I have no recollection of eating this salad prior to making it here the other day but it was in my “tried and true” recipe box so I must have at some point. The recipe card is written in my aunt’s handwriting. Perhaps she brought the salad to a family gathering and jotted the recipe down for me to take home? I don’t know.
At any rate, it’s a delicious salad.
I used a type of rice called “forbidden rice”. It’s an heirloom variety I found at a little shop in the city. It’s very black and surprisingly keeps that color even after cooked. I think it’s beautiful. It tastes like wild rice so you could use that instead. Or really, any rice. My recipe card here says long grain brown rice. Use what you’ve got!
Oh, one more note. Do not substitute any type of vinegar for the white stuff called for here. It gives the salad a special tang. Well, you could substitute, I suppose, but it wouldn’t be the same and me thinks just not quite as yummalicious.
Festive Rice Salad
Adapted from Taste of Home
3/4 cup uncooked rice
10 oz (about 2 cups) frozen peas, thawed
1 small red pepper, diced (I used frozen)
3 T minced onion
1/2 cup craisins
1/3 cup peanut oil
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 T maple syrup
1/2 t dried dill weed
1/4 t salt
1/4 t ground mustard
1/8 t black pepper
Cook the rice. Cool. Mix it with the peas, peppers, onion, and craisins.
In a small bowl, whisk the oil, vinegar, maple syrup, dill, salt, mustard, and pepper. Drizzle over the salad and toss to coat. Serve at room temperature or refrigerated.
Yield: 5 – 6 cups
I have some of that very same rice in my freezer. I’ve made it for my family a few times and some of them just did not think rice should be that color but I thought it was delicious and I’m going to try this recipe.
I will vouch for this one! It was delicious 🙂 Jeff even took a second helping when you made it the other night!
Seconds?! I’m honored 🙂
oooh, maybe I should use this recipe with our first peas. Should be coming in this week!
I’m jealous of your peas! We only plant sugar peas but even those aren’t fairing well this year…something is eating the tops off the plants!!! I thought it was our dog but then today I found out that birds can do that too so who knows. Argh!
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