Description
You will love the chewy, nutty flavor of wild rice. This salad is perfect for pot lucks and picnics and is sure to become a family favorite!
Ingredients
Scale
Wild Rice
- 1 cup uncooked wild rice
- 2 ½ cups chicken stock (or water)
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
Salad Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups grapes, sliced in half. I like red grapes, but green grapes are good too
- 1 cup sliced, canned water chestnuts, drained and rough chopped
- 1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions, plus sliced green tops to garnish the dish (or substitute diced red onion)
- 2 ½ – 3 cups cooked chicken, large diced. A roasted chicken from the grocery store works well.
Dressing
- 1 cup mayo of choice, I used Best Foods Olive Oil Mayo
- 1 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3/4 teaspoon ground thyme. The ground thyme mixes into the dressing easier, but dried thyme leaves work too.
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt, or to taste
Toppings:
- 1 cup of rough chopped roasted, salted cashews
- sliced green onion or parsley
Instructions
- Bring wild rice, stock and salt to a boil; reduce heat to low and cover. Cook approximately 60 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed and the grains have popped open. Grains should be chewy, but not mushy. Turn off the heat and let sit covered for an additional 15 minutes. Drain any excess liquid, then chill until the wild rice is cold, or make the day before and refrigerate overnight.
- Add the grapes, water chestnuts, green onions and diced chicken to a large mixing bowl. Add the cold wild rice and stir gently to combine ingredients.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients together. Add to the salad ingredients and stir to combine. Refrigerate a few hours or overnight.
- Before serving, sprinkle 1 cup of rough chopped roasted, salted cashews on top of the salad. You can also sprinkle some parsley or sliced green onion on top for color.
Notes
You can substitute a ½ inch thick slice of smoked turkey from the deli for the chicken. Cube into large pieces. The smoked flavor goes well with the salad.
This salad is best if you let the flavors blend in the fridge for a few hours or overnight, but don’t add the cashews on top until you are about to serve. Serve on lettuce or with crackers.
