Wild Rice Salad With Zesty Orange Vinaigrette And Cashew Cream
Wild rice is one of those not-so-common ingredients, and in fact you may have never even heard of it.
It’s not brown rice and it’s not black rice. And in fact it’s debatable whether it even is rice… Sources say it’s actually an “aquatic grass with an edible grain”. And by sources, I mean Google.
Regardless, wild rice looks and cooks similar to other more well known rice, however instead of swelling up and becoming moist, it actually bursts open and leaves you with a delicious result that has all sorts of textures and a nutty, earthy and almost sour taste.
Unlike other rice that generally is used to accompany other dishes because of its plain and versatile nature, this ingredient has enough personality to stand on its own. And that’s why this salad is built on the “rice” itself, using other fresh ingredients to make a really well-rounded dish.
I’ve paired this salad with a garlic cashew cream to add some creamy texture, however if you want something more light and simple, you can serve the salad without this too.
To make this recipe come together quickly, prepare the cashew cream and the cooked wild rice in advance, and leave in the fridge for a quick assembly upon serving.
Wild Rice Salad With Zesty Orange Vinaigrette And Cashew Cream
A simple and colourful salad with nutty wild rice, garlic cashew cream and a zesty orange vinaigrette.
Serves:
4
Prep time:
1 hour
Cook time:
45 minutes
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup wild rice
- ½ bunch kale, stalks removed, leaved roughly torn
- 2 heads bok choy, washed and sliced
- 1 mandarin, peeled and sliced
- ¼ cup roasted almonds, chopped
Orange vinaigrette
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 orange, juiced
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Garlic Cashew Cream
- 2 cups raw cashews
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 lemon, juiced
- ½ tsp salt or to taste
METHOD
- To make the cashew cream, place cashews in a bowl and cover with boiling water. Leave to sit for 30 minutes.
- When ready, drain the cashews and add to the blender with garlic, lemon juice, salt and 1 cup (250ml water). Blend until smooth.
- To prepare the wild rice, first rinse under running water in a sieve. Place in a pot with 1 ¾ cups of water and a pinch of salt.
- Place over a high heat and bring to the boil, then reduce and let simmer for 45 minutes or until all the liquid is absorbed and most of the grains have “split” open.
- Place in a container and leave to cool completely.
- To prepare the salad, place all the vinaigrette ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine. You can also blend these in a blender if desired.
- Add in the kale, bok choy and cooled wild rice. Toss to combine.
- Toss in the mandarin and almonds, reserving some for serving.
- To serve, spread the garlic cashew cream on the base of the plate, then top with the dressed salad.
Notes
- I’ve used the quick method for soaking cashews in this recipe, which uses boiling water. However you can use the slow method too.
- To make this recipe come together quickly, prepare the cashew cream and wild rice in advance, even the day before and leave in the fridge until you are ready to assemble.
About Liv
I’m a holistic nutritionist (BSc) and healthy chef and I’m obsessed with waking up every day happy to be alive and excited for the day ahead, and eating incredible nourishing food!
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