It’s that in-between season where the evenings turn just a touch cooler as we experience that definite shift away from the brightness of summer to something cozier and comforting. And, whilst we are still in a salad mood, we’re thinking they should add extra depth of flavour, a nutritional boost, a sense of fullness and a punch of crunch. Needless to say, our scrumptious Mushroom and Crispy Rice Salad is the one we turn to. It’s the perfect side dish, can double up as a light lunch and the flavoursome dressing makes it one of our favourite salad picks.
Ingredients:
Dressing:
- 2 Tbsp peanut butter
- 2 Tbsp hot water
- 1 clove garlic, grated
- 2 tsp ginger, grated
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 4 Tbsp rice vinegar
Crispy rice:
- 2 cups cooked white rice
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 2 Tbsp gochujang*
Salad:
- 2 spring onions, sliced
- 1 ripe avocado, diced
- 1 small Mediterranean cucumber, diced
- 1 head baby white cabbage, very thinly sliced
- 100g steamed broccoli, cooled and finely diced
- Handful fresh coriander, roughly chopped
- Handful fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
- 250g white button mushrooms, sliced 100g fresh lettuce leaves
- 2 Tbsp roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Lime wedges, for serving
*Gochujang is a spicy, fermented chilli paste used in Korean cuisine. It is readily available at all Asian supermarkets as well as Woolworths, Checkers, Yuppiechef and a lot of online retailers e.g. Faithful to Nature.
Method:
For the dressing:
- Combine the peanut butter and hot water and whisk.
- Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
- Taste to adjust seasoning and then set aside until serving.
For the crispy rice:
- Preheat oven to 200˚C.
- Place cooked rice in a bowl with the soy sauce, sesame oil and gochujang.
- Mix the seasoning thoroughly into the rice with your hands so every grain is covered.
- Transfer to a baking tray lined with baking paper.
- Spread the rice out in a thin layer.
- Bake for 10 minutes and then agitate, flipping the rice over to evenly brown all the grains.
- Bake for another 10 minutes until brown and crispy.
- Set aside to cool.
For the salad:
- Combine all of the salad ingredients except for the lettuce leaves and peanuts together in a large bowl.
- Season with a little salt and pepper. Mix.
- Add the crispy rice and pour over the dressing.
- Toss to mix well.
- Assemble dressed salad on a large serving platter.
- Plate lettuce leaves alongside the chopped salad.
- Scatter with peanuts and serve with lime wedges on the side and enjoy!
