Often times, I just make way too much brown rice for dinner and I throw it in the fridge for this salad the next day. Otherwise, I have to think ahead to make the rice.
- 2 cups brown rice
- ALMOST 4 cups water
- 1-2 cans, or 3-4 cups cooked beans. (Garbanzo, black, pinto, anasazi, navy, kidney, whatever)
- 1/2 to 1 cup nuts (various kinds will do)
- 1/2 to 1 cup dried fruit (if it’s big pieces, chop it into smaller chunks)
- 1/2 cup oil (olive, canola, walnut, sesame, garlic, whatever goes with this)
- 1/8 cup vinegar (apple cider, red wine, balsalmic, rice wine, champagne, etc…)
- diced FRESH vegetable (around 1/4 -1/2 inch, whatever you’ve got in the fridge: zucchini, onion, broccoli, cauliflower, mushroom, etc… (not cooked))
- 1 apple, diced about 1/4 inch, optional
- diced cheese, optional (feta, blue, swiss, etc…)
- chopped flat leaf parsley, cilantro, or other herb
- salt and pepper
- dried herbs if desired
I know this recipe is weird, but I use it to get rid of left over things, like veggies in the fridge, as well as the remnants in the bulk bags in the cupboard. You’ve just got to be flexible with what you have for this one. I try and use leftover cooked beans, but I always keep a few cans of beans in the cupboard for this too. As with all my recipes, add extra or less oil, vinegar, salt and pepper as necessary. Everyone likes it differently.
First, cook the rice and water. I boil it on high heat for 5 minutes, then turn it to simmer for 15 minutes and then turn it off. When it’s done, it goes in the refrigerator until it cools off.
Rinse the beans off with water and add them to the rice. Stir in nuts, dried fruit, veggies, cheese, parsley, apple, dried herbs, etc… and then dress with vinegar and oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. If it seems dry, add more oil. If the flavors aren’t coming out enough, add more salt. Viola!