Mediterranean Rice Salad (VIDEO)

Mediterranean Rice Salad Recipe: Easy Summer Salad Recipe, Delicious With Long Grain Brown Rice. This is an easy summer salad recipe. With cooked rice on hand, this hearty meal-in-a-bowl is ready in minutes, perfect to make ahead and chill to serve later, or take to work or school. It also keeps well in the fridge for 2 – 3 days. This is a big salad, although it’s easy to make half the recipe. But we’re always happy when there’s some left over – Mediterranean Rice Salad tastes even better the next day!

Total Prep & Cook Time: 30 Min

Yield: 6 Servings:

Nutrition Data, 160g Serving: 343 cal, cal fr fat 130, 2g sat. fat, 46g carb, 15g fat, 338mg sodium, 5g fiber, 3g sugars, 8g protein, low Cholesterol, good source Vit A, C, K. Estimated glycemic load 28

Ingredients:
6 cups cooked long grain brown rice
4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic or to taste, peeled and minced
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1 medium red bell pepper, chopped small
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil OR Italian flat leaf parsley
2 cups spinach leaves, washed, stemmed, and chopped (to save time use prewashed baby spinach)
1 small cucumber, peeled and chopped small
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions (scallions or chives)
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata or regular black olives, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts OR 1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds (toast on a flat baking pan for 15 minutes at 250 degrees)
1 tsp dried oregano leaf
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Optional: 1/2 cup cooked black beans (canned or home cooked). If using canned beans, drain, rinse and then drain well in a sieve.
Optional: 1/4 – 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Make rice ahead of time and cool to room temperature
Heat oil on medium in a small fry pan, and saute minced garlic until soft but not browned (2 minutes).
Add red peppers and saute with garlic until tender crisp (2 minutes)
Use a spatula to scrape the oil, garlic and red pepper into a large bowl
Add the lemon juice to the fry pan and stir it around, then add it to the bowl
Add salt, pepper and dried oregano leaf to the lemon and oil mixture
Toss the rice with the olive oil mixture
Stir chopped basil, cucumber, green onions, olives, toasted pine nuts or sunflower seeds, and optional black beans or feta cheese into the rice mixture
Cover and let salad marinate for an hour before serving, in the fridge or not, as you like. Serve salad at room temperature or chilled.