Black Rice and Lentil Mediterranean Salad

I love lentils but I do not cook them enough. They really know no bounds. They are the perfect high-protein, high-fibre, plant-based food and carry so much flavour. Whatever dish you use them in, they’ll absorb all the flavours and add a great satiety to a dish. Take this salad for example, without them it’s still a good salad but the black Puy lentils add a wonderful texture contrast to the dish.

Talking of colours… the different coloured lentils behave very differently. From experience and knowledge you’ll want a split or red lentil for a softer stew or Dahl – like my kitchari – but you’ll want to opt for a studier green or black Puy lentil in a salad, that way it won’t go mushy. I use black and green lentils pretty interchangeable so feel free to use whichever you have to hand. 

Back to the flavour. This salad is a celebration of all things wonderfully rich in natural oils that happen to be Mediterranean. Nothing can beat a really simple salad made from the freshest ingredients dressed in the best quality extra virgin olive oil you can find/afford. The taste really is next to none. This Black Rice and Lentil Mediterranean Salad relies on these principles.

The ingredient list is simple but wonderful.

This salad was inspired by an exciting delivery of Belazu ingredients I received including a bag of black Venus rice. I love this rice so much. It requires a little more cooking time but the nuttier flavour, amazing colour and firmer texture cannot be equalled in my opinion. That said, you can use the same weight of any rice in this salad. 

While the rice and lentils cook, chop up some fresh vegetables, olives and herbs and the third star of the show are the smokey sun-dried tomatoes. They are something else! Pillowy soft and juicy, they are packed with flavour and the longer you let this salad rest, the more the flavours infuse. A little balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper and that’s it! The perfect balance of tangy, sweet, savoury and rich.

I hope you’ll love this Black Rice and Lentil Mediterranean Salad, it’s smokey, flavourful, sturdy, filling, versatile, Mediterranean, naturally gluten free, vegan and refined sugar free and so delicious.

This would also make the perfect side dish at a summer BBQ, potluck or Mediterranean mezze style feast, so let me know how you enjoy it!

Black Rice and Lentil Mediterranean Salad

• Servings: 2
• Time: 25 minutes
• Difficulty: easy
• Print

The perfect Mediterranean salad with nutty black rice and lentils, smokey sundried tomatoes and olives. Dressed in a simple balsamic-olive oil dressing, this is a delicious, vegan, gluten free and healthy meal.

Ingredients

• 100g black rice
• 80g black lentils
• 60g smokey sun-dried tomatoes, chopped small
• 50g olives, in half
• 10 cherry tomatoes, in quarters
• 1 red pepper, small dice
• 2 spring onions, sliced
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and black pepper
• Small bunch fresh parsley, roughly chopped

Directions

1. Cook the black rice and black lentils according to packet instructions, drain and leave to one side.
2. Prepare all the vegetables as instructed and place into a mixing bowl with the rice, lentils and all the other ingredients. If you don’t have smokey sun-dried tomatoes, use ordinary ones and add 1/2 tsp smoked paprika. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
3. Serve straight away or this salad will keep for 3 days in the fridge in an airtight container.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this Black Rice and Lentil Mediterranean Salad so please leave your comments below and tag me in your creations – I’m @nourishing.amy on Instagram and use the hashtag #nourishingamy. I’m also on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest  so please say hi!

With Mediterranean love x

This post is not sponsored although the black rice and smokey sun-dried tomatoes were kindly gifted.