Wild Rice Stuffing w/ Hazelnuts & Dried Cranberries
Why I Love This Recipe
I found this recipe on epicurious.com while searching for interesting recipes for what to do with brown rice. I had purchased a bunch of it, trying to be all healthy, but had no clue on how to make it interesting other than boiling it in water. BTW- boiling brown rice in water is a bit frightening & quite possibly could have turned me off of eating brown rice all together.
Anyways, I found this goodie & have been pairing it with chix & porkchops ever since. It gives an alternative to bread stuffing for Thxsgiving as well.
Ingredients You'll Need
1/2 cup (1-stick) butter
2 large onions
1 garlic clove, minced
6 3/4 cup low-salt chix broth
2 cup wild rice
2 cup long-grain brown rice
2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped (though I use dried, & reduce the total amount)
2 tbsp fresh thyme, chopped (1 tbsp, dried)
1 1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted, coarsely chopped
1 cup green onions, chopped (optional)
Directions
Melt 1/2 cup butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and sauté until tender, ~4min. Add chicken broth. Bring to boil. Add wild rice. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer 30min. Mix in brown rice; cover and simmer until rice is just tender and most liquid is absorbed, ~30min longer.
Stir in cranberries, parsley and thyme into rice. Cover and cook until liquid is absorbed, ~5min longer. Mix in hazelnuts and green onions. Season generously with salt & pepper.
Makes 12-16 servings
STUFFING & TURKEY: Loosely fill main cavity with stuffing. Butter ceramic baking dish. Spoon remaining stuffing into prepared dish. Cover with butter foil, buttered side down. Bake stuffing in dish alongside turkey until heated through, ~30min.
CHEF's NOTES ~
I have not used this recipe inside a bird. As a chef, I'm partial to baking a bird inside a baking bag & not stuffing anything but butter & herbs into the cavity (see my recipe for Rosemary Citrus-Miso Rubbed Turkey). When I made this recipe, I butterflied some boneless porkchops & stuffed the middle & baked at 350 F for ~45min, just until the meat was done. Then served to guests & everyone felt as though they were eating at a 4-star restaurant. It was excellent!!
If not attempting to feed an entire country, be certain to cut all ingredients down by half, otherwise you'll make LOTS of rice.