Panzanella style Rice Salad
This is my take on a rice salad ‘panzanella style’. I have taken all the traditional flavours & added my own twist, taking the bread element of the pazanella to make crispy “bread, anchovy & caper balls” for added piquancy & crunch.
For the salad, I cooked rustico nero venere rice until al dente. I prepped my bread balls in advance & only fried them when the rice salad was ready to be served. I added the drained warm rice to a bowl together with sliced yellow and cherry tomatoes, adding evoo, white balsamic vinegar & a good sprinkle of sea salt - mixed thoroughly together. I then divided this mixture into two bowls, decorating with my homemade pickled red onions & sprinkled with basil, toasted pine nuts & red chilli. The salad is then finished off with a handful of my crispy bread balls. This salad is best served at room temperature.
This salad is a real taste sensation & the black rice has a lovely nutty, chewy texture and it takes the flavour of all the ingredients really well.
Mangia, mangia! 👩🏻🍳
Panzanella-style Rice Salad recipe:
Bread, anchovy & caper balls
2 slices of stale sourdough bread (cut into chunks) soaked in milk for about 15 mins
3 anchovies - finely chopped
1 tbsp of capers - finely chopped
Small handful of fresh parsley - finely chopped
Black pepper
Vegetable oil for frying
Rice salad
200g of Riso Gallo Rustico Venere rice
1 small red onion - thinly sliced in rings or homemade pickled red onions
Mixture of yellow & cherry or plum tomatoes - sliced
Handful of toasted pine nuts
3-4 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
1-2 tbsps white balsamic vinegar
Sea salt
Basil leaves - thinly sliced
Red chilli - sliced
Serves 2
1. Make the bread balls first - Squeeze the milk out of the bread & put the bread into a food processor & pulse a few times. Remove & add to a large bowl & mix together with the finely chopped anchovies, capers, parsley & a grinding of black pepper. Take 1 tsp of the mixture & form small balls, then put them in to the fridge to firm up for at least 30 minutes or until you need to use them.
2. Cook the Venere rice in salted boiling water for about 20 minutes & drain while still a little al dente. Add the warm rice to a large bowl with the sliced tomatoes, add the evoo, vinegar & sea salt & mix everything together thoroughly. Taste for seasoning.
3. Heat the oil in a medium frying pan until hot - fry the balls until golden brown for about 2 minutes or so. Remove them & drain them thoroughly on a plate lined with paper towels. Fry in batches if necessary.
4. Serve the rice mixture in bowls & add the red onions rings (or red pickled onions) on top, sprinkle the basil & pine nuts & chilli, finishing off with the crispy bread balls.
