An endangered native wild rice found only in the San Marcos River of Texas — an aquatic grass seed, not a true Oryza rice. Documented here for completeness; it is protected and not harvested for food, but it stands for the broader nutrition of true/Northern wild rice.
A native North American grain whose endangered Texas population is a conservation story; edible wild rice broadens the gluten-free, low-GI grain palette in Black Southern kitchens.
Wild rice (the Zizania genus) is exceptionally nutritious for a grain — higher in protein and antioxidants than true rice, gluten-free, with a low glycemic load and strong fiber, magnesium, and folate. Texas wild rice itself is critically endangered and must NOT be harvested; its nutritional value here represents the edible Northern wild rice (Zizania palustris/aquatica) used in cooking. As a low-GI, high-protein gluten-free grain, wild rice is a strong choice in diabetes-conscious eating.
For the edible Northern wild rice this profile stands in for: rinse, cook 1:3 to water, 45-55 minutes until grains butterfly open, drain. Do NOT harvest Texas wild rice — it is federally endangered.
Free, no account needed to ask.