Wild rice

"Zizania" redirects here. For the tender which served in the US Lighthouse Service and Navy, see USLHT Zizania.
For wild rice related to cultivated forms, see Rice. For the wild rice species of India and Bangladesh, see Porteresia.
"Indian rice" redirects here. The wildflower Fritillaria camschatcensis is sometimes also called "Indian rice" or "wild rice".
For other uses, see Wild rice (disambiguation).

Wild rice
Beneath a cloudy sky, tall green-stemmed plants with beige-pink seeds atop them stand, bending to the viewer's left.
Zizania palustris
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Monocots
Clade: Commelinids
Order: Poales
Family: Poaceae
Subfamily: Oryzoideae
Tribe: Oryzeae
Subtribe: Zizaniinae
Genus: Zizania
L.
Species
Synonyms[1]
  • Ceratochaete Lunell
  • Elymus Mitch.
  • Fartis Adans.
  • Hydropyrum Link
  • Melinum Link

Wild rice, also called manoomin, mnomen, Psíŋ, Canada rice, Indian rice, or water oats, is any of four species of grasses that form the genus Zizania, and the grain that can be harvested from them. The grain was historically and is still gathered and eaten in North America and, to a lesser extent, China,[2] where the plant's stem is used as a vegetable.

Wild rice is not directly related to domesticated rice (Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima), although both belong to the same botanical tribe Oryzeae.[3] Wild-rice grains have a chewy outer sheath with a tender inner grain that has a slightly vegetal taste.[4]

The plants grow in shallow water in small lakes and slow-flowing streams; often, only the flowering head of wild rice rises above the water. The grain is eaten by dabbling ducks and other aquatic wildlife.

  1. ^ "Zizania L." Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Food in China was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Kellogg, Elizabeth A. (30 January 2009). "The Evolutionary History of Ehrhartoideae, Oryzeae, and Oryza". Rice. 2 (1): 1–14. Bibcode:2009Rice....2....1K. doi:10.1007/s12284-009-9022-2.
  4. ^ Reinagel, Monica (19 April 1010). "What Type of Rice is Healthiest?". Archived from the original on 8 July 2013. Retrieved 28 January 2010.