This Wild Rice Salad is a fresh, high-fiber Mediterranean meal you can prep in minutes—perfect for easy lunches, healthy dinners, and anyone who wants a simple, nourishing recipe that actually keeps you full.
For more healthy salads, check out our chickpea cucumber salad, dense bean salad, Greek pasta salad, and chopped chickpea salad.
A Fresh, High-Fiber Salad You Can Meal Prep in Minutes
This Wild Rice Salad is one of those recipes that makes eating well feel effortless 🥗. It’s packed with fiber-rich grains, crisp fennel, sweet carrots, and protein-rich chickpeas, giving you a naturally satisfying meal that supports a balanced, Mediterranean-style eating pattern.
On our trip to Sicily, Louise and I fell in love with the simple fennel-and-orange salads sold at the market in Ortigia 🍊—and this recipe is my easy, make-at-home version. It brings in those bright flavors while staying incredibly practical for everyday cooking.
It’s also perfect for healthy work lunches or make-ahead Mediterranean meals, traveling well in a container and tasting even better the next day. Marinating the chickpeas in the dressing is the little trick that makes this so flavorful and removes that canned taste.
With budget-friendly ingredients, pantry staples, and plenty of whole-food goodness 🌿, this is the kind of no-fuss recipe that helps you eat more plants without overthinking dinner.
Ingredients
Full ingredients and substitutions are in the recipe box below.
- Wild rice: We love using pre-cooked packets because they save so much time and make this feel like an easy make-ahead lunch. If cooking from raw, boil it in plenty of water until tender. Substitute quinoa, buckwheat, farro, couscous, or even orzo—this recipe is flexible, so don’t let wild rice feel like a hurdle.
- Chickpeas: Canned chickpeas keep things simple and protein-rich. Swap with white beans, lentils, or even canned tuna or flaked salmon for a Mediterranean twist.
- Fennel: Don’t skip this one—it’s crunchy, naturally sweet, fiber-rich, and incredibly delicious, even if you’ve never tried it before. It adds that fresh Mediterranean flavor we fell in love with in Sicily. If you can’t find it, substitute celery, napa cabbage, cucumber, or thinly sliced green apple.
- Carrots: Shredded for sweetness and crunch. Replace with shaved zucchini or chopped bell peppers.
- Shallot: A mild onion that blends into the salad. Use red onion, scallions, or sweet onion.
- Olives: Castelvetrano, Kalamata, or any briny olive you like. More budget-friendly black or green olives work great too. You can also use capers, chopped sun-dried tomatoes, marinated artichoke hearts, or roasted peppers.
- Walnuts: Add healthy fats and texture. Swap with almonds, pumpkin seeds, pistachios, or sunflower seeds.
- Parsley: Fresh and herbaceous. Basil, mint, or dill work beautifully in this Mediterranean rice salad.
- Orange: Use the zest and juice for sweetness and brightness. Substitute lemon juice/zest, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar.
- Mustard: Dijon or yellow for tang. If you’re out, use a splash of vinegar and a pinch of garlic powder.
How to Make Wild Rice Salad
Before You Start: Cooking Wild Rice (If Using Raw)
If using raw wild rice, cook 1 cup dry rice to get about 3 cups (420 g) cooked. Boil it in plenty of water until the grains split and turn tender, then drain and cool. For a faster option, pre-cooked wild rice packets work perfectly.
Step 1. Make the Dressing
In a medium bowl, whisk together the olive oil, orange juice, orange zest, mustard, honey, dried oregano, salt, and black pepper. This bright, citrusy dressing is what gives the salad its Mediterranean flavor.
Step 2. Marinate the Chickpeas
Add the drained and rinsed chickpeas directly into the dressing. Toss well and let them sit while you prepare the vegetables. This quick step helps remove that tinny taste and makes the chickpeas extra flavorful.
Step 3. Prep the Vegetables and Rice
Add the cooked wild rice to a large mixing bowl. Slice the fennel thinly, shred the carrots, slice the shallot, chop the walnuts, and chop the parsley. Add everything to the bowl along with the olives. Using wild rice gives this dish that high-fiber meal prep feel that keeps you satisfied—perfect for a healthy work lunch recipe.
Step 4. Combine and Taste
Pour the marinated chickpeas and all the dressing over the rice and vegetables. Mix well until everything is evenly coated. Taste and adjust with more salt, pepper, or a splash of orange juice if you want extra brightness. Serve right away or refrigerate for later.
Tips
- Use pre-cooked wild rice to make this a true no-fuss meal—perfect for quick and easy make-ahead lunches.
- Let the chickpeas marinate for 10 minutes while you chop the vegetables. This removes the canned taste and adds tons of flavor.
- Slice the fennel thinly so it blends beautifully into the salad and keeps that crisp, refreshing bite.
- Don’t skip the zest. Orange or lemon zest is what gives this salad its bright Mediterranean personality.
- Taste and adjust at the end. A splash of extra citrus or a pinch of salt can completely lift the dish.
- Load it with herbs. Parsley adds freshness, but basil, mint, or dill make the salad pop too.
