Crisp Vietnamese rice salad

The mint and coriander make this pretty salad a refreshing option for a summer lunch or dinner. I find its crunchy and chewy texture totally addictive and my kids, who tend to only eat veggies when raw, are happy when they it makes an appearance at the dinner table.

It’s ridiculously good in its own, but if you feel the need to add some protein to it, go ahead and toss sautéed tofu, a poached egg or omelet (à la fried rice style), grilled chicken, prawns or even thinly sliced steak on it.

Note: This is a perfect recipe to use up leftover rice. I like short or medium grain brown rice best because it has this inherent chewiness to it, but long grain Basmati or Jasmine are fine too.

Serves 3-4

Ingredients

• 1 cup brown rice (dry) or 3 cups cooked
• 3 persian cucumbers, sliced thin length wise
• 1 big carrot, gratedd
• 6 cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 6 radishes or half a black radish
• 1 cup chinese cabbage, sliced thin
• 1/2 bunch fresh coriander, chopped
• 20 leaves of fresh mint
• 1/3 cup chives or scallions, cut up into small pieces
• 1/3 cup cashews or peanuts, toasted
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds
• A few rice crackers, crumbled (optional)
• 1 lime, cut into 4
• Optional: grilled prawns, chicken, sautéed tofu cubes, etc

Dressing

• 1/2 cup groundnut, avocado or other neutral vegetable oil of your choice
• 2 tbsp sesame oil
• 1/4 cup tamari sauce or soy sauce
• 4 tbsp ginger, chopped
• 2 tbsp lemongrass, chopped (optional)
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar

Instructions

1. Cook rice as per package direction. Let cool.
2. Meanwhile prepare the dressing by blitzing all the ingredients briefly in a blender
3. In a large bowl, mix all the vegetables and herbs together
4. Add 2 tbsp of the dressing to the rice and spread the rice out – this is easier to do with your hands – making sure to get rid of all the clumpy bits and that the rice grains are all more or less separated
5. Add cooled rice to the veggies and herbs and mix well
6. Toss and mix in a few more tbsp of the dressing, cover and reserve in fridge until ready to serve
7. When ready to serve, top with sesame seeds, nuts, rice crackers and drizzle the rest of the dressing. Put the lime wedges on a small plate for each person to squeeze on top of their plate.