Today’s recipe proves that not all salads are created equal. This crispy rice salad is one that you won’t be able to get enough of, I promise. I have been obsessed with it for some time and thought it’s high time I shared it with you.
This crispy rice salad is one of my post-gym meals. It comes together in a cinch as I tend to prepare everything but the crispy rice, in bulk, in advance and enjoy throughout the week. This crispy rice salad is really satiating, full of protein and fibre as well as texture and flavour, it is anything but boring.
This salad features a rainbow of vegetables, most of them raw but I cook my tenderstem broccoli briefly and edamame until tender – both which up the protein content considerably. Herbs and finely sliced spring onions add a lot of freshness, crispy rice and toasted peanuts add two different types of crunchy texture and baked tofu, which I always add when making this salad for my post-gym meal, makes this salad more satiating and increases the protein content even more.
MORE ABOUT THE INGREDIENTS
RICE: Cooked rice is what you need here, I cook mine using absorption method and store leftovers in the fridge overnight to be able to make this crispy rice salad the next day. I recommend either basmati or long grain rice for this dish. The type that will certainly not work – believe me, I tried – is Thai sticky/glutinous rice. I have a massive bag of it leftover from a recipe test and I wanted to use it up. I rinsed it more times that I can count and it was still gluey rather than crispy after baking.
EDAMAME: Edamame is one of the best plant protein sources, plus I love its vibrant colour and firm then soft texture so that’s why I used it here. You can buy ready to eat edamame in most supermarkets these days and that’s a perfect opinion for when you are in a rush. I tend to buy a bag of frozen edamame – Waitrose and Tesco’s are the most vibrant green, Sainsbury’s are almost yellow-green btw – and cook a larger amount and consume it within the next 2-3 days.
CUCUMBER: Cucumber brings lovely freshness to this salad. I like to use small Lebanese cucumbers, but any will do. If your cucumber is particularly watery, you may want to remove the seeds (and eat them, they are goodness) with a dessert spoon after you cut your cucumber in half.
RADISHES: I love radishes for their peppery flavour and those vibrant pink pops of colour that they bring to the table. I like to cut them into matchsticks for this salad, but slices or chunks will work too.
BROCCOLI: I love tenderstem broccoli (broccolini to some) in general, but the main reason I use it in this salad is their high protein (3.5 g per 100 g / 3.5 oz raw) content and well as the fact that they classify as dark leafy greens and are full of beneficial nutrients. It may seem like a pain to have to boil them but they only take 3 minutes – I like them with a bit of a bite – so not very time consuming. If you would rather, you can also cut them up very small and eat them raw!
AVOCADO: A ripe avocado brings creamy texture to this salad and a dose of healthy fat.
SPRING ONIONS: Spring onions (scallions in the US) give this salad a bit of a depth of flavour without being overpowering. Chop them up really finely and submerge in boiling water for a couple of seconds first if you want them to taste even milder although I personally think that they are mild enough as they are.
HERBS: I love this salad to taste fresh and summery so I added a generous amount of very finely chopped mint and coriander to increase the freshness and add more flavour. Usually I tend to use mint on its own, but coriander is also delicious.
PEANUTS: Every good salad needs a bit of crunch and although crispy rice delivers on that front too, I decided to up the ante and add some toasted peanuts. They are delicious and full of plant protein too – 26 g per 100 g (3.5 oz). If you are allergic to them, you could swap them out for toasted (that’s a must in my opinion 🙂 ) cashews.
HOW TO MAKE IT?
1) BAKE THE RICE
Start off with seasoning the rice, spreading it on a baking tray and whacking it into a pre-heated oven as it takes the longest to cook. Give it a good toss about at about half point through the baking time. If your peanuts are raw, toast them in bulk (2-3 cups) in a lower oven (170° C / 340° F) until golden BEFORE you bake the rice.
