This salad showcases how good it tastes when you combine different flavours and textures! Sweet roasted vegetables, nutty brown rice, creamy feta, crunchy almonds and tangy pickled onions – tied together with a simple creamy tahini dressing.
This Week
2 Dec - 8 Dec
Warm Brown Rice, Chickpea Salad with Roasted Pumpkin, Carrot and Feta
- Under 1 hour
- 4
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Meal Prep Guide
Prepare the pickled onions if using (store in a jar in the fridge)
Ingredients
- 1 red onion (finely sliced)
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup red wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp coconut sugar/brown sugar
- 1 tsp salt
Method
- Add the sliced red onion to a glass jar.
- In a small saucepan add the water, vinegar, sugar and salt.
- Bring to the boil and then remove from the heat. Pour the boiling vinegar mixture over the onions and let sit for at least an hour before putting the lid on and placing it in the fridge.
Pre-chop the carrots and pumpkin (store together in an airtight container in the fridge)
- Cut three carrots into rounds.
- Cut ¼ crown pumpkin into bite-sized cubes.
Make the dressing (store in a jar in the fridge)
Ingredients
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 lemon (juice)
- 2 Tbsp hulled tahini
- 2 tsp honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
- Pinch of salt and pepper
Method
- Add all the ingredients to a glass jar and shake well to combine.
Tips
- Once the rice has cooked, we recommend spreading it out over a large plate or tray to allow it to cool down quickly. This also allows it to ‘dry’ so it doesn’t go gluggy and stick together.
- Make sure to give the vegetables enough space on the tray, cramming the tray will create a steaming effect, which is not going achieve the golden exterior you’re after. Read this blog post to learn more about how to roast perfect veggies.
- If you make the pickled onions, you will most likely not use them all with this salad. The good news is they can last up to 2 weeks in the fridge! They’re great to have on hand as they elevate salads, meats, curries, Mexican-inspired dishes, and would be yummy with this week’s Crispy Potatoes Topped with Harissa Spiced Mince and Golden Feta
Shortcuts
Vegetables
- This salad works well with almost any roasted vegetables you can use beetroot, parsnips, sweet potatoes or even cauliflower.
Protein
- If you want to serve this salad alongside some extra protein you can make our Garlic, Herb Butter Steak, Blacked Salmon or Lemon, Oregano Chicken or simply add some shredded chicken or a side of smoked salmon.
Other
- You can swap out the tahini for a smooth almond butter in the dressing.
- Swap out the brown rice for black rice or quinoa.
Ingredients
Salad
- ¼ crown pumpkin (cut into bite-sized cubes)
- 3 carrots (sliced into rounds)
- 2 red onions (sliced into wedges)
- 1 cup brown rice
- 400g chickpeas, 1 tin (rinsed and drained)
- ½ cup parsley (finely chopped)
- ½ cup coriander (finely chopped)
- ⅓ cup roasted almonds (roughly chopped)
- 75g feta (crumbled)
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Dressing
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 lemon (juice)
- 2 Tbsp hulled tahini
- 2 tsp honey or maple syrup
- 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
- Pinch of salt and pepper
Pickled onions (optional)
- 1 red onion (finely sliced)
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup red wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar or white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp coconut sugar/brown sugar
- 1 tsp salt
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees, fan bake.
- Start off by making the pickled onions (if you are using them), add the sliced red onion to a glass jar. In a small saucepan, add the water, vinegar, sugar and salt. Bring to the boil, allowing the sugar and salt to dissolve, then remove from the heat. Pour the boiling vinegar mixture over the onions and let sit for at least an hour before putting the lid on and placing it in the fridge.
- Spread the carrots, red onion and pumpkin across 1 large or 2 smaller baking trays. Drizzle generously with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Pop in the oven to roast for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and starting to crisp up in places.
- Cook the rice as per packet instructions (we like to use the absorption method).
- To make the dressing, simply add all the ingredients to a glass jar and shake well to combine.
- Once the rice has cooked, spread out over a plate or tray to allow to cool down quickly, this also stops it from going gluggy and sticking together.
- Once the rice has cooled slightly, add it to a large salad bowl or platter and add the chickpeas, herbs, almonds and the dressing. Toss well to make sure everything is coated in the dressing.
- Add the roasted vegetables and gently toss through the salad. Crumble over the feta and top with the pickled onions.
Variations
Vegetables
- This salad works well with almost any roasted vegetables you can use beetroot, parsnips, sweet potatoes or even cauliflower.
Protein
- If you want to serve this salad alongside some extra protein you can make our Garlic, Herb Butter Steak, Blacked Salmon or Lemon, Oregano Chicken or simply add some shredded chicken or a side of smoked salmon.
Other
- You can swap out the tahini for a smooth almond butter in the dressing.
- Swap out the brown rice for black rice or quinoa.
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