Black Rice Salad with Citrus and Mango
What a pleasant surprise to find the inspiration for this recipe! I love trying things that are a little less familiar and not in my typical meal rotation.
Black rice is also known as purple rice or forbidden rice. There are many varieties. Black rice originated in Japan. At one time it was only available to royalty in China, hence the term “forbidden.” For this recipe I bought purple rice from my local grocery store.
Highly nutritious black rice
Black rice is particularly high in anthoycyanins. Anthocyanins are also found in blueberries, eggplant, and acai berries and give them their deep blue/purple color. Anthocyanins are powerful antioxidants that protect our cells from damage and disease. Black rice is also higher in fiber and protein than brown rice. There are many reasons to give black rice a try.
Black Rice Salad with Citrus and Mango
Ingredients
- 1 cup black or purple rice uncooked (cook and then chill for this recipe)
- 1 mango
- 1 orange or use a 10 or 15 oz can of mandarin oranges, drained
- 1 handful cilantro about 1/3 cup
- 1/3 cup red onion
- 1/2 lime squeeze for juice
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup or honey optional
- 1/3 cup raw cashews optional
- 1 head romaine optional
- 1 avocado optional
Instructions
- Cook the rice according to package directions. This type of rice expands a lot as it is cooked. You can use a rice cooker or Instant Pot as well. Spread it on a plate and let cool or refrigerate for a half hour or more if possible.
- Cut up the mango into chunks.
- Cut up the orange. You can certainly add more oranges or mangos.
- Chop cilantro.
- Chop the red onion.
- Toast the cashews on medium heat in a pan for a minute or two if desired.
- Stir all the ingredients in one big bowl. Serve on a bed of romaine.