2) PREPARE BROCCOLI AND EDAMAME
Once you rice is in the oven, cut your tenderstem broccoli into equal, bite-size pieces. I tend to cut the florets off as they cook really quickly and cut the thicker stems into half lengthwise. Once prepped, simmer these bite-size broccoli pieces until just tender but with a bit of a bite left, then fish them out with a wire strainer and cook edamame in the same water. Keep a bowl of cold water nearby and as soon as either of these ingredients finish cooking plunge them into the cold water to stop the cooking process and to keep their vibrant green colour. Drain really well before using these in the salad.
3) CUT REMAINING VEGGIES
Chop up remaining veggies well, finely dice spring onions and herbs. Make a dressing in a small mixing bowl.
4) ASSEMBLE
Dress all of the veggies, herbs and spring onions. Transfer the salad to a platter or divide between bowls. Top with crispy rice, toasted peanuts and baked tofu if using.
SALAD
- 350 g / 12 oz (about 3 cups) cooked basmati or long grain rice
- 20 ml / 4 tsp neutral oil
- 20 ml / 4 tsp soy sauce or tamari
- 1 medium cucumber
- 1 small avocado
- 100 g / 3.5 oz edamame
- 10 radishes
- 200 g / 7 oz tenderstem broccoli
- 2 small spring onions/scallions
- a handful of mint and/or coriander
- 50 g / 1/3 cup toasted peanuts*, roughly chopped
DRESSING
- 10 ml / 2 tsp toasted sesame oil or chilli oil, or both
- 15 ml / 1 tbsp neutral oil, like grapeseed
- 20 ml / 1.5 tbsp soy sauce or tamari, more to taste
- 10 ml / 2 tsp maple syrup
- 15 ml / 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
SALAD
- Pre-heat the oven to 200° C / 390° F (no fan), grab a large baking tray and bring a pot of water to a boil. Prepare a bowl with cold water and a spider strainer.
- In a mixing bowl combine oil and soy sauce, add cooled rice and toss well. Spread the rice on the tray in a single layer and bake for about 30 minutes, giving it a good toss half way through. Once crispy, take it out of the oven and allow it to cool down a little – it will get crispier as it cools.
- Cut broccoli into equal, bite-size segments – I cut the florets off as they cook the quickest and cut thick stems in half. Once the water comes to a boil, add broccoli and simmer until they retain a little bite – approx. 3 minutes. As soon as they are ready, fish them out using a wire spoon and plunge them into the bowl with cold water and drain well. Bring the pot of water back to a boiling point.
- Once the water comes to a boiling point again, add frozen edamame and cook until tender (about 10 minutes). Once tender, drain them and plunge into a bowl with cold water to retain their colour. Drain well.
- Dice cucumber and avocado, cut radishes into matchsticks. Chop spring onions and herbs very finely.
- Whisk all of the dressing ingredients in a small bowl.
- Combine all veggies, spring onions and herbs in a mixing bowl. Stir the dressing through. Transfer to a serving platter or divide between bowls.
- Top with cooled down crispy rice and a generous amount roughly chopped of peanuts. You may want to serve with tofu when making this crispy rice salad as a main meal, rather than a side salad.
*PEANUTS: if you only have raw peanuts, start off with setting the oven to 170° C / 340° F, spread 200-300 g / 7-10 oz / 1-2 cups raw peanuts on a baking tray and toast until golden, about 12-15 minutes. Start checking frequently after about 12 minutes. Once your peanuts are done, increase the temperature to 200° C / 390° F and bake the rice.
*TOFU: If you are making this crispy rice salad as a main meal, rather than a side salad, I recommend adding tofu prepared in your favourite way. Tofu will up the meal’s protein content and make it more satiating. I tend to cube three blocks of smoked Tofoo (this makes 6 generous portions) or about three 400 g / 14 oz packets of regular tofu (pressed). I marinate the tofu in 3 tbsp / 45 ml of soy sauce and sometimes a tablespoon of neutral oil and bake at 200° C / 390° F for about 30 minutes. This makes The leftovers keep in the fridge for 4-5 days and make a great and healthy addition to many of my weekday meals.
When making this crispy rice salad for myself as my post-workout meal, I add tofu and reduce the amount of oil I use to keep to my macros. I only use oil to crisp up the rice and none or minimal to season the salad.