Crispy Wild Rice Salad with Gochujang Vinaigrette

Crispy Rice Salad with Gochujang Vinaigrette

This Crispy Rice Salad with Gochujang Vinaigrette is full of fresh, crunchy veggies, crispy rice and a spicy-sweet gochujang sesame vinaigrette dressing that packs in a punch and sets this salad apart! Made with cucumbers, green onions, avocado, cashews, cabbage, shelled edamame, and of course, all that yummy crispy rice!

This recipe stars California-grown wild rice and comes to us from our friend @krollskorner in partnership with USA Rice and the California Wild Rice Advisory Board.

  • Servings
    6
  • Prep Time
    1 hr 30 mins
  • Cook Time
    15 mins
  • Total Time
    1 hr 45 mins

Ingredients

For the rice:

  • 2 cups cooked and cooled U.S. grown wild rice blend, day old preferred* 
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 Tbsp chili crunch/chili crisp
  • 1 Tbsp soy sauce

For the dressing:

  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 Tbsp Toasted Sesame oil 
  • 1 Tbsp Rice vinegar 
  • 2 Tbsp Soy sauce
  • 1-2 Tbsp Gochujang (more or less depending on spice preference, it’s a medium-spice level, not has hot as sriracha) 
  • 1 Tbsp Honey or sugar 
  • 1 Tbsp sesame seeds 
  • ½ tsp Minced Ginger & 1 clove garlic  

For the salad

  • 4-6 Mini Cucumbers, quartered 
  • 1 cup shelled Edamame 
  • 1 bunch Green onions, chopped 
  • 1 cup Cashews, roughly chopped 
  • 1 cup Purple cabbage, chopped 
  • 2 avocados, diced 
  • salt to taste, if needed
 

 

 

Directions

  • Cook the rice: Cook the wild rice blend and lay it on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet to cool. From here, you can refrigerate until chilled (1-2 hours) or overnight. Day-old rice is preferred since it is dried and less sticky, so it will crisp up more.
  • Bake the rice: Preheat the oven to 400°F. To the cooled or leftover rice, add the sesame oil, chili crunch, and soy sauce to the chilled rice. Toss it thoroughly to coat the grains. Spread it out on a parchment-lined baking sheet (if it’s not already on the baking sheet from before). Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until crispy, toss halfway through. Set aside to cool. 
  • Make the dressing: Whisk together the ingredients for the salad dressing in a bowl or measuring cup. Taste and adjust, adding a little more olive oil, rice vinegar, or sugar depending on preference. Store in the fridge until ready to dress the salad. 
  • Chop the veg: chop all veggies for the salad and add to a large bowl. Feel free to add more of the ingredients listed, it’s all rough measurements! 
  • Bring it all together: add the crispy rice to the veggies, top with the desired amount of dressing, toss, and enjoy!