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Curry Rice Salad Recipe

Filed under Salad, Vegetarian, Wheat-free

Curry Rice Salad

Years ago when I was living in Japan I bought a high-tech rice cooker with a 14 hour timer and settings for white and brown rice. Occassionally I would make much too much rice, especially brown rice. Not wanting to eat it plain, I invented this curry rice salad as tasty way to stretch out my rice leftovers. Over the years the recipe has expanded beyond curry, cilantro, apples, and raisins to include many other ingredients, again usually whatever might work that's in the fridge. This curry salad is ideal to cook ahead as the flavors blend better after the salad has sat in the refrigerator overnight. And it is easy to cook in large quantities for summer potlucks and barbeques.

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Curry Rice Salad Recipe

Ingredients

  • Short grain brown rice - 1 to 1 1/2 cup, best is organic
  • One large yellow onion - chopped.
  • Curry paste or curry powder - red or yellow Indian (not Thai)
  • Olive oil
  • Cumin
  • Chili pepper
  • Sesame oil
  • Cilantro - chopped
  • Raisins - one cup
  • One apple - cored and chopped (not peeled)
  • Honey
  • Salt
  • Celery - chopped
  • Snow peas - stringy ends chopped off, then chopped
  • Bell pepper, red, green, or yellow - chopped
  • Green onions - chopped

Italics = optional ingredients

Method

1 Prepare the brown rice.
Put rice in a big pot, add 1 3/4 cups of water for every cup of rice, bring to a boil, cover, lower the heat on very low, let simmer for 45 minutes, take off heat and keep covered for at least another 10 minutes.

2 Prepare onions and curry oil.
In a large saucepan put 1/4 cup of olive oil on medium high heat. Add a couple heaping tablespoons of curry paste (if it is mild) or add a couple of tablespoons of mild curry powder. Add a dash of chili pepper and cumin and a few drops of sesame oil if you have it. Let the curry simmer for a minute. Add the chopped yellow onion and cook until translucent.

3 Mix rice and onions.
In a large mixing bowl, put in the hot rice and then fold in the onions with the curry infused oil in which they were cooked. You'll need to use a strong wooden spoon to mix. Taste test the rice at this point. If it needs more curry flavor, heat some more curry powder, chili, and cumin in olive oil for a few minutes and add to the rice to desired spiciness.

4 Add other ingredients to taste - cilantro, raisins, apple, celery, snow peas, bell pepper, green onions. Add a couple tablespoons of honey. Add a dash of salt to taste.

5 Chill and serve. Serves 4 to 6.

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Posted by Elise on May 23, 2004 and indexed Curry, Rice, Salad

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Comments

Elise -- this looks and sounds absolutely delicious! And, I'll bet, being a left-over lover, I would be eating these left-overs right out of the bowl, standing beside the open fridge...yum.

Posted by: Jennifer on May 23, 2004 6:40 PM

By the way-- are you using ground cumin or toasted cumin seeds here?

Posted by: Shaun on May 24, 2004 5:18 PM

Jennifer - It is leftover heaven indeed.

Shaun - Regarding the cumin I think either would work though I usually use ground cumin.

Posted by: elise on May 24, 2004 6:54 PM

I was looking for a rice dish for a special reunion event and found this glorious recipe - I used all the optional stuff and everything else hanging around in the fridge and it went down a storm! Thanks!

Posted by: Tom on August 24, 2004 8:08 AM

This is a fabulous recipe. I prepared it for a party and it was a big success. And it does get better a few days after it's prepared, as flavours blend magically!

Posted by: aqua on August 5, 2006 1:44 PM

I made this salad last night and my husband and I were just blown away. The combination of ingredients and the simplicity of it made it a real star in my household. Thanks! I think I'll make more of your recipes.

Posted by: deirdre on January 5, 2007 10:01 AM

I have made this several times with quinoa instead of the rice. It just gets better and better, I add peanuts to mine when I have them, too. Adding anything crunchy that I might have to round out the textures. Holds up well all week, I use this at summer potlucks, since there is no mayo to worry about and rarely anyone else brings a curry flavored dish, and many have not had quinoa before.

Posted by: Laura on August 1, 2007 4:19 PM

We love curry! I grew up Japan too. Anyway, curry flavor is great with veggies and rice. I have high tech rice cooker too. It is good recipe. Thanks.

Posted by: tomg on April 18, 2008 4:50 PM

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