The Best Ever Brown Rice Salad Recipes

COLD RICE SALAD

Steps:

• For the rice: Place the rice, 3 cups water, and a pinch of salt in a pot, cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook on low until tender, about 20 minutes. Turn the rice out onto a sheet tray and let it cool completely. Next, combine the rice, peas, red bell pepper and red onion. Toss gently.
• For the dressing: In a small bowl, add the rice wine vinegar, a small pinch salt and a few turns of freshly ground pepper. Mix together and slowly drizzle in the vegetable oil and then the sesame oil.
• Pour the dressing over the rice and mix until the rice is thinly coated. Taste, and re-season if necessary.

COWBOY RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Place Dressing ingredients in a jar, shake. Taste test, adjust to your taste.
• Place Salad ingredients and rice in a bowl. Drizzle with dressing. Toss, then serve. Fantastic served straight away and even the next day!

BROWN RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Cook brown rice until tender, allow to cool.
• To prepare the dressing put the ingredients into a large jar with a tight fitting lid and shake well. Put aside.
• In a large bowl add the rice and all other salad ingredients.
• Pour over the dressing and mix through. The flavours improve on standing as the rice soaks in the dressing. Enjoy!

THE WORLD OF RICE SALADS

Steps:

• Put the rice and all the vegetables in a large bowl. Drizzle with vinaigrette and use two big forks to combine, fluffing the rice and tossing gently to separate the grains.
• Stir in the parsley, taste, and adjust the seasoning or moisten with a little more dressing. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate for up to a day, bringing the salad back to room temperature before serving.
• Variations:
• Rice Salad, Japanese Style: Use brown or white short-grain rice. Halve the amount of celery and carrot and finely chop them or shred them on a grater. Add 1 cup cubed firm tofu (preferably baked). Instead of the vinaigrette, toss with 1/4 cup or so of Simple Miso Dipping Sauce (made by whisking together 6 tablespoons miso paste, 3/4 cup warm water or sake, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 tablespoon mirin or honey, 1 tablespoon rice vinegar plus more to taste, and salt to taste). Instead of the parsley, crumble 2 sheets of nori over the rice salad and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons black or white sesame seeds.
• Rice Salad, Mexican Style: Long-grain or medium-grain, white or brown, all work well here. When blending the vinaigrette, add 1 tablespoon chili powder and 2 tablespoons Mexican crema or mayonnaise. Instead of celery and carrot, add 1 cup chopped fresh tomato. Substitute chopped fresh cilantro for the parsley and, at the same time, add 2 chopped hard-cooked eggs and chopped jalapeño chiles if you like. Serve with lime wedges.
• Rice Salad, Indian Style: Use brown or white basmati rice. When making the vinaigrette, use rice wine vinegar, replace the oil with coconut milk, and add 1 tablespoon curry powder, or more to taste. Instead of the bell pepper, celery, and carrot, add 1/2 cup each cubed cooked potato, cooked cauliflower florets, and green peas (cooked frozen are fine). Substitute cilantro for the parsley.
• Citrus Rice Salad: Use any rice. Instead of red wine vinegar, make the vinaigrette with freshly squeezed citrus juice-choose from lemon, lime, orange, blood orange, tangerine, pink grapefruit, or a combination. Whatever you use, add 2 tablespoons of the grated zest and 1 tablespoon of sugar or honey to the blender. Do not include the scallion or the vegetables. (You might want to use a little less dressing.) Instead of the parsley, use mint if you like. A handful of chopped almonds or pecans make a nice addition.
• Tomato Rice Salad: Use any kind of brown or white rice. When making the vinaigrette, eliminate the vinegar and add 1 medium tomato to the blender. Instead of the scallion and other vegetables, add 2 cups chopped fresh tomato (a mixture of heirloom varieties is nice).Instead of the parsley, use chopped fresh basil or mint, or 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives, chervil, dill, or about a tablespoon of fresh thyme leaves.

MEDITERRANEAN BROWN RICE SALAD

Steps:

• In a saucepan, combine rice and water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed, 35-40 minutes., Meanwhile, place vinegars, garlic, pepper and salt in bowl and whisk together. While whisking, gradually add oil in a steady stream. Stir in basil., Place spinach in a large bowl; add cooked rice. Stir in tomatoes, green onions and dressing; toss until spinach is wilted. Gently stir in feta. Loosely cover and refrigerate 2 hours or until cold.

THE BEST EVER BROWN RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Place the lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar and worcestershire sauce in a screw top jar and shake well.
• Cook the brown rice acording to the packet instructions, drain and place in a bowl. While the rice is still warm, mix in all the other ingredients including the dressing, stir thoroughly.
• Serve at room temperature.

MEDITERRANEAN BROWN RICE SALAD

Steps:

• Add rice, water, oil, and salt to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat.
• Turn the heat down to low, cover, and simmer for 40 minutes (or according to package instructions). Remove from heat and allow rice to absorb the steam for another 10 minutes (still covered). Uncover and fluff with a fork.
• Allow the rice to cool down to room temperature or place it to the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes to cool down quickly.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled rice, spinach, tomatoes, cucumber, bell pepper, red onions, olives, and feta cheese.
• In a small mixing bowl, make the dressing by combining and stirring together olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper.
• Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Serve immediately at room temperature or chill in the fridge and serve cold. If the rice is too hard (which can happen in the fridge), allow it to warm to room temperature before eating.