A rather old-fashioned rice salad recipe

By Tom Norrington-Davies

Serves 4
Takes 30 minutes to make, plus cooling
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This was inspired by the reprint of the classic Italian cookbook, The Silver Spoon, published by Phaidon, which lists (a possibly record-breaking) 10 rice salads. My mother wouldn’t have dreamed of a picnic without rice salad when I was a boy but they seem to have disappeared a bit. Don’t let the odd mix of ingredients put you off – there is method in the madness.

Ingredients

300g long-grain rice
100g podded broad beans
2 spring onions, sliced
200g can tuna steak in olive oil, drained
200g freshly grated Gruyère cheese
4 ripe tomatoes, deseeded and chopped
8 pickled baby gherkins (cornichons)
8 baby artichoke hearts from a jar
100g radishes, trimmed, washed and sliced
4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Juice of 1 lemon
Roughly or finely chopped fresh flatleaf parsley, to garnish

Method

1. The easiest way to cook rice is by absorption – don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Put the rice and 450ml cold water in a small saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, cover, and cook over a gentle heat for 15 minutes, never letting the water boil. You want the water to barely simmer. Don’t be tempted to add more water when it is absorbed – steam will finish the job. Spread the rice over a baking tray and allow it to cool thoroughly.
2. Blanch the broad beans in plenty of salted, boiling water for about 2 minutes, then shuck them from their skins by squeezing them between your thumb and forefinger.
3. Mix the broad beans, spring onions and rice in a large bowl. Fold in the tuna, cheese, tomatoes, gherkins, artichokes and radishes. Whisk the olive oil with the lemon juice and fold into the salad. Season to taste and garnish with parsley to serve.