This winter rice salad is a great vegetarian buffet side dish. It's also perfect as a light meal with leftover roast ham, chicken or turkey. That makes it a great buffet salad to make at Christmas or Thanksgiving.
This winter rice salad is inspired by a recipe my mum has been making for many years. It's a regular recipe whenever we have family gatherings and a buffet meal. I remember eating it as a child as well as more recently.
One of the things I love about it is the variety of textures. There's the rice with just a slight bite, the crunchiness of the dry roasted peanuts and the juiciness of the mandarin oranges. The flavours complement each other so well. The saltiness of the dry roasted peanuts alongside the sweetness of the mandarins is delicious.
My mum dresses the rice salad with mayonnaise but I've lightened it up a bit by using a mixture of mayonnaise and natural yogurt.
What ingredients are in this winter rice salad?
To make this winter rice and madarin orange salad you'll need:
- Rice - I often usee a mixture of wild and basmati rice or brown rice
- Spring onions
- Dry roasted peanuts
- Mayonnaise
- Natural yogurt
- Seasoning - Black pepper and a little salt(optional). The dry roasted peanuts can be quite salty so I often miss out any extra salt.
- Tinned mandarin orange segments - I use the ones in juice, not syrup. You could also use fresh mandarins, clementines or satsumas. However, I prefer tinned ones as they are peeled and very juicy.
- Leftover roast meat - This is totally optional but we love this salad with leftover ham, chicken or turkey. This then makes it into more of a main meal salad rather than just a side.
What to eat with this mandarin orange rice salad
This tasty rice salad with mandarins and peanuts is so versatile. The great thing about it at Christmas is that it's easy to make and you can make a big batch. Then just keep getting it out of the fridge to make an easy meal with whatever leftovers you happen to have.
I love it with leftover ham, chicken or turkey. But if you're vegetarian or don't have any meaty leftovers, it's also great on it's own. I can quite happily eat a big plateful of this peanut rice salad at any meal. It also travels well and makes a tasty packed lunch.
How can you adapt this rice salad?
If you don't have any mandarins or want to adapt the recipe, it also works with pineapple instead of mandarins. Although I haven't tried it, I'm sure pomegranate seeds would be another tasty alternative. As I said earlier, you could use fresh rather than tinned mandarins but peeling the skins off can be a bit of a hassle.
I like to use dry roasted peanuts to make this salad as they are so tasty! However, if you want a less salty alternative then just dry fry some unsalted peanuts in a dry frying pan. They'll still give this salad a delicious nuttiness. You could also swap them for almonds (whole or flaked), pistachios or walnuts.
How long can you store this peanut rice salad?
This peanut and mandarin rice salad keeps well for three days in the fridge. Store it in an airtight container and make sure it has not been sitting out at room temperature for too long.
More salad recipes with grains?
If you lilke this salad then why not try one of these grain salads:
Why not check out my collection of main meal salads too?
Recipe
Winter Rice Salad
Ingredients
- 150 g rice (I used a mixture of wild and basmati rice)
- 6 spring onions chopped
- 70 g dry roasted peanuts
- 30 g mayonnaise
- 40 g natural yoghurt
- black pepper (optional)
- 295 g tin of mandarin orange segments in juice, drained
- leftover roast chicken (optional)
Instructions
- Cook the rice according to the pack instructions. When cooked, rinse under cold water and drain well. Leave to stand in the sieve for any excess water to drain off.
- Mix the rice, spring onions, peanuts, mayonnaise and yoghurt together. Add a little black pepper to taste.
- Gently stir in the mandarin segments.
- Serve on it's own or with leftover roast chicken.
Nutrition
Pin for Later
Steve Shakeshaft
What a great idea! I never think to put any citrus into my food in that way.
Corina Blum
I rarely do either but it's just so good in this salad! The mandarins are a great contrast with the dry roasted peanuts.
