Italian · Lunch · Dinner
Italian Rice Salad with Tuna and Egg
Insalata di riso
A bright, summery Italian cold rice salad packed with crunchy vegetables, flaky tuna, olives and hard-boiled egg, dressed simply with lemon and extra-virgin olive oil. It is ideal for picnics, packed lunches and warm evenings.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Total
- 60 min
- Serves
- 4
Calories come from: Carbs 50% · Fat 32% · Protein 18%
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Ingredients
For 4 servings- 1 1/2 cups300 glong-grain brown rice
- 8 1/2 cups2,000 gwater (for the rice)
- 1/4 tspsalt
- 4 large200 geggs
- 4 cups1,000 gwater (for the eggs)
- 1 cup150 gfrozen peas
- 2 cans (about 1 cup drained)230 gtuna canned in water, drained
- 1 1/2 cups250 gcherry tomatoes
- 1 medium150 gred bell pepper
- 1/2 medium150 gcucumber
- 1/2 cup80 gcanned sweetcorn, drained
- 1/2 cup60 gpitted green olives
- 1 tbsp9 gcapers, drained
- 3 tbsp40 gextra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp30 glemon juice
- 1 small handful10 gfresh basil leaves
- 1/2 tspground black pepper
Steps
- 1
Bring the rice water to the boil in a large pot.
- 2
Add the brown rice and simmer uncovered for 30-35 minutes, until tender but still with a little bite.
- 3
Meanwhile, place the eggs in a small pan with the egg water, bring to the boil, then simmer for 9 minutes.
- 4
Transfer the eggs to cold water to cool, then peel and cut into quarters.
- 5
Add the frozen peas to the rice pot for the last 3 minutes of cooking.
- 6
Drain the rice and peas, rinse briefly under cold water and spread on a tray to cool completely, about 15 minutes.
- 7
While the rice cools, halve the cherry tomatoes, dice the bell pepper and cucumber, and slice the olives.
- 8
Whisk the olive oil, lemon juice, salt and black pepper together in a large bowl.
- 9
Add the cooled rice and peas, tomatoes, pepper, cucumber, sweetcorn, olives and capers, and toss with the dressing.
- 10
Flake in the drained tuna and fold gently so it stays in chunks.
- 11
Tear in the basil, top with the egg quarters and serve, or chill covered for up to 1 day.
Swaps, storage and make-ahead
Swaps
- For a vegan version, leave out the tuna and eggs and fold in 1 1/2 cups of drained canned chickpeas instead.
- Use long-grain white rice and cook it for about 10 to 12 minutes if you want a softer, quicker salad like the one in the photo.
- Swap the green olives for pitted black olives, or use a mix of both for more colour.
- Replace the canned tuna with drained canned salmon or shredded cooked chicken if you prefer a milder flavour.
Storage
Refrigerate leftovers in a covered container within 2 hours and eat within 1 day, keeping the salad cold and serving it chilled rather than reheating. This salad does not freeze well, as the eggs, cucumber and tomatoes turn watery.
Make ahead
Cook, cool and refrigerate the rice and peas, and boil and peel the eggs up to 1 day ahead. Chop the vegetables and whisk the dressing on the day, then toss everything together shortly before serving.
Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.
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Allergens and nutrition
Contains: EggsFish
Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.
Full nutrition
| Per serving (1,165 g) | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 579 kcal | 50 kcal |
| Protein | 27 g | 2.3 g |
| Carbohydrates | 73 g | 6.3 g |
| of which sugars | 7.6 g | 0.7 g |
| Fiber | 7.2 g | 0.6 g |
| Fat | 20.7 g | 1.8 g |
| of which saturated | 4 g | 0.3 g |
| Sodium | 766 mg | 66 mg |
Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.
