Recipe from Jessica Meyers of Garden Fresh Foodie
Editor’s note: This beautiful, plant-based recipe is packed with nutrition and so colorful. Make a green salad and top it with this Rainbow Rice Salad or eat it alongside some bean tacos. Made with wild rice, this dish is full of fiber and protein. Enjoy.
Rainbow Rice Salad
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 12 minutes
Number of servings: 5
Per Serving 220 calories
Fat 4 g
Carbs 41 g
Protein 8 g
5
Ingredients
- 1 cup wild rice or black rice
- 1 cup diced mango (whole mango)
- ¼ cup minced scallions
- 1 cup diced red pepper
- ½ cup shredded or julienne carrots
- ½ cup celery
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- ½ tbsp maple syrup
- ¼ cup minced cilantro or parsley (I LOVE cilantro, but there's a lot of haters out there)
- salt/pepper to taste
- ½ cup Carrot Ginger Dressing (or more based on texture desire)
- ¼ cup pumpkin seeds (or more-to textural preference)
- ¼-1/2 tsp salt and fresh black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make Carrot Chia Dressing. (recipe below)
- For rice salad base: cook rice with 2 cups of water, preferably in a pressure cooker. If rice cooker or pressure cooker, bring to pressure, reduce heat to low and and cook 12 minutes, turn heat off and allow heat to drop. Alternatively: bring water and rice to boil, reduce to low and cook until water is absorbed and rice is chewy, not mushy, about 45 minutes. This can be done ahead of time, 1-2 days.
- Cut all ingredients while rice is cooking. When cutting mango-squeeze lime juice on top to prevent browning.
- Once rice has cooled, add all ingredients together, adding in dressing, as desired.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste, and additional lime juice if desired.
Notes
• Wild rice is low glycemic and full of fiber
• Veggies and mango in this salad and dressing are packed full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory, 72% Vitamin C (boosts immune function), 64% Vitamin A (lowers blood pressure, boosts skin, nail, bone/teeth, eye, and hair health)
• Gluten free and plant-based
• No added oils-heart healthy and diabetic friendly
• Pumpkin seeds-a great source of zinc, plant-based protein, and magnesium
Carrot Ginger Dressing Recipe
Ingredients 
- 1 tbsp white chia seed
- 1 tbsp lime juice
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1/2 cup diced carrots
- 2 dates, pitted and soaked in hot water for 5 minutes
- 2 tbsp red onion
- pinch salt
- 3/4 cup water
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into blender, and blend
- Serve with Rainbow Rice Salad or any other salad and enjoy!
- Dressing will keep in the fridge for 3-5 days, brightest colors on the day it’s made.
Tell us in the comments what you think about this recipe because we’d love to know.