🍚 Italian Rice Salad (Insalata di Riso)
Insalata di riso is Italy's favourite summer rice salad: cooked rice cooled and mixed with tuna, sweet corn, olives, diced tomato and artichoke hearts, dressed simply with olive oil and lemon or vinegar. It is fresh, colourful and slightly tangy, with every forkful offering a different bite. It is served cold, often packed for picnics and beach days.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 300 g rice (such as Arborio or parboiled)
- 160 g canned tuna, drained
- 150 g sweet corn
- 80 g pitted olives, sliced
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 150 g artichoke hearts, quartered
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp lemon juice or vinegar
- Salt, pepper and basil
Method
- Boil the rice in salted water until just tender, drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.
- Spread the rice out to cool completely.
- Mix in tuna, corn, olives, tomatoes and artichokes.
- Dress with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper and basil.
- Chill for at least 30 minutes before serving.
How to make it lighter
- Choose tuna packed in water rather than oil to save fat.
- Use more tomato and artichoke and a little less rice per portion.
- Olives add up quickly; a small handful is enough for flavour.
History
Rice salad is a fixture of Italian home cooking in summer, served cold at family lunches, picnics and seaside outings. Each family has its own mix of add-ins.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →