Eleonora Galasso’s black rice salad, with chicory, tuna and orange, would make a beautiful side as part of an alfresco lunch. She says:
”The dark, almost black, venere nero rice is a variety that’s been cultivated for a long time in Italy, in the Po Valley area of northern Italy, where wise Italian women have been cooking it for generations. The rice has remarkable nutritional properties – a high content of minerals and antioxidants that, according to recent studies, may be beneficial to health.”
Check out our black rice salad with roasted carrots, shallots and ricotta for a vegetarian version.
Join Extradelicious to unlock Cook Mode
Ingredients
- 500g venere nero (black venus) rice (see Know-how)
- 8 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 300g top-quality tinned tuna in olive oil, drained
- 400g tin cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
- 2 tsp fennel seeds
- 2 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp mascarpone
- 10 capers, drained and rinsed
- 6 black peppercorns, crushed
- Juice 2 oranges
- 2 heads chicory, roughly chopped
- Small handful fresh coriander leaves
- 1 tsp whole pink peppercorns
Join Extradelicious to unlock Cook Mode
Method
- Soak the black rice in a bowl half-filled with cold tap water for 30 minutes (see tip).
- Heat 4 tbsp of the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat and cook the shallots for 5 minutes. Transfer the shallots and the cooking oil to a food processor with the tuna, cannellini beans, fennel seeds, white wine vinegar, mascarpone, capers, peppercorns and orange juice. Whizz to form a sauce with a spoonable consistency. Set aside until ready to serve (see Make Ahead).
- Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Drain the rice, then add it to the pan. Cook for 30-35 minutes until al dente (it should still have a bit of bite).
Scoop out and set aside a cup of the cooking water before draining the rice. Spread out the rice on a baking sheet to cool (see Make Ahead). - Meanwhile, using the same pan that you used to cook the shallots, warm the remaining 4 tbsp olive oil for a couple of minutes over a medium heat, then add the chopped chicory. Cover with a lid (or with foil) and cook for 15 minutes.
- Toss the tuna sauce and half the chicory through the rice in the pan, adding a little of the reserved cooking water and an extra drizzle of oil, until the rice is well coated. Serve on a platter scattered with the remaining chicory, a handful of coriander leaves and the pink peppercorns. Enjoy warm or cold.
Nutrition
- 615kcals Calories
- 23.8g (4.1g saturated) Fat
- 23.5g23.5g Protein
- 73.5g (5.3g sugars) Carbs
- 6.3g Fibre
- 0.4g Salt
Leave a comment, question or tip