- Make it your own. Swap in cooked quinoa or farro to turn it into a flexible Mediterranean rice salad alternative.
- Add protein if you want. Chickpeas are perfect, but tuna, salmon, crumbled feta or chopped boiled eggs make it a fuller meal.
- Let it chill. The salad tastes even better after 30 minutes in the fridge as the flavors meld.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes—quinoa, barley, couscous, or orzo all work. Anything that feels hearty and holds dressing well is perfect for this wild rice and chickpeas–style salad.
It stays fresh for 4 days, making it great for meal prep or packing work lunches.
Not at all. Celery, green apple, or napa cabbage make great substitutes if fennel isn’t available or feels new to you.
Absolutely. Add tuna, flaked salmon, chopped boiled eggs, crumbled feta, edamame beans, extra chickpeas, or white beans to turn it into one of your favorite high protein vegetarian salads.
Lemon juice and zest, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar are all easy swaps.
Either works, but room temperature or chilled rice keeps a better bite.
Yes. Cook the rice, slice the vegetables, and mix the dressing the day before—then assemble when ready.
More Mediterranean Dinners
- Mediterranean Greens and Beans
- Turmeric Rice with Chickpeas
- Mediterranean Orzo and Beans
- 30-Minute Lentil and Orzo
- Dense Chickpea Sweet Potato Salad
- Greek Lentil Soup
- Chickpea Sweet Potato Patties
- Greek Chickpea Soup
If you tried this Wild Rice Salad recipe or any other recipe on our blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it goes in the comments. We love hearing from you!
Wild Rice Salad (Healthy Mediterranean Meal Prep)
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked wild rice or 1½ cups uncooked — Pre-cooked wild rice packets work great for faster cooking.
- 1 can chickpeas 15 oz / 400 g can — drained and rinsed — or 1½ cups / 230 g cooked chickpeas
- 1 fennel bulb quartered then thinly sliced – sub celery, napa cabbage, or green apple
- 2 carrot shredded
- 1 small shallot or a sweet red onion
- ½ cup olives Taggiasche, Castelvetrano, or Kalamata
- ½ cup walnuts
- ¼ cup Italian parsley chopped
For the Dressing
- 3 – 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons orange juice or lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon orange zest or lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons mustard yellow or Dijon
- 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon salt or more to taste + black pepper
Instructions
- Before You Start (Raw Rice Only): If using uncooked wild rice, boil 1 cup dry rice in plenty of water until the grains split and turn tender. Drain and cool. Pre-cooked wild rice packets work great if you want to skip this step.
- Make the dressing: In a medium bowl, whisk together 3 – 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons orange juice, 1 teaspoon orange zest, 2 tablespoons mustard, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, ½ teaspoon salt, and black pepper.
- Marinate the Chickpeas: Add 1 can chickpeas (drained and rinsed). Toss well and let them sit while you prep the vegetables. This helps them soak up flavor.
- Prep the salad ingredients: Add 3 cups cooked wild rice to a large mixing bowl. Slice 1 fennel bulb thinly, shred 2 carrot, slice 1 small shallot, chop ½ cup walnuts, and chop ¼ cup Italian parsley. Add everything to the bowl along with ½ cup olives.
- Combine and taste: Pour the marinated chickpeas and all the dressing over the salad. Mix well until everything is coated. Taste and add more salt, pepper, or orange juice if you like. Serve right away or store in the fridge.
Notes
- Wild rice → Use pre-cooked packets for speed. Substitute quinoa, buckwheat, farro, couscous, or orzo.
- Chickpeas → Replace with white beans, lentils, canned tuna, or flaked salmon.
- Fennel → Swap with celery, napa cabbage, cucumber, or thinly sliced green apple.
- Carrots → Use shaved zucchini or chopped bell peppers.
- Shallot → Substitute red onion, scallions, or sweet onion.
- Olives → Black or green olives, capers, sun-dried tomatoes, marinated artichokes, or roasted peppers.
- Walnuts → Replace with almonds, pumpkin seeds, pistachios, or sunflower seeds.
- Parsley → Use basil, mint, or dill.
- Orange → Substitute lemon juice/zest, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar.
- Mustard → Replace with a splash of vinegar plus a pinch of garlic powder.
- Use pre-cooked wild rice for a true no-fuss meal and quick make-ahead lunches.
- Marinate the chickpeas for 10 minutes to remove the canned taste and boost flavor.
- Slice the fennel thinly so it stays crisp and blends into every bite.
- Don’t skip the zest—orange or lemon gives the salad its bright Mediterranean flavor.
- Taste and adjust with extra citrus or salt to make the whole dish come alive.
- Add plenty of herbs like parsley, basil, mint, or dill for fresh flavor.
- Customize the grain with quinoa or farro for an easy Mediterranean rice salad variation.
- Boost the protein with tuna, salmon, feta, or chopped boiled eggs if you want a heartier meal.
- Storage: Store the salad in an airtight container in the fridge for 3–4 days, and while it’s best fresh, you can freeze it for up to one month.
Nutrition
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