A light, fresh taste with just a hint of sweetness, this protein-packed Bean and Brown Rice Salad is vegetarian-friendly and is a quick and easy side or main. 20 minutes from start to finish and you’re good to go! Great for summer picnics or a quick weekday lunch too!
Lately, I have been on a salad high. Not the lettuce and tomato type of salad. I’m talking about salads with lots of flavour, lots of grains, beans and/or legumes, and light, simple seasonings. And, Dear Reader, this Bean and Brown Rice Salad is all of those things!
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We eat a lot of salads in the summer months, but it’s easy to quickly grow tired of the same veggie-based salads. After all, how many times can one eat a tomato, lettuce, or cucumber type of salad before wanting to throw the salad against the wall? (Never happened!) Salads like this one eliminate the risk of broken dishes and dining room walls being stained with a balsamic vinaigrette. (Again, never happened!) Easy to prepare, simple ingredients, so much flavour you actually smile while shovelling it into your mouth, and a whole lot of healthy, good-for-you nutrients.
PREPARE IN ADVANCE AND ENJOY FOR SEVERAL DAYS!
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while now, you might have heard me mention before that we are Sunday food prep enthusiasts. So, we always have cooked brown rice, millet, farro, couscous, or quinoa, etc., on hand throughout the week. That’s why this salad came together so quickly and easily.
If you’re part of a busy family, or if you are one of those people who get home from work and can’t fathom the thought of having to make dinner, so you spend your hard-earned cash on take-out food, then I encourage you to try Sunday meal prep. Just an hour or so of your time on Sunday evening can provide you with so many dinnertime options. A few minutes of your time is all you need to start a pot of rice or quinoa. Then, on any particular weeknight, grill a chicken breast and reheat some of that rice in a skillet and you’ve got a healthy, cost-effective dinner in less than 30 minutes. It would take you longer to wait for your pizza delivery to arrive!
Salads, such as this Bean and Brown Rice Salad can be prepared start to finish on a Sunday and stored in your refrigerator in a food-safe container for up to three days. And, it makes enough for eight servings – that will surely lessen the weeknight dinnertime frustration. If you looking for more recipes that allow for Sunday food prep, do a search on my site. Locate the magnifying glass at the top of this post and type ‘Sunday’ into the search field.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR THIS RECIPE:
The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.
- Brown Rice – It is imperative that the rice is fully cooked and fully cooled before attempting this recipe. If you use warm rice the salad will have a gummy consistency. Do not use refrigerated, leftover rice!
- Canned Kidney Beans – For colour and variety, I used both white and red kidney beans.
- Green Onions
- Parsley
- Roasted Red Peppers – I love the smokiness of roasted red peppers. You can substitute them with fresh chopped red peppers if you wish.
- Rice Vinegar
- Olive Oil – You can use avocado oil too.
- Honey – You can substitute the honey with maple syrup.
- Salt and Ground Black Pepper
HOW TO MAKE BEAN AND BROWN RICE SALAD
Start by whisking together the sauce and seasoning ingredients into a bowl until well incorporated – these ingredients would include the vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, stir together the red and white beans, rice, green onion, parsley and roasted red peppers.
Pour the sauce/seasoning mixture over the beans and rice and toss well to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour. When ready to serve, lightly toss once again.
QUESTIONS?
If I have not answered all of your questions in the text above, don’t hesitate to reach out to me! You can contact me by sending me a message in the comments section further down the page. I will try my best to answer as soon as possible! You might reach me even faster by following me on Facebook and sending me a private message. Scroll down below the recipe card to find my Follow Me on Social Media box and never miss another recipe!
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Bean and Brown Rice Salad
Ingredients
- 4 cups brown rice, cooked and cooled (any rice will do – basmati, white, brown, etc.)
- 1 can white kidney beans, rinsed and drained (19 ounces)
- 1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (19 ounces)
- 1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup roasted red peppers, chopped
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Start by whisking together the sauce and seasoning ingredients into a bowl until well incorporated – these ingredients would include the vinegar, olive oil, honey, salt and pepper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together the red and white beans, rice, green onion, parsley and roasted red peppers.
- Pour the sauce/seasoning mixture over the beans and rice and toss well to coat.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour. When ready to serve, lightly toss once again.
Nutrition
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Toby Taylor says
This is a phenomenal recipe and delicious. We ended up adding a little Lime/lemon juice to this and the flavor was multiplied. Delicious.
byronethomas@gmail.com says
Thank you, Toby. 🙂
Tasha says
I have a different version of this that I inherited from my mom. This recipe might take you a bit longer to make but it’s so good and it will last at least a couple of days.
1.5 cups short grain brown rice
3 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
Cook rice per instructions on bag
Cool in fridge
Once cooled add and mix:
1 can (large) kidney beans – drained
2 jars pickled beets – drained and cubed to bite size
2 bunches scallion green onions – chopped to bite size or less
1 bunch parsley
Dressing (think thousand island style) – this is to taste so no exact measurements.
Mayonnaise – I use Hain’s Saffola
Dill Weed
Onion Powder
1/2 fresh lemon