Wild rice gets cooked with cardamom, ginger, and garlic, which gives this dish an aromatic backbone you don't usually find in a salad. From there it's Asian pear, arugula, toasted walnuts, fresh herbs, and a white balsamic vinaigrette sweetened with maple and brightened with fresh pear juice.
New American · Salads & Sides
Wild Rice, Pear & Arugula Salad with White Balsamic Vinaigrette
Wild rice gets cooked with cardamom, ginger, and garlic, which gives this dish an aromatic backbone you don't usually find in a salad. From there it's Asian pear, arugula, toasted walnuts, fresh herbs, and a white balsamic vinaigrette sweetened with maple and brightened with fresh pear juice.
Tastes
Colors
Techniques
DietaryGluten-Free · Vegan · Soy-Free · Nut-Free · Allium-Free · Sesame-Free
Yield4 cups
Serves6 (~3/4 cup)
TimeActive 25m · Inactive 40m · Total 1h 5m
Ingredients
1 cup Wild Rice
4 cups Water
½ tsp Ground Cardamom
or 2 Green Cardamom PodsSmashed
½ tsp Ginger Rootminced
1 clove Garliccrushed
1 Carrot
1 Red Bell Peppersmall dice
2 Green Onionssliced
1 Medium Shallotsliced, reserve a few slices for the vinaigrette
¼ cup Parsleychopped
3 sprigs Mint
1 Asian Pearhalf thinly sliced , half with a citrus press
1½ cups Arugula
Parmesan Cheese, to tasteShaved (optional)
Reserved pear juice
¼ cup Avocado Oil
1 Tbsp White Balsamic Vinegar
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup or Honeyor to taste
1 Tbsp Coconut Aminos
Reserved shallot
Sourcing Tips
- Fresh ginger makes a difference — skip the powdered kind if you can’t find it fresh.
- You can sub red wine vinegar, sherry vinegar or rice vinegar, but don’t use regular balsamic.
- Feel free to swap in Texas pecans for the walnuts and honey for the maple syrup — as an easy way to lean into local ingredients.
Instructions
••
Rinse the wild rice, then place it in a small saucepan with water, cardamom, ginger, and garlic.
Bring to a boil, cover, reduce to low, and cook 40 minutes — until tender but still chewy. Drain and cool completely.
While the rice cooks, dice the carrot and bell pepper, slice the scallions and shallot, and chop the herbs.
Set aside a couple scallion slices for the vinaigrette and put everything else together in a large bowl.
Cut the pear in half. Juice one half for the vinaigrette, and set the other aside to slice right before serving so it doesn’t oxidize.
Using an immersion blender or small food processor, combine all the vinaigrette ingredients, and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust sweetness or acidity.
Add the cooled rice to the bowl of vegetables and herbs. Toss gently.
Just before serving, fold in the arugula, nuts, and freshly sliced pear. Drizzle with vinaigrette to taste, starting with half and adding more as you like.
To turn it into a hearty vegetarian entree salad, serve it with a generous snowfall of shaved Parmesan.
Finished cooking?
Serving & Keeping
Serve: Chilled, Room Temp
Make ahead: Cooked rice and chopped vegetables can be prepared a day ahead and stored in the fridge. The vinaigrette can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store it in a sealed jar in the fridge and shake well before using.
Serve with: Shaved parmesan, roasted sweet potatoes, a crackly-skinned chicken, or anything smoky off the grill
Sourcing Tips
- Fresh ginger makes a difference — skip the powdered kind if you can’t find it fresh.
- You can sub red wine vinegar, sherry vinegar or rice vinegar, but don’t use regular balsamic.
- Feel free to swap in Texas pecans for the walnuts and honey for the maple syrup — as an easy way to lean into local ingredients.
Serving & Keeping
Serve: Chilled, Room Temp
Make ahead: Cooked rice and chopped vegetables can be prepared a day ahead and stored in the fridge. The vinaigrette can be made up to 3 days in advance. Store it in a sealed jar in the fridge and shake well before using.
Serve with: Shaved parmesan, roasted sweet potatoes, a crackly-skinned chicken, or anything smoky off the grill