Almost all 'wild rice' is cultivated, but the real thing grows freely on the lakes of northern Minnesota
On a sunny afternoon in the last days of summer, I broke the first rule I had ever been taught about watercraft and stood up in a canoe. Mike Magney and Moon Jacobson of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe had offered to take me out onto Little Elbow Lake and show me thesort of way. So as their canoe shot surely ahead into a thick stand of rice, I heaved my weight onto a 12-foot-long pole in an attempt to keep up. The wind took fierce bites out of the water, working against me.
, foraging for medicinal plants, and filling a buried chest freezer in her yard with whole walleye, which the arctic Minnesota temperatures swiftly preserved to stiffness.Magney stood at the back of the canoe, pushing his pole into the thick chocolate mud of the lake bottom, using its lever action to propel them across the water. Jacobson sat in the front with a short wooden stick—called a knocker—in each hand.
We headed to the shore, where a group was cooking the green rice in a giant cast-iron kettle. Like coffee beans, wild-rice kernels need to be roasted, or parched, over heat to firm their tawny core and dry for long-term storage.Jacobson introduced me to Logan Cloud, an artfully tattooed, soft-voiced 20-something member of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe.
At the point of first colonial contact, the Ojibwe smoke-dried their rice in birch-bark vessels strung up high over the fire. Cloud explained that these gave way to kettles sometime after “the invaders arrived and we realized that we could take something useful from them.”Cloud moved to a treading pit lined with birch bark and filled it with about 6 inches of parched rice, then asked a volunteer in high moccasins to “jig” the rice, to loosen its hulls.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Women recall wild story of assisting in the finding of stolen dogsWomen recall wild story of assisting in the finding of stolen dogs. Paula Luna and Jane Alba dedicated their time to help find the dogs and inadvertently found the suspect.
Read more »
Mistletoe more than just a holiday decoration for kissing underAmerican mistletoe grows wild in the boughs of silver maples, elms and other trees.
Read more »
Baker Mayfield's wild journey to the Rams included a premeditated plane ticket (with travel insurance)Baker Mayfield's wild 48-hour journey that concluded with him leading the Los Angeles Rams to a comeback win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 14's first game wasn't just impressive – it was also prophetic.
Read more »
People Are Describing How It Ended With Their Situation-Ship, And It's Really Wild“He rode away in the trunk of someone’s car to avoid talking about feelings with me.”
Read more »
Vikings complete largest comeback in NFL history with wild OT win over ColtsThe Colts blocked a punt for a touchdown, scored on an interception of Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins and raced out to a huge lead, but it was Minnesota that made history on Saturday.
Read more »
Argentina, Lionel Messi win wild World Cup final on penalty kicks against FranceThe Argentines claim their third world championship in a wild final against France. It's the first World Cup of Lionel Messi's storied career.
Read more »