Greek Brown Rice Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

If you're craving something other than your average summer salad, give this Greek Brown Rice Salad a shot! It's made with chilled brown rice and a ton of Greek inspired flavors!

This post may contain affiliate links.  Making a purchase through one of these links helps support this blog.

It's surprising that we aren't sick of Greek inspired food yet.  I had planned to make feta and spinach sausage for dinner tonight with a green salad, but I got creative this afternoon and made a brown rice salad instead.  Up until now, I've never had a salad made with rice.  I've only ever had rice in warm bowls or with stir fries. But it's actually pretty good cold!

I used Greek inspired flavors to make this salad.  I chopped up some fresh herbs and green onions from the garden, and added red bell pepper, garlic, tomatoes, black olives, and crumbled feta cheese.  Then, I mixed up a simple lemon vinaigrette, poured it over the salad, and let it sit in the fridge until dinner time.  The salad ended up being a real hit!

Not only does this salad make a great side dish, but it's delicious on its own as a light lunch during hot days.  You could even toss in some grilled chicken or shrimp to turn it into a delicious, chilled summer entrée!

Greek Brown Rice Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

This Greek Brown Rice Salad is a great way to use up leftover rice from the night before and also summer veggies and herbs from your garden!  You might also want to whip it up the night before so all of that lemon vinaigrette and other flavors soak into the salad.  Just keep a little extra vinaigrette on the side to stir in before serving!

I always have a bag of brown rice on hand and like to make extra so I can freeze the leftovers.  But if you need to make a pot of rice for this salad, I highly recommend cooking it in chicken or veggie broth instead of water.  It adds a ton of flavor to the rice!

Once your rice is cooked, add it to a bowl along with the cucumber, tomatoes, olives, parsley, green onions, and garlic.  Give everything a good stir to mix it all up.

Add some crumbled feta cheese and season with salt and pepper.  If you want to add a dash of spice to the salad, sprinkle in some crushed red pepper flakes.  A little goes a long way so just add a pinch!

You can use a bottled vinaigrette to finish off the salad, but it's so easy to make your own!  Add olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, and salt and pepper to a small mason jar.  Screw the lid onto the jar and give it a good shake.  Then, pour the dressing over the salad.

Give the salad one last toss and add a little more crumbled feta cheese on top, if desired.  Keep the salad chilled in the fridge before serving.

Greek Brown Rice Salad with Lemon Vinaigrette

Jessica

If you’re craving something other than your average summer salad, give this Greek Brown Rice Salad a shot! It’s made with chilled brown rice and a ton of Greek inspired flavors!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Course Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine Greek

Servings 6

Ingredients

  

For the brown rice salad:

• 1 1/2 cups brown rice cooked and cooled completely
• 1 mini cucumber seeded and chopped
• 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
• 1/4 cup pitted black olives sliced
• 1/2 tbsp. fresh parsley
• 3 green onions chopped
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 1/2 cups crumbled feta cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Optional: pinch of crushed red pepper flakes

For the lemon vinaigrette:

• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 small lemon juiced
• 1/2 tsp. honey
• 1/4 tsp. fresh oregano minced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

 

For the brown rice salad:

• Add the brown rice, cucumber, tomatoes, olives, parsley, green onions, garlic to a large mixing bowl and stir.
• Add the crumbled feta cheese and season with salt and pepper. If desired, add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes as well.

For the lemon vinaigrette:

• In a small mason jar, add the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, oregano, and salt and pepper.
• Screw the lid onto the jar and give it a good shake.
• Pour the dressing over the salad and stir.
• Sprinkle more crumbled feta cheese on top, if desired, and serve.
• If you're not serving the salad right away, chill in the fridge before serving.

Keyword easy side dishes, greek inspired recipes, rice, rice recipes, salad recipes

If you're getting sick of green salads, pasta salads, and all of your average summer salads, give this Greek Brown Rice Salad a try!  It's fresh, flavorful, filling, and something different to enjoy this summer!

Did you make this Greek Brown Rice Salad recipe? Share it on social media using the hashtag #holokahome. Don’t forget to tag me @holokahome!