Last Updated on July 23, 2024
This Wild Rice Salad is so easy to make and uses simple ingredients.
It’s a cold salad with a slightly sweet and tangy citrus dressing over tender wild rice, fruit, and crunchy nuts, making it simply irresistible.
A salad that will compliment any dish and can be served at anytime of year!
What I love most about this salad is that you are able to customize it every time you make it.
Don’t like almonds?
Try cashews, pecans, toasted pine nuts, or sunflower seeds.
Add different dried fruits, such as blueberries, currents, or apricots.
You can also switch out the grapes for chopped apples or pears, orange slices, pineapple chunks, or any fresh berry.
A salad that is a wonderful addition to your meal, a family picnic, or a barbecue.
Ingredients needed for this salad
- Wild Rice – This grain is full of fiber and other nutrients. It has a wonderful nutty earthy flavor.
- Almonds – I used sliced almonds in this salad.
- Onion – I added a green onion to this salad. I also sauteed the onion so that this would not over power the salad. The onion is optional, and sauteing is also optional.
- Grapes – I love adding fresh grapes to this salad. This adds a bit more sweetness. I have used the green and red grapes, use your favorite grapes.
- Cranberries – Dried cranberries are added, given the salad a bit more sweetness.
- Blueberries – Blueberries are my favorite berry, if I can add them to any dish I will.
Ingredients needed for the dressing
- Orange Juice – The OJ adds a hint of sweetness and citrus flavor to the dressing.
- Oil – Oil helps the dressing cling to the other ingredients. I have used olive or avocado oil in this dressing.
- Real Maple Syrup – Maple syrup is my sweetener of choice.
- Balsamic Vinegar – The balsamic vinegar is my vinegar of choice. I love the slightly sweet fruity flavor it adds to the salad. This can be substituted with a apple cider vinegar.
- Salt – Salt enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
- Lime Juice – Lime juice adds more citrus flavor to the dressing.
How to make a Wild Rice Salad
Follow the directions to clean and cook the wild rice.
Once the wild rice is done, let this cool, it is best to cook this a day before or in the morning before serving for supper.
How to make the dressing
In a 2 cup measuring cup, mix together orange juice, oil, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, lime juice, and salt.
I sauteed the onion in a little oil before adding to the salad, this is optional.
After the wild rice is cold, pour the dressing over the rice.
Add the sliced almonds and dried cranberries.
Clean and slice the grapes in half before adding to the salad.
Top it off with the sauteed onion.
Stir everything together, serve at room temperature or place into the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Serve as a side dish for any meal and enjoy!
Wild Rice Salad
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Wild Rice
- 4 Cups Water
Dressing
- 1/4 Cup Orange Juice
- 2 Tbsp Oil + Extra if sauteing the onion before adding to the salad. I like to use either olive or avocado oil in this salad.
- 2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 Tbsp Lime Juice
- 1 tsp Real Maple Syrup
- 1/4 tsp Salt
Salad add ins
- 1 Cup Almonds Sliced.
- 1 Cup Grapes Green or red.
- 1/2 Cup Green Onions Optional.
- 1 Cup Dried Cranberries
- 1/2 Cup Fresh Blueberries Optional.
Instructions
- Follow the directions to clean and cook the wild rice.
- Once the wild rice is done, let this cool, it is best to cook this a day before or in the morning before serving for supper.
How to make the dressing
- In a 2 cup measuring cup, mix together orange juice, oil, maple syrup, balsamic vinegar, lime juice, and salt.
- I sauteed the onion in a little oil before adding to the salad, this is optional.
- After the wild rice is cold, pour the dressing over the rice.
- Add the sliced almonds, fresh blueberries, and dried cranberries.
- Clean and slice the grapes in half before adding to the salad.
- Top it off with the sauteed onion.
- Stir everything together, serve at room temperature or place into the refrigerator until ready to serve.
- Serve as a side dish for any meal and enjoy!
