Tag: Mistakes

Tasty Wild Rice Cracker Recipe

I screwed up a huge batch of wild rice the other day!

Now, what do I do with all of that overcooked rice?

I had never heard of an Instant Pot before my cooking class but I found it to be a great vehicle to make large quantities of beans, rice or quinoa at one time.  Freeze in meal-size containers.   Ready when you are.

Instant Pot.
My Instant Pot. Watch for them to go on sale and snap one up. They have multiple uses, not just for batch cooking.

But, even with a great kitchen gadget like the Instant Pot, I still messed up a very large batch of wild rice.  Ugh 🙁

It was a reminder that even with the best technology around, we are still the operators of the technology.   Oops……

But ……. I was determined to find a way to disguise this disgusting, mushy, unappetizing mound of rice in some sort of meal!

The gelatinous mess I made of the bag of wild rice.
The gelatinous mess I made of a perfectly wonderful bag of wild rice.

I had over 8 cups of gelatinous wild rice.  Yuk!

I did what I always do when perplexed by a situation I know nothing about;  I asked “The Google.”

According to “The Google” I  had several options and a few were pretty good.

I could make:
  • Cheesy Broccoli & Rice Casserole
  • Rice Pudding
  • Chicken & Rice Soup
  • Rice Crackers

Because I am gluten intolerant, rice crackers appeared to be a quick fix for my mushy rice mishap.

They were not quick, but they are sooooo good.

After I had used 2 cups in a casserole I threw together (Another Katy-Ala-Surprise Meal) for dinner, I still had 6 cups left.

The casserole I made the other night using some of the glutinous rice.
The casserole I threw together using some of the overcooked rice. I just added ingredients I had on hand like black beans, leeks, Brussels sprouts, chicken and cheese. ( I can’t remember everything I put in it, but it turned out pretty good.)

 

 

 

 

The casserole with a GF topping.
I added a Topping of ground gluten-free crumbs on top. (I save the small pieces at the bottom of the bags of all our GF chips, pretzels, and use them as toppings for recipes that call for breadcrumbs.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So …….. I made three batches of crackers, all with different seasoning.

  1. Rosemary & Garlic
  2. Garlic & Cheddar
  3. Garlic Cheddar & Jalapeno

Although I had to adjust the baking technique multiple times as I muddled through the recipes, all 3 turned out super tasty!

I started with 2 cups of the wild rice in a bowl, added the seasoning and mixed well.

Start with 2 cups of rice.
Start with 2 cups of rice.

Lightly spray a baking sheet and spoon the rice mixture onto it.  Spread the mixture out a little.

Cover with plastic wrap and roll out the mixture with a rolling pin.
Cover with plastic wrap and roll out the mixture with a rolling-pin.

Lay a piece of plastic wrap on top and use a rolling-pin to spread it out as thin as you can make it.

Use an icing spatula to thin the mixture out even more.
Use an icing spatula to thin the mixture out even more.

After using the rolling-pin, use an icing spatula to thin it out even more.

     * The thinner you can get it, the better it will crisp up.

Pop it into a 400° oven and bake for about 20 minutes.

The cracker cooked 1/2 way through.
The cracker cooked 1/2 way through.

 

Pull it out, cut it into a few slices so it can easily be flipped.

Cut it into pieces, flip over and bake another 20 minutes.
Cut it into pieces, flip over and bake another 20 minutes.

 

Bake another 20 minutes.

 

 

 

 

 

Break them into pieces.

The crackers broken into pieces.
Check out that tiny piece of jalapeno baked in there! YUM

 

Store in an airtight container.

The 3 different flavored crackers in labeled baggies.
I will probably store these differently next time I make these crackers, but I ended up with so many because of the amount I had.

 

 

Tasty Wild Rice Crackers

Ingredients:

  • 2 c cooked rice (preferably NOT overcooked)
  • 1 t. garlic salt
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 t.  rosemary, crushed ….. or
  • 1/4 c cheese of choice ……or
  • 1/2 jalapeno, minced …… or
  • Any add-ins you prefer

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°.  Mix all desired ingredients together in a bowl and spread out on a baking tray, lightly sprayed with cooking oil.  Lay a piece of plastic wrap on top and use a rolling-pin to spread it as thinly as possible.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Cut cracker into a few large strips and flip over.  Bake an additional 20 minutes.

* Every oven is different so watch, and modify, your cooking times and temperatures to coincide with you appliance.

** My overcooked rice was very mushy so, I have to wonder ..........  if you use properly cooked rice for this recipe, do you need to cook as long?  And, do you need the temperature that high? The other tutorials that I consulted all used a temperature around 350°. I may have to adjust next time around.

I made all three batches one right after the other.   I made all the mistakes so I can tell you what not to do and save you some time!

→ My biggest tip for you:  DON’T USE PARCHMENT PAPER!

I use parchment paper a lot  but it’s not worth it here.  It sticks and is not worth the trouble for this particular recipe.  Spray your baking tray this time.

The crackers arranged on a plate.
You’ll be surprised at how many crackers 2 cups of rice makes!
BTW …….. You don’t need to wait for a mistake like mine to make these crackers, nor should you.

Read on …….

Although rescuing overcooked rice and transforming it into an edible delight seems to be a heroic effort that you will be proud of yourself for, and recount to your peers many times over again, you won’t want to make this mistake very often.

Livestrong.com states that “Overcooking any food doesn’t simply destroy molecular structure, it can set the stage for the creation of new and potentially dangerous structures.”

Apparently, the amino acids in rice can form a substance known as acrylamide, which is a known carcinogen, and starts production at 120°F.

“I don’t think there’s any chef that is born great like in music or in sports.  You have to burn yourself ……. Messing up makes you a better chef.”  –  David Chang

xoxo, Katy

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