How Immigrants Blended Traditions To Make A Classic Minnesotan Dessert

Glorified rice falls firmly into the great American tradition of delightfully named dessert salads –- a category bound by marshmallows, whipped cream, and canned fruit that also includes the interestingly named frog eye salad, ambrosia salad, and the now TikTok famous Watergate salad. However, the origins of this sweet Minnesotan rice dish are more international than you might expect. In addition to the requisite rice, glorified rice almost always contains whipped cream or Cool Whip, sugar, vanilla, canned pineapple chunks, and maraschino cherries. Mini marshmallows are also a common addition. glorified rice was particularly popular in the early 20th century, and remains a beloved potluck staple in Minnesota and other parts of the American Midwest to this day.

The idea of putting canned pineapple into rice might sound strange, but it comes from a clear historical context. The wave of Norwegian and Swedish immigrants that arrived in the Midwest in the late 19th century brought with them the Scandinavian tradition of fruity rice puddings. In the United States, they made do with the ingredients available -– such as canned fruit and whipped cream –- resulting in the wonderful concoction now known as glorified rice.

Some glorified rice recipes call for a blend of white and wild rice, further compounding the cultural mix. Wild rice, a cereal grain native to the Great Lakes region, is a traditional staple food of the Ojibwe and Menominee peoples. Today, it features prominently in Minnesotan cuisine, and is even the official state grain of the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Wild rice is known for its chewy, nutty flavor, and adds a lovely textural contrast in glorified rice. 

In keeping with the Scandinavian-inspired Midwest Jell-O culture, many glorified rice recipes also call for the addition of Jell-O. This addition gives the dish a boost of gelatinous jiggle as well as another punch of fruit flavor.

As for why it's called glorified rice, the exact etymology is unclear, but it's easy to imagine how the name came to be. It's rice, but glorified with all kinds of sugary deliciousness — and some might even say it tastes heavenly.  

Taste-wise, glorified rice is quite divisive. Like many dessert salads, some people love it and some people hate it, with very little in between. However, for those who grew up eating glorified rice, the sweetly nostalgic taste of this culture-blending grain dish is just that — glorious.