2-1/4 cups gluten-free chicken broth
- 1 dried bay leaf
- 1 jumbo shallot or 1 small onion chopped
- 2 stalks celery finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
- 1/4 cup fisher whole almonds chopped
- 1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese optional
- Carbohydrate 5.06828263438788 g
- Cholesterol 26.5277083376937 mg
- Fat 13.6000781576316 g
- Fiber 1.12944310114296 g
- Protein 4.62171227597724 g
- Saturated Fat 5.96758072058978 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (70g)
- Sodium 419.741018064459 mg
- Sugar 3.93883953324493 g
- Trans Fat 1.33701971231115 g
- Calories 158 calories
Step-by-step
- Add wild rice, chicken broth, bay leaf, and a pinch of salt to a 1-1/2 - 2 quart saucepan then bring to a boil.
- Place a lid on top then turn heat down to low and simmer for 40-45 minutes or until rice is al dente.
- Let pan sit off the heat with the lid on for 5 minutes then remove bay leaf, fluff rice with a fork, and set aside.
- Meanwhile, brown bacon in a large, 12" skillet over medium heat then transfer to a bowl, reserving bacon fat in skillet.
- Turn heat up to medium-high then melt butter in skillet and add shallots, mushrooms, and celery.
- Once mushrooms have released their liquid and begin to brown, add dried thyme then season with salt and pepper.
- Saute until mushrooms are golden brown and vegetables are tender, 8-10 minutes.
- Add garlic and fresh sage then saute until garlic is very fragrant and golden brown, 1-2 minutes.
- Remove skillet from heat then add cooked wild rice, cooked bacon, chopped almonds, dried cranberries, and parmesan cheese to skillet then stir well to combine.
- Add a splash of chicken broth if you need to loosen the stuffing up a bit.
- Taste then add salt and pepper if necessary, and then serve.
Wild rice is the heavy lifter in this dish, requiring precise liquid ratios that demand careful calculation when altering batch sizes. Doubling the recipe means scaling the chicken broth and wild rice blend proportionally, but widening your pan surface area is more important than increasing the saucepan volume. Crowding too much grain into a standard two-quart pot prevents even steam circulation, leaving the center grains hard while the edges overcook during the 40 to 45 minute simmer. Maintaining the exact 1.5-to-2.25 grain-to-broth ratio prevents the starch from turning gummy when larger quantities are processed.
Multiplying skillet aromatics requires monitoring pan capacity closely to avoid steaming instead of browning. Spreading sliced mushrooms and chopped celery across a true 12-inch skillet ensures proper moisture evaporation during the eight to ten minute sauté window. Batch-cooking aromatics is necessary if your pan is too small; overcrowding traps liquid and prevents the vegetables from developing the golden crust required for deep savory depth. Adding garlic and fresh sage only after the mushrooms brown prevents the botanical compounds from burning and turning bitter.
Common failures usually stem from ignoring moisture management during the final mixing stage. Adding too much chicken broth to loosen the dense grain mixture creates a soggy texture that mutes the crunch of chopped almonds and dried cranberries. Incorporating the warm ingredients gradually allows you to gauge the residual fat from the bacon without drowning the wild rice. Reserve extra broth and add it strictly by the tablespoon only if the mixture appears dry after folding in the cheese.
Storing leftovers safely requires transferring the finished stuffing to an airtight container within two hours of cooking. Refrigerated portions retain optimal texture for up to three days when sealed properly to prevent the wild rice from drying out. Reheating works best in a covered skillet over medium-low heat with a splash of broth to restore lost moisture, avoiding the uneven heating typical of microwave methods.
