This Crispy Rice Salad is a healthy lunch recipe that is perfect for using up leftover rice. It has a delicious mix of textures and flavors and is tossed in a simply addicting sauce.
Sheet-pan
Easy cleanup
You’ll Learn: How to turn plain rice into a cravable salad
Worth It: It’s a versatile plant-packed meal
Bonus: Plenty of substitution options
Crispy rice salad originated in Laos. It is a popular appetizer there called Nam Khao. Many restaurants deep fry the rice to give it the perfect crispy texture, but I found that you can still get good flavor and texture by baking the rice in an oven.
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Use up leftover rice – This viral crispy rice salad is one of my favorite ways to use up any leftover rice. Give leftovers a new life by seasoning and crisping the rice in the oven and mixing with veggies, edamame beans, and fresh herbs.
- Perfect for meal prep – The rice is best if eaten freshly crisped, but I still really like this salad after a day or two because the savory sesame dressing has soaked into all of the ingredients.
- Use what you have on hand – change up the veggies to use up whatever you have on hand or whatever you like. This is a fantastic clean out the fridge meal.
Serving Suggestions
I like to serve this easy crispy rice salad recipe with an extra protein on top. This almond butter chicken satay is a perfect flavor compliment for this veggie loaded salad. you can also add in some shredded rotisserie chicken and make little lettuce cups with extra sauce.
If you want to keep the full recipe vegetarian you can make a batch of air fryer crispy tofu to serve with the rice salad.
Ingredients
- Cooked rice – use cooked leftover jasmine rice straight from the fridge to season and crisp in the oven. I personally like to use cooked and cooled rice, but you can also use fresh rice.
- Rice vinegar, sesame oil, salt and sugar – mix these together to make a seasoning sauce for the rice before baking it
- Cucumber and edamame – these add lots of bright flavor and texture to the dish. The edamame also adds delicious and healthy plant based protein. I like to use persian cucumbers for the best crunch.
- Sliced green onions and chopped cilantro – fresh alliums and herbs brighten up this savory salad
- Toasted sesame seeds – these seeds and toasted sesame oil add rich sesame flavor to this salad that will keep you coming back for more
- Soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sesame oil, and chili crisp – mix these together to make a savory, sweet and slightly spicy dressing to toss the salad in.
Ingredient Substitutions
I usually use plain white long grain rice like a jasmine rice to make the crispy rice, but you can use any kind you have on hand. I think white rice or brown rice will work better than something like a wild rice.
Cucumber adds freshness and crunch to this salad, but you can add any fresh and crunchy vegetables that you enjoy like bell peppers, shredded red cabbage, and shredded carrots.
If you do not like edamame you can omit it or replace it with more veggies or creamy avocado.
I used thinly slice scallions to give the salad onion flavor, but you can also use thinly sliced red onion or shallot.
Chili crisp adds subtle spice to the dressing. I only use a tiny bit, but you can add more or use something else for spice like sriracha or crushed red peppers.
You can use maple syrup in place of honey to sweet the dressing for this delicious salad.
How to make
Step 1: Cook crispy rice in oven
Preheat oven to 375F and whisk rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, granulated sugar and kosher salt together (Image 1). Pour overcooked rice and toss to coat.
Pour seasoned rice on an unlined baking sheet (Image 2). You can use parchment paper to line the baking sheet, but I prefer to bake directly on the sheet for maximum crispiness. If you are worried about the rice sticking, spray the sheet with a bit of olive oil.
Bake for 25-30 minutes tossing the rice every 10 minutes (Image 3). Be sure to check on rice frequently as it can easily burn.
Step 2: Prepare dressing and mix everything together
Allow rice to cool slightly and then pour crispy rice into a large bowl with chopped cucumber, edamame, sliced green onion, chopped cilantro and toasted sesame seeds (Image 4).
Whisk low sodium soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, honey, toasted sesame oil, and chili crisp together in a small bowl or pitcher to make a dressing. Pour dressing over the salad ingredients and toss to combine everything. Serve immediately.
Storage
The crispy rice texture is ideal when enjoyed immediately, but I still like this salad for leftovers. Store leftovers in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Toss it together to refresh each time you enjoy a serving.
Check out these other Vegetarian Spring Salads
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
Email Recipe for Later
Recipe
Crispy Rice Salad
Ingredients
Crispy Rice Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked rice
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp kosher salt
Salad Ingredients
- 2 cups cucumber chopped
- 12 oz shelled edamame cooked and cooled
- 1/4 cup green onion thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp chili crisp optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Whisk 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil, 2 tsp granulated sugar and 1 tsp kosher salt together.
- Pour over 3 cups cooked rice and toss to coat. Pour seasoned rice on an unlined baking sheet.
- Place baking sheet in the oven at 375F. Bake for 25-30 minutes tossing the rice every 10 minutes. Be sure to check on rice frequently as it can easily burn
- Allow rice to cool slightly and then pour crispy rice into a large mixing bowl with chopped cucumber, edamame, sliced green onion, chopped cilantro and toasted sesame seeds
- Whisk 2 tbsp soy sauce, 2 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tbsp honey, 1 tsp toasted sesame oil, and 1/2 tsp chili crisp together. Pour dressing over the salad and toss to combine everything. Serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- I used white jasmine rice for this recipe, but you can use any kind of white rice or brown rice. I do not recommend using wild rice.
- To make this recipe gluten free you can use coconut aminos or tamari in place of soy sauce
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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