Summary: Zucchini season is in full swing! I was lucky to be gifted a handful of home grown beauties, straight from my gorgeous mother in laws garden. They were so fresh, I knew I wanted to eat them raw in a salad. It was definitely the right choice because this salad is amazing! Full of veggies, flavourful and with a nice crunch from the celery and almonds. It works well as a side and as the base of buddha bowl and you can warm it up and serve it instead of plain rice. Or you can add in some cooked brown lentils or chickpeas to make it more substantial. I think it’s nice to cook the rice from scratch and get some flavour in there but if you are in a time crunch, you could use instant rice. Mum has made it with brown 90 sec microwave rice. She added a little extra lemon and salt and thought that it was very similar to the original.
- 1 cup uncooked rice (white or brown), rinsed well
- 1 tblsp butter or vegan buttery spread
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 cups water
- 2 small zucchini, grated
- 2 ribs celery, chopped
- 3 spring onions, chopped
- Optional: 1 (400g) can brown lentils or chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Dressing
- 1 lemon, juice and zest
- 1 tblsp garlic olive oil
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1/8 tsp ground coriander
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 tsp pomegranate molasses (can sub for balsamic glaze)
- Sliced almonds for serving
Instructions
- Bring the water to a boil and add the salt, buttery spread and the rice. Bring back to the boil, stir and lower to a slow simmer. Cover and cook for around 18 mins or until rice is cooked. Cooking times for brown or other rice may vary, refer to package instructions. Drain any excess water and set aside to cool.
- Once the rice is cooled, add in the zucchini, celery and spring onions and stir.
- Add the dressing ingredients to a small bowl and whisk together. Pour over the rice and stir to combine. Chill until ready to serve.
- When ready to serve, fluff rice with a fork and garnish with sliced almonds.
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