When I went to prepare this recipe I realized just how long I had been making it over 21 years. It was one of my first “go to” recipes when I decided that I was going to learn to cook.  Ed and I hadn’t been dating long when Aunt Susie and Uncle Christopher M had us for dinner. Our contribution was homemade blueberry muffins which I assumed Susie would serve for breakfast the following day. But, my young cousins, Matthew and James, devoured them for dinner instead. Susie served this salad to the adults and I have been making it ever since.

The wild rice provides both a nutty flavor and good texture. Don’t skip the pine nuts (unless there’s a nut allergy) or the capers as they really make the salad. While I have never substituted brown rice for the white rice in this salad I see no reason why this can’t be done.

It seemed fitting to post this recipe at this time my cousin, Matthew, was 6 at that dinner he’s now 27 (and, much, much taller) and getting married to the love of his life, Caitlin, this weekend.  I wish them many fabulous food memories together.

Update:  I went to make this recently and ran into an problem in that I couldn’t find wild rice on its own at my local Wegmans. It had been a few years since I’d made it and had never run into this issue. I was also thinking that I’d use brown rice in place of white rice, so I made a bold (ha!) change and went for a bag of mixed rice. I have now made it with both Lundberg Wild Blend Rice (takes about 55 minutes to cook) and RiceSelect Royal Blend Rice (takes about 20 minutes to cook). I have a slight preference for the Lundberg version as I prefer the rice mixture but either are good. Using a bag of mixed rice means that there’s one less pot to clean. Simply use 2 cups in place of the 1-1/2 cups long-grain rice and 1/2 cup wild rice. Don’t forget to add the bay leaves to the rice. In case you are wondering, my cousin Matthew is now 36. He and Caitlin are parents to three beautiful children.

Susie's Wild Rice Salad

 

Susie's Wild Rice Salad
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Recipe type: Side, Salad
Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
  • 1-1/2 cups long-grain rice (such as Uncle Ben’s) (see Notes)
  • ½ cup wild rice (see Notes)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3-4 scallions, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons fresh oregano or 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • ½ cup pine nuts, toasted
  • ⅓ cup capers, drained
  • 3 tablespoons fresh chives, chopped
Dressing
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
  • 4 dashes Tabasco
  • ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
  1. Cook both rices according to the package directions (the wild rice will take longer) and add a bay leaf to each pot.
  2. Remove the bay leaves when the rice is cooked.
  3. Whisk all of the dressing ingredients together (except olive oil) and then whisk in the olive oil.
  4. Transfer the rice to a large bowl, add the dressing, scallions and oregano. Toss well.
  5. Cover and refrigerate until cool – about 2 hours. When ready to serve add the pine nuts, capers and chives to the rice and season with salt and pepper.
Notes
* Salad can be made 24 hours in advance.
* I went to make this recently and ran into an problem in that I couldn't find wild rice on its own at my local grocery store. I have now made it with both Lundberg Wild Blend Rice (takes about 55 minutes to cook) and RiceSelect Royal Blend Rice (takes about 20 minutes to cook). I have a slight preference for the Lundberg version as I prefer the rice mixture but either are good. Using a bag of mixed rice means that there's one less pot to clean. Simply use 2 cups in place of the 1-1/2 cups long-grain rice and ½ cup wild rice. Don't forget to add the bay leaves to the rice.

 

Source:  Susie McCawley’s book of recipes