Riso Freddo – Italian Rice Salad

I know Summer is almost over – To be fair, the moment September hits I’m all for apple pie, hot apple cider, stews… Don’t care!

But, ok, it’s still kind of warm here in Chicago and mum has been visiting and made one of my favourite things ever… Riso Freddo. Cold Rice. “Cold Rice” doesn’t sound too appealing in English, does it?

I frankly cannot find the inspiration to write about ‘cold rice’ but I can be a little more poetic about Riso Freddo.

I can tell you about how mum made it when summer hit Italy and about how clever it was of her because she worked full time and making a big bowl of the stuff in advance meant she could feed both Pa and me without much effort after a long day in the office. I can tell you that you can make it with pickled vegetables out of a jar or with fresh vegetables or with a mixture. I can also tell you that you can replace mortadella with hotdogs and it’ll still be delicious.

I can tell you all those things, but instead I will tell you that here is the recipe and that you should try it for yourself and imagine my parents and I sitting on the balcony swatting away mosquitoes and telling each other about our days whilst piling more and more riso freddo on our plates. The village descending into its nightly calm. The breeze blowing in light from the hills.

Happy End of Summer everyone!

Riso Freddo – Italian Rice Salad

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• Author: BribedWithFood
• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 2
• Category: Salads

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Ingredients

1. 250gr brown basmati rice
2. 85gr mortadella finely diced
3. 40gr provolone cheese finely diced
4. 120gr raw courgette finely diced
5. 60gr artichoke hearts roughly chopped
6. 20gr cocktail onions roughly chopped
7. 115gr cherry tomatoes finely diced
8. 10gr fresh basil roughly chopped
9. 120ml natural Greek yogurt
10. 15ml red wine vinegar
11. Salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

1. Cook the rice to packet instructions ensuring it maintains some of its crunch;
2. Let cool to room temperature;
3. Mix the rice with all other ingredients in a big salad bowl;
4. Cover and let rest in the fridge for at least a couple of hours;
5. Take out of the fridge 10-15 minutes before serving.

Notes

• If you let the salad rest overnight it will taste even better.
• Salad will keep in the fridge up to 2 days.

Keywords: rice, salad, Italian food