Fiesta Rice Salad With Tuna: A Southwestern Flavor Explosion
This Southwestern Tuna Rice Salad is a testament to how simple ingredients, when combined thoughtfully, can create an extraordinary dish. It’s perfect for those hot summer days when you crave something light yet satisfying.
Servings: 8 side or 4-6 main
Calories: 391kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 ½ cups cooked brown rice
- 4 oz. tuna drained and flaked may be omitted if you don’t want a protein in the salad
Dressing
- ⅓ cup lime juice plus more to taste
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoon honey
- ½ teaspoon chipotle powder or sub with smoked paprika + cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder or 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- Black Pepper
Salad
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 small red onion chopped
- 14 oz corn kernels canned, drained
- 14 oz black beans drained and rinsed
- 3 tomatoes watery seeds removed, then diced
- 1 cup coriander/cilantro leaves roughly chopped (Note 2)
Instructions
- Place dressing ingredients in a jar and shake. Taste test, adjust to your taste.
- Place the Salad ingredients and rice in a bowl. Drizzle with dressing. Toss, then serve. This salad is fantastic served straight away or even the next day!
Notes
-
I prefer making this dish with brown rice; it adds more interest to the salad and a nutty flavor. However, this dish is also delicious made with white rice. If using white rice, it's best to use long-grain white rice for its texture and flavor. Medium grain is also a good option. Avoid short grain or sushi rice, as they are too sticky for this rice salad.
-
If using WHITE RICE, you will need 1 ½ cups of uncooked rice.
-
Coriander/cilantro is a staple Southwestern salad herb! However, if you do not like the herb, a good substitute is 1 ½ cups of finely sliced shallots/scallions. Parsley will also be a suitable substitute (¾ cup chopped) for the cilantro; however, it doesn't add as much flavor as the cilantro, shallots, and scallions.
Nutrition
Calories: 391kcal | Carbohydrates: 54g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 360mg | Potassium: 571mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1117IU | Vitamin C: 43mg | Calcium: 44mg | Iron: 3mg