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Wild Rice And Orzo Salad

Wild Rice And Orzo Salad

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Prepare the salad: In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cover and cook the wild rice until tender to the bite, but neither splayed nor mushy, about 35 minutes. Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan of boiling salted water, cover and cook the lentils until tender, about 25 minutes. In a third saucepan of boiling water (the person stuck with washing the pots will be ticked off, but the salad is worth the three pots) cook the orzo just until tender, about 5 minutes. Thoroughly drain the rice, lentils and orzo and combine with currants and onion in a large bowl.
  2. Prepare the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients. Pour over the rice mixture and toss gently. Let cool, cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. (Make-ahead: refrigerate for up to a day.)
  3. To serve: Toss again and sprinkle with almonds.
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Wild Rice And Orzo Salad

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Orzo, lentils and wild rice tossed with slivered almonds, currants, chives and red onion in a light, tangy dressing…

  • clock icon
    10 MIN
  • 4 SERVINGS
Wild Rice and Orzo Salad

Serve this Wild Rice And Orzo Salad. It’s healthy, nutty, fruity and goes with everything!

This combo of wild rice, pasta and legumes is a most satisfying one. Good looking too! And with a mild curry spice dressing, the sweetness of currants and crunch of toasted almonds, a much-appreciated contribution to a weekend of fine eating and fun.

It’s also a wonderful make-ahead recipe so just prepare the ingredients before heading away. Then when you arrive, dress, toss and serve. It’s really quite wonderful.

Here’s why it’s a favourite tasty treat.

Ingredients for Wild Rice and Orzo Salad

Currants: these are the small black raisins, dried Zante grapes, labeled “currants” in packages at the supermarket. They are not related to black or red currants even if packaging says so.

Everything you'll need to make the dressing

Choose wild rice with long, shiny dark brown almost black grains. If you’re in the Toronto area, RUBE’S in the St. Lawrence Market South building is the best source, but you can also check bulk outlets. Pre-packaged wild rice can be made up of shorter grains, even some broken: still tasty, but less glamorous in the salad bowl.

All of the ingredients for the salad ready to be tossed

Excellent with salmon – BARBECUED or ROASTED, hot or cold – GRILLED CHICKEN, tofu and any variety of STEAKS, pork or LAMB LOIN CHOPS. For a light “Welcome to the Cottage” Friday night dinner or Saturday lunch, pair the salad with cheeses, charcuterie and either a tossed spring greens salad or a late summer plate of sliced heirloom tomatoes.

Wild Rice and Orzo Salad

We want to send out a huge huge thank you to our dear friend ELIZABETH BAIRD for sharing this wonderful recipe, adapted from BONNIE STERN! Like these two lovely ladies, this recipe too, is a keeper!

There you have it folks, a wonderful recipe for WILD RICE, LENTIL AND ORZO SALAD.

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Wild Rice And Orzo Salad

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Wild Rice And Orzo Salad

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Ingredients

  • ½ cup of wild rice
  • cup of green or brown lentils
  • ½ cup of orzo pasta
  • ½ cup of currants
  • ¼ cup finely diced red onion
  • cup slivered almonds, toasted
  • DRESSING:
  • ¼ cup white wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
  • ½ teaspoon each granulated sugar, salt, ground coriander
  • ¼ teaspoon each nutmeg, sweet paprika, turmeric, cardamom
  • pinch each of ground cinnamon, cloves and cayenne pepper
  • cup canola oil
  • chopped parsley or chives as garnish

Directions

  1. Prepare the salad: In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cover and cook the wild rice until tender to the bite, but neither splayed nor mushy, about 35 minutes. Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan of boiling salted water, cover and cook the lentils until tender, about 25 minutes. In a third saucepan of boiling water (the person stuck with washing the pots will be ticked off, but the salad is worth the three pots) cook the orzo just until tender, about 5 minutes. Thoroughly drain the rice, lentils and orzo and combine with currants and onion in a large bowl.
  2. Prepare the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together all the dressing ingredients. Pour over the rice mixture and toss gently. Let cool, cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. (Make-ahead: refrigerate for up to a day.)
  3. To serve: Toss again and sprinkle with almonds.

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