Wild Rice Salad with apples and pomegranates is a celebration of fall flavors. Containing pine nuts, dates, and a tangy dressing, it's wonderful for lunch or as a holiday side. And this whole grain salad is perfect for meal prep since you can cook the wild rice in advance either on the stove or in an Instant Pot electric pressure cooker.
Salads without lettuce are perfect when the weather is cool and you want a hearty dish. While it's common to find ancient grains in pilafs and wild rice soup, they make delicious bases for salads as well.
And when you combine wild rice with seasonal fruits like apples and pomegranates, this Wild Rice Salad is sure to become a fall and winter staple.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- It's loaded with fantastic flavors and textures yet only requires 8 ingredients (plus salt and pepper).
- You can prepare it in advance, making it perfect for both meal prep and holiday gatherings.
- It can be enjoyed on its own or served with a variety of dishes.
Ingredients
For the complete list of ingredients with measurements plus recipe instructions, please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
- Wild rice
- Apple (Use your favorite variety such as Gala, Honeycrisp, or Fuji.)
- Pomegranate seeds, also called arils (Purchase a container of the seeds or remove them yourself using My Favorite Way to Seed a Pomegranate or your preferred method.)
- Pine nuts
- Medjool dates
- Olive oil
- Apple cider vinegar
- Lemon juice (Meyer lemon juice is particularly good in this recipe.)
- Salt
Instructions
- Cook the wild rice on the stove according to the package directions until tender. (I've included directions for cooking wild rice in an Instant Pot in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.) Allow to cool and transfer to a large bowl.
- Add the apples, pomegranate seeds, pine nuts, and dates.
- Whisk the dressing ingredients and pour over the salad.
- Toss until all the ingredients are well coated.
Amy's tip
Spread the cooked wild rice out on rimmed sheet pans lined with parchment paper to allow it to cool more quickly.
Variations
- If wild rice is too expensive or unavailable, substitute a wild rice blend. Blends usually contain a mixture of brown rice, wild rice, red rice, and/or black rice.
- For a festive contrast of colors, use a green Granny Smith apple.
- For a nut-free version, leave out the pine nuts and use pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds instead.
- Substitute orange juice in place of the lemon juice.
- Use a little tahini in place of olive oil.
- Add other ingredients such as persimmons, oranges, dried cranberries, raisins, or pecans.
Serving suggestions
While Wild Rice Salad is delicious as a complete lunch, it's also wonderful as a holiday side dish. Try it with a combination of these favorite recipes:
Storing
Leftover salad can be covered and refrigerated for up to 5 days. This makes it perfect for preparing in advance to serve at Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, or Christmas.
FAQ
Wild rice isn't actually rice at all. In fact, it's classified as a grass. And it's actually more nutritious than white rice since wild rice contains fewer calories, more protein, and more fiber. In addition, it's high in magnesium, potassium, and vitamin B6, according to Healthline's Wild Rice Nutrition Review.
Wild rice isn't grown on a large scale commercially. But is wild rice really that expensive? One cup of dry wild rice yields 3 to 4 cups when cooked. So a little really goes a long way. For example, you only need one cup for this Wild Rice Salad which serves 6.
Wild rice is tough and absorbs water slowly. If cooking it on the stove, allow at least 45 minutes to an hour for it to cook. It will take 25 minutes to cook in a pressure cooker like an Instant Pot, but that doesn't include the time it takes to come up to pressure and for the pressure to release.
More grain salad recipes
And for even more recipes, join the Vegan Mediterranean Diet Recipes Facebook group for support, inspiration, and fun.
If you love this recipe, please give it 5 stars! ★★★★★
📋 Recipe
Wild Rice Salad with Apples
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup wild rice
- 1 large apple, diced
- 1 cup pomegranate seeds
- ¼ cup pine nuts
- ¼ cup Medjool dates, (about 3) pitted and chopped
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Prepare the wild rice according to the package directions. Or to make in an Instant Pot, combine the wild rice with 2½ cups water. Set the timer for 25 minutes on High (Pressure Cook). Allow the pressure to release naturally. Drain off any excess water that wasn't absorbed.Let the rice cool until you're ready to make the salad. For faster cooling, spread out the rice on a rimmed baking sheet.
- In a large bowl, combine the cooked and cooled wild rice with all the other ingredients. Toss until well combined.
- Refrigerate the salad until ready to serve. Or if preferred, let the salad come to room temperature before serving.
Notes
- If wild rice is too expensive or unavailable, substitute a wild rice blend. Blends usually contain a mixture of brown rice, wild rice, red rice, and/or black rice.
- Any of your favorite variety of apples can be used such as Honeycrisp, Gala, or Fuji.
- For a festive contrast of colors, use a green Granny Smith apple.
- For a nut-free version, leave out the pine nuts and use pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds instead.
- Substitute orange juice in place of the lemon juice.
- Use a little tahini in place of olive oil.
- Add other ingredients such as persimmons, oranges, dried cranberries, raisins, or pecans.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimation only.
Jessica Escorcia
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I didn't know what to do with my wild rice and I wouldn't have thought of a salad like this on my own but it came out great! I toasted the pine nuts and I added some tahini to the dressing like someone else suggested:) It was a hit!
Amy Katz
That's fantastic! Thanks so much, Jessica!
Irene Ecklund
I plan to use black rice with this recipe. I hope that will work. Love the recipe and will make it for day after thanksgiving I think...Thanks for recipe!!!
Amy
I'm sure black rice would be wonderful, too! Let me know how it turns out!
Daniela
Thank you! That looks delicious! Two things though, you forgot persimmons! They'd be perfect in this recipe! And the other thing is the wild rice at trader Joe's is the cheapest I found everywhere! Thanks again for a great recipe!
Amy
Persimmons are great, too! And yes, I frequently buy wild rice at TJ's. 🙂
Daniela
I made it this evening , adding persimmons, replacing dates with raisins and pine nuts with pecans, and making the dressing tahini based. We liked it so much we had 3 servings! Thank you for the recipe!
Amy
I'm glad you enjoyed it, Daniela!
kelly
Great timing, Amy! We are having our staff Thanksgiving potluck. Now I know what I am bringing! Thank you!
Question: You say you can prep this a few days ahead. Won't the apples turn brown-- or does the acv keep the apples from turning brown?
Amy
I think everyone will enjoy it, Kelly! When I made it a day ahead, my apples stayed nice. And the leftovers the following day were fine, too.
Leslie
I made it with a green apple! It’s so pretty and tastes delicious. I’ll post my dinner picture to IG tonight. We are having Gardein cutlets and mashed potatoes too.
Amy
Yay! I'm so happy you enjoyed it, Leslie!