Cilantro Rice Salad
a recipe
This is a great spring dish that I just made up this week because it uses the first fresh cilantro of the season to dress a melange of items from the pantry. You could make it in the summer too when there is fresh corn and tomatoes to be had but I don't want to think about how much better it will be later when I'm enjoying the spring version now.
My friend Anna asked for quick vegetarian recipes and I think this one qualifies as quick if you have the black beans in a can. I had to make mine from dried which takes time. But cooking the rice takes twenty minutes and you can make the cilantro pesto and grate the cheese while it's cooking.
I can actually remember a time when I wasn't crazy for cilantro the way I am now. Now I crave it when I haven't had it in a while. Fresh is best with cilantro (in my opinion). You can freeze it and it is acceptable, but not the best.
Cilantro Pesto Ingredients:
1 large bunch fresh cilantro, washed and stemmed
3 garlic cloves
2-3 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
Rice Salad Ingredients:
2 cups cooked black beans (or two cans)
2 cups cooked Basmati rice
1 can corn
1 quart diced tomatoes
2 cups grated jack cheese
1 recipe cilantro pesto
To make the cilantro pesto:
Put all the ingredients into a food processor and pulverize the hell out of it. You're done.
To make the rice salad:
Be sure to drain the canned goods first. Then you put all of the ingredients in a bowl together and stir well. You're finished. Dinner is ready.
Serves 6-8
Variations:
If you're one of those neurotic people who really needs two dishes on one plate, you could serve this rice salad with roasted potatoes, or grilled asparagus. I like it as a simple one dish meal myself. It's great at room temperature but it's also quite good heated. If you don't have black beans, I think it would be superb with chick peas. I also made this with pasta instead of rice and it was WONDERFUL. If you want to add some heat to it you could add chopped up roasted jalapenos. Or chopped pickled jalapenos. What brings it all together is the cilantro pesto. If you are vegan you can make this without the cheese.
Serves 6-8
Variations:
If you're one of those neurotic people who really needs two dishes on one plate, you could serve this rice salad with roasted potatoes, or grilled asparagus. I like it as a simple one dish meal myself. It's great at room temperature but it's also quite good heated. If you don't have black beans, I think it would be superb with chick peas. I also made this with pasta instead of rice and it was WONDERFUL. If you want to add some heat to it you could add chopped up roasted jalapenos. Or chopped pickled jalapenos. What brings it all together is the cilantro pesto. If you are vegan you can make this without the cheese.
Labels: beans, cilantro, food, healthy food, pantry food, rice salad, spring cooking