Colorful Rice Salad With Crunchy Nacho Bites

Colorful, fast, and delicious, these are the best three words to describe this rice salad with crunchy nacho bites.

It is easy to make and everyone liked it.

It is delicious to eat on its own but also serves very well as a side to your BBQ. Give it a try and enjoy this flavorful and kind of healthy (lots of vegetables and only some carbs) salad. (And it's even vegan*, but if you don't tell anyone, now one will know :-) )

*I have some friends who would say "if it's vegan, it can't be tasteful" but since I didn't tell about this salad, no one realized it and everyone said "a very good alternative to the usual potato salad and pasta salad" :-D

For this mexican rice nacho salad you need:

• 1 package uncle ben's express mexican rice (or cook your preferred rice and sease it with paprika and texmex spices)
• 250 gr tomatoes (I prefer cherry tomatoes since they taste better)
• 1/2 can kidney beans
• 1/2 can of sweet corn
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 avocado
• 1/4 green salad
• 50gr nachos

For the seasoning:

• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs white balsamico vinegar
• salt
• pepper

Prepare the rice according to the instructions.

You can either use the microwave or heat it using cooking water.

I used the microwave (the easier, the better ;-) )

Let the rice cool down while cutting your veggies.

• Quarter your cherry tomatoes, or cut your normal size tomatoes into approx. 20mm/ 4/5" big bites.
• Dice your onion into small pieces (approx. 5x5mm 1/4"x1/4"). Pro tip: Cut the onion lengthwise (like an E with a lot of legs), but not all the way through, so that the individual layers do not slip apart and dicing is easier.
• Cut the bell pepper and the avocado also into small dices (approx. 10x10mm 1/2"x1/2").

Set everything aside to mix it later into your bowl.

• Drain the kidney beans and wash the liquid away.
• Drain the corn.

Set half of the beans and half corn aside into a box (you can use it for your tomorrows wraps or your green salad)

Add the other half to your colorful veggie plate.

1. Take a few leaves from your lettuce.
2. Wash it and dry it, either spin it in a salad spinner or dry it carefully with a clean dish towel
3. Cut it in squares.
4. Crumble your nachos into big pieces and keep it for later.

*I wanted to make it a pun, since in german a lettuce is a "salat" and a salad as in rice salat is also a "salat", but I just realized it isn't working in English :-( Sorry.

But but you're welcome for this free lesson of a german homonym.

Mix your rice and the lettuce carefully.

Add the oil and vinegar and season with salt and pepper

Add your cut veggies and mix carefully

Keep the nachos out of the salad until serving, otherwise, they will soften.

Sprinkle the nacho crumbs over the salad and enjoy your colorful and delicious salad.