Healthy Rice Side Dish Recipes

A simple dressing of sherry vinegar, Dijon mustard and paprika flavors this rice and lentil salad. It's a great way to use up leftovers.

This simple rice is a perfect side dish for meat, poultry or fish. Fresh mint, cilantro, green onions and lemon peel add to the delicious nutty flavor of the basmati rice.

This whole-grain wild rice and quinoa salad recipe is perfect for toting to summer potlucks. It features sweet cherries, crunchy celery, nutty aged goat cheese and toasted pecans. If you can find red quinoa, it's particularly pretty.

This classic black beans and rice recipe is loaded with flavor!

Using a slow cooker makes it easy to cook up almost any whole-grain porridge while you sleep. Short-grain brown rice slow-cooks to a soft and sticky texture reminiscent of rice pudding. Brown rice stands up to the long cooking time better than white, plus this whole grain contains some magnesium, phosphorus, thiamine and niacin (which get stripped from white rice).

Bypass plain rice boredom by adding a little chopped onion and cooking the rice in chicken broth. If you have any fresh herbs kicking around the kitchen, stir some in before serving.

The long grain rice in this recipe is cooked with a blend of coconut milk and water. Toward the end of the cooking time, fresh snow peas are placed in the pot on top of the rice to steam quickly. The creamy coconut rice is topped with some toasted nuts and voilà--an easy side dish that pairs well with any number of entrees.

Turn everyday brown rice into delicious brown rice pilaf with the addition of currants and sliced almonds.

This gluten-free dressing (or stuffing, if you prefer) leans on a blend of brown and wild rice for a complex nutty flavor. Look for dried Mission figs in the bulk aisle or with the packaged dried fruit in your grocery store. You can swap in dried cherries or cranberries if you can't find dried figs.

This whole grain recipe version of Spanish rice is served in a sweet pepper but could be served in a bowl as a side dish. It goes well with chicken or pork.

These traditional Lebanese lamb-and-rice stuffed grape leaves are fragrant with mint, marjoram, cinnamon, cumin and allspice. Serve with lemon wedges and plain yogurt for dipping.

The combination of whole-grain brown rice and fiber-rich beans makes this a nutritionally super side dish. And because we use instant brown rice and canned beans, it's also super-fast. Try it with pork or chicken, or sprinkle with cheese and wrap in a flour tortilla for lunch or a vegetarian supper.

Grated butternut squash adds color and nutrients to this brown rice pilaf. This is a riff on a traditional Greek dish that calls for Greek pilaf rice and pumpkin; here we've substituted instant brown rice and butternut squash.

This pilaf melds the chewy texture of barley and wild rice with the richness of toasted pine nuts and the sweet-sour crunch of pomegranate seeds. The elegant dish is perfect for entertaining.

This quick rice pilaf recipe gets bright flavor from Thai-inspired ingredients: lime juice, fish sauce, peanuts and plenty of fresh herbs. Serve it with roast pork tenderloin or pan-seared fish.

Sweet ripe pear matched with the delicate saltiness of prosciutto defines this creamy risotto that goes well with any roast meat or poultry. Pungent, crispy fried sage leaves give a special finishing touch to this dish.

Although white sushi rice is traditional, this brown sushi rice base is blended with other grains and lentils. Traditional vinegar and sugar seasoning are omitted in this whole-grain brown sushi rice recipe so that the natural taste of the whole grains shines through. Any lentils work--French green lentils hold their shape best.

The flavors of fresh mint and feta enliven this instant brown rice. Toss any leftovers with some cooked shrimp for a satisfying, easy lunch.

Get creative and try many variations of this slow-cooker pilaf recipe. Sub dried cranberries, blueberries or apricots for the cherries--or use them all. Just be sure to use a dried fruit. You can also swap the hazelnuts for pecans, if desired.

Requiring 45 minutes from start to finish, this casserole classic is one of the longer recipes in this book; however, it takes only about 10 minutes to assemble. While it bakes, you can put together a salad, or simply enjoy a glass of wine. If you want to make it vegetarian, substitute soy “sausage” for the Italian sausage and vegetable broth for the chicken broth.

Nutty-tasting grains, such as wild rice, barley and wheat berries, make this simple side-dish pilaf so much more than the sum of its parts. Since the wild rice cooks faster than wheat berries and hulled barley, presoak the longer-cooking grains to make the cooking times compatible. If you would like to add fresh mushrooms, quickly sauté them and stir them into the cooked pilaf. Or try this flavor variation: Omit dill and substitute 1 teaspoon lemon zest for lemon juice. Stir in 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese just before serving.

Colorful apricots, scallions and pistachios make this vibrant dish worthy of any holiday table. Since wild rice (really a grass) does not absorb liquid to the extent that true rice and other grains do, cook it in boiling water and saute the vegetables separately so they stay tender-crisp.

Prepare your own delicious risotto mix with this easy recipe. Keep it on hand for up to 3 months and cook it as needed when you're looking for a quick, tasty side dish.

Ever wondered how to cook brown rice quickly and easily? Cook it in your Instant Pot (or other pressure cooker)! This Instant Pot brown rice recipe is as basic as it gets. Cooking brown rice in an Instant Pot is easy, and you get the same toothsome texture and nutty flavor you get by cooking it on your stove--without the fuss.