Kate - gluten free alchemist
That's so funny..... I think my Mum used to make something really similar..... maybe it was a generational dish! I remember the flavours.... particularly the sweet-sharp fruity mandarin against the savoury, crunchy peanut was yummy..... This post really takes me back..... xx
Corina
Maybe they both got the recipe from the same place! I'll have to ask my mum if she remembers where she got it from. x
Agness of Run Agness Run
This is a perfect winter salad recipe, Corine. I can't wait to give it a try and indulge in this nutrient-dense dish. Do you use a homemade mayo?
Corina
No, I don't use a homemade mayo but of course you could if you wanted. I'm so pleased you like it!
Rezel Kealoha
ohh what a great side dish to serve that caters to everyone and great for those holiday potluck parties!
Corina
Exactly Rezel!
Namrata Cooks
Rice is a family staple . Will have to try this soon, looks so delicious!
Corina
Thanks Namrata! I hope you like it as much as I do.
Stephanie
This looks sooo good! I love anything with mandarin oranges 🙂
Corina
Thanks Stephanie! I'm so pleased you like it.
Constance Smith
I love putting mandarin in salads. It is such a punch of cheerful flavor. You really can't go wrong with them.
Corina
They're great aren't they? I have to say I don't use them very often but this salad is one my mum has been making for years and I'm so pleased I finally got round to making it. I'll have to put mandarins in salads more often now as it reminded me how much I like them!
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins
I love rice salad, this would make a delicious lunch to take to work. A must try! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Corina
It would definitely make a great packed lunch. It's actually the type of thing I did use to make sometimes when I went out to work. I used to cook pasta, rice or some other grain while eating my breakfast and chopping up veggies to go in the salad!
Cynthia
Not only looks delicious but also sounds delicious! I saw it on your Instagram and I'm in love. I've used brown rice for salads before but never white rice and since this is basmati rice (my favorite white rice) I'm 100% it tastes as good as it looks!
Corina
Thanks Cynthia! You could definitely use brown rice in this salad if you wanted. I think it would add a lovely extra nuttiness!
Elizabeth | The Recipe Revival
I love this! It sounds so refreshing and delicious!
Corina
Thanks Elizabeth! I've actually just had a variation on it for lunch today - with radishes in too.
Jo
That looks lovely. We are consciously trying to eat less meat so the nuts are a brilliant alternative protein.
Corina
I definitely agree that nuts are a great protein alternative to meat. I love them with rice.
Eb Gargano | Easy Peasy Foodie
Great recipe! I love a winter rice salad - just as nice as their summer counterparts and a great antidote to the rich, heavy food that's usually on offer at this time of year 😀 Eb x
Corina
I know Eb! I've been remaking too many sweet recipes to update the blog recently and I'm feeling I need to have a bit of a diet week now - and it's not even December yet! x
Anne-Marie
A very festive looking salad!! Never had rice salad before but want to give it a try now!
Corina
I hope you like it! I don't have rice salads very often but they are great and so versatile too.
Kat (The Baking Explorer)
I've never had this flavour combination before but it sounds delicious!
Corina
Thanks Kat! It's probably not something I'd have come up with myself except that it's a family recipe. I am now thinking I'd like to try a few more recipes with mandarins though.
Gloria @ Homemade & Yummy
I have never tried a rice salad....although I have been known to eat cold rice right out of the fridge. Nuts in salads add so much great texture too.
Corina
You're not alone - I have also been known to eat cold leftover rice! I actually love it with a drizzle of sesame oil, although this is quite different.
Helen
I love the look of this! I love adding oranges and nuts to salad so I'm sure I would love this.
Corina
I'm so pleased you like it! I am also a big fan of nuts in salads and this salad is probably the first salad I ever had with nuts in.
Jacqui
This is such a pretty dish and I bet the different textures and flavour are great together. I can easily see this appearing on my table over the coming festive period as you say I am sure it would be lovely with left over cold meat.
Corina
Thanks Jacqui! My mum always cooks a big ham around Christmas and this is one of the salads we always have.
Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook
Wow! The salad looks happy and delicious! Thanks for sharing, Corina!
Corina
Aww thanks Jhuls! I'm so pleased you like it.