It was recently pointed out to me that I’m a bowl person. It’s exactly what it sounds like: I almost always prefer a big mishmash bowl of stuff over your classic “meat and two” plate. Add to that I am a self-identified salad person, and you find yourself in the middle of a Venn diagram holding this crispy rice salad.
You, like me, may have seen crispy rice salads circulating on your social media feeds. The baked rice is such an ingenious hack because it’s relatively hands-free to make, which leaves you free to get the rest of your salad prepped. For this sweet chili crispy rice salad, I leaned into summer rolls, one of my favorite lunches, for flavor inspiration.
To make the crispy rice, I toss cooked rice in peanut butter, soy sauce, and sesame oil before spreading it on a sheet pan to bake until crispy. This gives the rice serious peanut sauce vibes without doing much work. While that’s baking, I chop up some crunchy vegetables like shredded cabbage and cucumbers, and lightly pickle carrots and radishes so they taste like the ones you’d have in a summer roll. I top the whole bowl with fresh herbs and a generous drizzle of Thai sweet chili sauce, and it’s the most satisfying, multi-textured salad bowl I’ve had in a while.
Why You’ll Love It
- So much to crunch! Between the peanut sauce-flavored crispy rice and crunchy vegetables like cabbage and cucumbers, this salad has the textural variety to keep you coming back for another forkful.
- A 1-ingredient dressing win. Thai sweet chili sauce is the perfect tangy-sweet dressing straight from the bottle.
- Key ingredients in Sweet Chili Crispy Rice Salad
- Rice: This recipe calls for cooked jasmine rice, so it’s a great way to use up leftovers! That said, you can also make this with fresh rice (there’s no need to chill it).
- Peanut butter: Combined with soy sauce, sesame oil, and honey, peanut butter gives the rice a peanut sauce-y flavor.
- Crunchy vegetables: Shredded cabbage, cucumbers, and lightly pickled carrots and radishes add so much textural variety, color, and flavor to the bowl.
- Edamame: Thawed shelled edamame adds an instant boost of protein.
- Fresh herbs: Add basil, mint, or cilantro or a combination for a pop of green freshness.
- Thai sweet chili sauce: The tangy-sweet sauce has a hint of heat and tons of flavor, which makes it the perfect dressing for this bowl. My favorite brand is Mae Ploy.
Helpful Swaps
- Toss the rice with store-bought peanut sauce instead! Just don’t skip the sesame oil (it helps keep the rice from sticking).
- Add poached shrimp or shredded chicken for some additional protein.
- Stir grated fresh ginger or garlic (or both!) into the rice before baking for an extra boost of aromatic flavor.
- Swap peanut butter for cashew butter, sesame paste, or almond butter.
More Crispy Rice Salad Flavors to Try
You can use this crispy rice technique with practically any flavor profile you like, following a simple base formula: baked crispy rice, crunchy vegetables, dressing, a protein, and something extra for flair and flavor. Here are a few ideas to get you started.- Poke-style shrimp: Toss rice with soy sauce, sesame oil, and a little sugar before baking. Top with poached or sauteed shrimp, edamame, cucumbers, avocado, and pickled ginger. Drizzle with Sriracha mayo, and sprinkle with crushed nori snack sheets.
- Buffalo chicken: Toss the rice with a little Buffalo sauce, melted butter, and brown sugar before baking. Top the crispy rice with shredded rotisserie chicken, celery and carrot matchsticks, fresh cilantro, ranch dressing, and blue cheese if that’s your thing.
- Chicken shawarma: Toss the rice with some oil, ground turmeric, and garlic powder before baking. Top with shawarma-spiced chicken, cucumbers, radishes, fresh mint and parsley, tahini sauce, and toasted almonds or pistachios.
Sweet Chili Crispy Rice Salad
Serves 4For the crispy rice:
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 cups cooked white rice, preferably jasmine
- 1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks (about 3/4 cup)
- 4 red radishes, cut into matchsticks (about 1 cup)
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
- 2 cups finely shredded red cabbage
- 2 Persian cucumbers or 1/4 medium English cucumber, thinly sliced crosswise (about 1 cup)
- 4 medium scallions, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup fresh basil, mint, or cilantro leaves, or a combination
- 1/4 cup roasted salted peanuts, crushed
- 1/3 cup Thai sweet chili sauce, plus more as needed
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Whisk 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, 2 teaspoons honey, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt together in a medium bowl until smooth. Stir in 2 cups cooked white rice until evenly coated. Spread the rice onto a rimmed baking sheet in a thin, even layer (reserve the bowl).
3. Bake until the rice is crispy and lightly browned (it will be darker around the edges), 20 to 30 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the salad ingredients and pickle the carrot and radishes.
4. Let the crispy rice cool for 5 minutes, then use a spatula to scrape it up from the baking sheet.
Make the salad:
1. Toss 1 peeled medium carrot cut into matchsticks, 4 red radishes cut into matchsticks, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons honey, and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt together in the reserved bowl (no need to clean). Let sit to pickle until ready to use.
2. Drain the carrots and radishes, then place in a large bowl. Add the crispy rice, 2 cups finely shredded red cabbage, 1 cup thawed shelled edamame, 2 thinly sliced Persian cucumbers, 4 thinly sliced scallions, 1/2 cup fresh herb leaves, and 1/4 cup crushed, roasted salted peanuts. Drizzle with 1/3 cup Thai sweet chili sauce and toss to coat. Taste and season with more kosher salt and Thai sweet chili sauce as needed.
Recipe Notes
- Make ahead: You can prep the pickled carrots and radishes up to three days ahead and refrigerate (still in the pickling liquid) in an airtight container. The cabbage, cucumbers, and scallions can be prepped up to one day ahead and refrigerated in separate airtight containers.
- Storage: Leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to three days.
