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Speaking of wild rice stem, southern friends are more familiar with it. Under the emerald green coat is a jade-like body, green and white, and tastes crisp and delicious.

What kind of vegetable is wild rice? What is its nutritional value? I heard that eating the wrong vegetable may cause parasites! In this article, we will talk about wild rice.

Zizania latifolia, also known as water bamboo shoots and water melon, is an important aquatic vegetable in my country. Together with lotus root, water celery, water gorgon (euryale ferox), water chestnut, water shield, and water caltrop, it is known as the "Eight Water Immortals of Jiangnan" and is also known as the "Ginseng in Water".

Image source: provided by the author

Many people think that Zizania latifolia is just an ordinary vegetable, but in fact it is a "deformed child" of Zizania latifolia. It is a swollen structure at the base of the stem formed by the specific symbiosis and interaction between Ustilago farfara and Zizania latifolia of the Poaceae family.

Let's talk about wild fodder first. Wild fodder is relatively unfamiliar to many people. In the Zhou Dynasty (221 BC), wild fodder seeds were used as one of the six main edible crops (sorghum, millet, sorghum, wheat, and foxtail millet). They could bloom and bear fruit normally and produce wild fodder rice, which is wild fodder rice.

The stems of Zizania latifolia were originally very thin. Around 202 BC, people discovered that the stems of some Zizania latifolia individuals became thicker and swollen after being infected by unknown parasites. The swollen stems were white and tender, and tasted very sweet. The fungus that can infect Zizania latifolia and cause such changes is Ustilago officinalis, which survives in the body of Zizania latifolia stems for a long time in the form of mycelium. When it develops to a certain stage, the fungus destroys the apical meristem of Zizania latifolia, prevents the plant from flowering, and induces the production of Zizania latifolia.

Simply put, wild rice is actually the result of "grains turning into vegetables". Wild rice originally blooms and bears fruit, but after being infected by smut, it can no longer bear fruit. The originally thin stems will gradually swell under the action of smut and become "deformed". This is the wild rice we eat!

According to the harvesting season,茭白 is divided into two categories: single-season茭 and double-season茭. Single-season茭 is also called one-ripening茭, which is harvested every autumn and can be harvested continuously for 3 to 4 years after planting once; double-season茭 is also called twice-ripening茭, which can be harvested once in the autumn of the same year, overwinter through perennial roots in winter, and then can be harvested again in the summer of the following year.

The tender stems of fresh茭白 are the main edible part. They are milky white in appearance, tender in texture, less in fiber, and have a fragrant taste.It is rich in sugar and amino acids, so it tastes fresh and sweet. It is delicious whether it is blanched and served cold, or stir-fried or with meat.

In terms of nutritional ingredients, wild rice contains dietary fiber, mineral potassium, and a small amount of vitamin C. The insoluble dietary fiber content is 1.9 g/100 g, which is similar to okra, garlic sprouts, and bamboo shoots. The mineral potassium content is not bad, at 209 mg/100 g, and the sodium content is low, only 5.8 mg/100 g, which is quite friendly for friends who need to control blood pressure. However, its vitamin C content is only 5 mg/100 g, which is really too low. It will be even lower after cooking, so don't expect to supplement vitamin C by eating wild rice.

Wild rice also contains active ingredients such as flavonoids, phenols and anthocyanins, which have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects.Studies have mentioned that wild rice stem can inhibit the activity of angiotensin-converting enzyme in the human body and has the effect of preventing and treating hypertension and arteriosclerosis.

As for the calories of wild rice stem, every 100 grams of edible part has only 26 kcal (about 1 wild rice stem), which is about the same as Chinese cabbage. This is good news for those who need to lose weight. As long as the cooking method can be done with less oil and salt, you don’t have to worry about gaining weight even if you eat more.

Although wild rice stems are delicious and sweet, they cannot be eaten raw directly! There are two main reasons.

The oxalic acid content of wild rice is not low, generally between 300 and 400 mg/100 g. Excessive intake of oxalic acid in the diet will not only affect the absorption and utilization of minerals, but also increase the risk of kidney stones.

Before eating wild rice stem, you can blanch it in water for 1 to 3 minutes and then cook it.This is because if fried directly, the removal rate of oxalic acid in wild rice stem is very low, the removal rate of soluble oxalic acid is 0%, and the removal rate of total oxalic acid is only 0.6%. If blanched for 1 minute, the removal rate of soluble oxalic acid in wild rice stem is 16.8%, and the removal rate of total oxalic acid is 10.7%; while boiling for 3 minutes, the removal rate of soluble oxalic acid is 37.3%, and the removal rate of total oxalic acid can reach 31.7%.

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Some people may worry that blanching will cause the loss of nutrients in wild rice stems, but there is no need to worry about this. After all, wild rice stems themselves contain very few heat-sensitive vitamins, with a vitamin C content of only 5mg/100g and a vitamin B content of no more than 0.1mg/100g. The loss of this little bit of nutrition has little effect on a balanced diet, and you can make up for it by eating a few more bites of other fruits and vegetables.

Zizania latifolia is an aquatic plant and may have parasites, mainly ginger worms. If you eat it raw, you are likely to be infected with ginger worms.When people are infected with ginger worms, they will experience abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, fever, allergies andEdemaIn severe cases, it can cause intestinal obstruction or even death. Children’s physical and intellectual development may also be affected after infection.This problem can be avoided by heating and cooking the food before eating.

Therefore, for safety reasons, do not eat water chestnuts raw. It is best to wash them thoroughly and blanch them in water. You can then eat them cold, stir-fry, braise them, or make soup, and they all taste good.

When buying, choose wild rice with shells, smooth surface, no black spots, and full of water. If the size is similar, you can choose a heavier one, which often has a higher water content and tastes better. Wild rice with black spots is not bad, but it is "old" and has released smut fungus spores, so the taste of such wild rice is poor.

Because the internal water content of wild rice is high and the respiration is very vigorous after harvesting, it is very easy to lose water and age, and it is easy to have yellowing of the skin, lignification of the flesh, rot and browning of the cut surface, and even mildew, so you must pay attention to the storage of the purchased wild rice. Fresh wild rice can generally be stored at room temperature for no more than 3 days, and the best storage temperature is -1~1℃, which can extend the storage time.

Summarize:

Wild rice stems are the enlarged and deformed stems of wild rice, which are parasitized by smut fungi. They are low in calories, rich in potassium, and can also supplement some dietary fiber. Although they are vegetables from the south, they are gradually "appearing" in the northern market. Friends who have not eaten them should definitely taste the sweetness of wild rice stems if they have the chance!