The rice salad with zucchini and tuna is a fresh, tasty, and flavorful first course perfect for summer; very easy to make, it can be prepared in advance and enjoyed at the beach, in a pine forest, or at a cold buffet. Simpler and quicker than traditional rice salad, it can be customized according to personal tastes by adding other ingredients and varying the aromatic part.
These days, I am offering you several dishes based on zucchini, a delicate and versatile vegetable perfect for making dishes from appetizers to desserts and suitable for children as well. If you prefer to serve a hot dish, try the very simple pasta with zucchini cream or pasta with zucchini and speck, two quick and tasty first courses.
In summer, cold dishes are very much appreciated, using seasonal fruits and vegetables we can create complete menus without cooking at a very low cost. First courses are always very popular, besides cold rice, you can prepare very tempting pasta salads, my favorite is the cold pasta with light pesto, potatoes, and green beans, a real delight!
Also try:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4People
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Summer, All seasons
- Energy 201.96 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 19.74 (g) of which sugars 0.52 (g)
- Proteins 11.83 (g)
- Fat 8.38 (g) of which saturated 3.21 (g)of which unsaturated 2.51 (g)
- Fibers 0.88 (g)
- Sodium 302.40 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 100 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice (or any rice of choice)
- 1.1 lbs zucchini
- 8.8 oz canned tuna in oil (in fillets)
- 8.8 oz mozzarella (Fior di latte or Edamer for an extra touch of flavor)
- 2 shallots
- 2 3/4 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
- 12 leaves basil (or other aromatic herbs of choice)
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- 1 3/4 tbsps lemon juice (optional)
Tools
- 1 Cutting board
- 1 Bowl large
- 1 Pot
- 1 Pan
- 1 Colander
- 1 Baking dish to quickly cool the rice after cooking
Procedure
Wash the zucchini, remove the two ends, and cut them into small cubes.
Wash 12 basil leaves (or other aromatic herbs of choice) and dry them by patting with kitchen paper.
Finely chop the shallot, sauté it in a pan with 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, then add the zucchini and sauté for 6/7 minutes over medium heat, stirring often. Decide the cooking time according to your taste; I prefer them slightly crunchy. Adjust salt and pepper.
Let them cool slightly, then add the roughly crumbled tuna and the mozzarella (or Edamer) cut into cubes, add the torn basil, and mix.
Fill a pot with water, bring it to a boil, salt it, add the rice, stir, and cook following the package instructions, each variety has its own cooking time.
Drain the al dente rice, spread it on a baking dish chilled in the refrigerator, dress it with a drizzle of oil, stir, and spread it out on the dish. Occasionally stir and spread the rice until completely cooled.
I advise against cooling it under running water because it would lose flavor.
As soon as the rice is cold, place it in a large bowl, add the previously prepared dressing, two tablespoons of oil, and the lemon juice, mix well and taste, if necessary add more salt or other aromatic herbs of choice.
The rice salad with zucchini and tuna is ready, store it in the fridge and serve it cold.
Advice
How to store rice salad with zucchini and tuna?
Store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 or 3 days. If you don’t have an adequate container, cover it with plastic wrap.
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