During this time of year, we tend to eat a lot of rice salad in Italy. It’s the ideal meal for easy lunch and dinner solutions when there’s not much time to cook. In fact, you make it in advance and eat it at home, at work or outside. One of the advantages of rice salad is its versatility. It can be seasoned with different ingredients that never bore the palate and provide a wide variety of nutrients. What's more, if prepared with the right ingredients, it can become a one-of-a-kind, health-friendly dish. "The basic rule to follow for serving a balanced and complete rice salad is to choose recipes that provide the right amount of good carbohydrates, proteins, fibers and fats,” suggests nutritionist Valentina Schirò, who specializes in food science. Let's take a look at some tips to make rice salad a healthier dish together – with the help of Valentina’s expertise, of course!
Choose brown rice
Compared to white rice, brown rice gives you more of a feeling of fullness and it’s richer in valuable nutrients for your health. "It has a higher fiber content that slows down gastric emptying and reduces the absorption of sugars, ensuring a more prolonged sense of fullness," says nutritionist Valentina Schirò. It also contains more vitamins, minerals and other beneficial substances for the body. "Black rice, for example, provides polyphenols, particularly anthocyanins. These substances have antioxidant properties: They protect the body from damage caused by free radicals, which are responsible for cellular aging. They also have an anti-inflammatory action. They promote blood circulation and drainage of excess fluids, which are responsible for swelling.”
Pay attention to how you cook the rice
Many of the B vitamins rich in rice are water-soluble (meaning they dissolve in water) and sensitive to high temperatures. According to the expert, the best way to preserve the vitamins in the rice "is to opt for cooking via absorption in a little water.”
Always add colorful vegetables
Beyond just adding flavor to the dish, using fresh, cooked or raw vegetables will ensure that you’re getting the valuable nutrients you need. "The more they vary in color, the more they increase the vitamin content of the dish. Orange vegetables such as carrots, for example, provide beta-carotene, which is precious for protecting the skin from the damage of exposure to the sun. Red vegetables, such as peppers and tomatoes, are rich in lycopene, which protects against aging. Blue-violet vegetables, such as eggplant, contain antioxidants, useful for healthy circulation. And green vegetables, such as zucchini, are rich in minerals, which promote hydration," says the nutritionist. But there are other advantages, too: "The soluble fibers, which vegetables are rich in, help slow down the transformation of rice starch into sugars, helping to regulate blood glucose levels. They give you more of that feeling of fullness and reduce the risk of gaining weight, type 2 diabetes and many other disorders that can occur as we age.
Use only one protein
In order to make rice salad a healthy and well-balanced meal, it’s important to add only one source of protein. "This keeps you from exaggerating with fat and calories, that weigh on the waistline and health, and it facilitates digestion, which is slowed down by outdoor heat. Yes to fish, white meat (chicken or turkey) or eggs. Beans, chickpeas and other varieties of legumes or lean dairy products such as mozzarella or ricotta are fine, as well" suggests the expert.
Dress it with extra-virgin olive oil
"Thanks to its richness in mono-unsaturated fatty acids, extra-virgin olive oil makes the dish more satiating. It slows down the emptying of the stomach and lowers the glycemic load. In addition, the ‘good’ fats it contains work as antioxidants and help with the absorption of vitamin E, which it is particularly rich in," says the expert. "The ideal way to ensure all its benefits is to choose a cold-pressed oil and add it raw just before consuming. In fact, air and light tend to oxidize cold-pressed oils.
In the gallery, discover more tips from expert Valentina Schirò on how to make your rice salad even healthier!
Read also
Home Cooking: Insalata di Riso (Italian Rice Salad)
Read also
Prosciutto and Melon? Yes, but in Rice Salad\!
Read also
Classic Italian Rice Salad Recipe
