Mango Wild Rice Salad Recipe
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This mango wild rice salad makes a wonderful side dish for a main course!
YOU:
I know how it is. You get home after a long day and the very last thing you want on your to-do list is cooking dinner. The thought of standing in the kitchen for the next hour after you’ve been at work all day is not a fun thought. But at the same time, if you’re really trying to eat healthier, ask yourself… aren’t you worth a few minutes in the kitchen? Isn’t your better health worth just a little bit of extra effort?
I had to answer that question recently and it was sobering. I mean, I cook all the time, but I do have days where I get home after a long day and the kitchen is the last place I want to be. It’s only human in a world where women, in particular, often have to work AND do all the house chores like cooking, cleaning, laundry and even playing nurse and taxi driving to the kids. It’s stressful!!
MAKE TIME
But here’s the thing. If you don’t make yourself a priority, if you don’t dedicate just a little bit of time to giving yourself what you need, you won’t have much left to do all those other millions of things you do after work.
The great thing about this salad is that if you cook the rice the night before (while you’re cooking dinner), then with only a few minutes of chopping, the next day will be a breeze!! You’ll be in and out of the kitchen in the short amount of time it takes to chop a little bit of produce.
You know you’re worth it, and I know you’re worth it. Don’t skimp out on yourself when you have a busy day. Nourish yourself instead!
ABOUT WILD RICE
Here’s a little information to help you better understand what wild rice is and how to work with it.
What Is Wild Rice?
Wild rice is a grass and is unrefined. It has twice the protein of brown rice, has more fiber, potassium and zinc, and offers a wonderful, nutty flavor that compliments many main courses.
Cooking Wild Rice
It takes about an hour to cook, so you do want to allot time for that. But it’s totally worth it. And if you know you’ll be on a tight schedule, you can always cook this the night before like I mentioned above so that all you have to do is stir thing in last minute. Or while it cooks, you can prepare all the other ingredients you’ll be putting into it.
The main thing to remember is to rinse your rice before cooking it. Outside of that, it’s just like cooking any other type of rice.
Wild Rice Flavor Affinities
That being said, wild rice doesn’t have many flavor affinities. So it can be difficult to figure out what to mix in with it. While it goes great with a simple pat of butter and some salt, I like to mix things up a bit and add extra flavors.
MANGO WILD RICE SALAD RECIPE:
I like these types of salads to have a small amount of crunch, so I added walnuts to this clean eating mango wild rice salad. It has a sweet/sour flavor that is really delicious and pairs pretty broadly with anything that will go with mango. So think, chicken, fish, anything that mango would go well with will work.
I ate this as a meal all by itself. But for you meat eaters, this would be fabulous with some chicken breast.
MORE HEALTHY RICE RECIPES:
Mango Wild Rice Salad
CLICK TO WATCH THIS RECIPE IN ACTION!
Ingredients
- 1 cup wild rice (uncooked)
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups mango (chopped small)
- ½ cup red onion (chopped small)
- 1 cup walnuts (raw, chopped small)
- 1 tbsp. lemon zest
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
Instructions
- In a large pot, bring the wild rice and vegetable broth to boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 1 hour (time can vary slightly by oven and temperature). The rice should be soft like regular rice when it's done.
- Cool the rice in a large mixing bowl.
- When completely cooled, mix in all the other ingredients and stir well to combine.
- Serve as a side dish, or plant-based main course.