Southwestern wild rice and sweet potato salad is loaded with healthy veggies and tossed in a chili lime vinaigrette. Gluten-free, vegan, and perfect for lunch or a side salad!
We're on a mission to banish boring salads once and for all - and this colorful wild rice and sweet potato salad is anything but boring! Best of all, it's ideal for meal prep along with our classic cobb salad or this hearty taco salad!
This southwestern wild rice and sweet potato salad is loaded with crunchy carrots, celery, fresh cilantro, red onion, and a tangy chili lime vinaigrette!
With wild rice and roasted sweet potatoes as the base, it's hearty, healthy, and absolutely delicious! It's sweet and savory, crunchy, and smothered in flavor thanks to the chili lime vinaigrette.
reasons you'll love this recipe
- the sweet potatoes and wild rice are complimented by the savory flavors of the chili lime vinaigrette
- it's packed with nourishing veggies - you'll truly feel like you're eating the rainbow!
- it's vegan-friendly and gluten-free, and can work for meal prep
recipe video
Watch the video below to see exactly how I prepped this sweet potato salad recipe. It’s so easy! You can find more of my recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
ingredient notes
- sweet potato - around 4 cups of cubes which is 1 large or 2 small sweet potatoes
- veggies - red onion, bell peppers, carrots and celery. You can swap these out for what you have in the fridge!
- wild rice blend - we prefer the texture of a wild rice blend, but you could go 100% wild rice if that's your thing! This is the blend we used.
- cilantro - only add if you are eating this salad within a few hours of making it
- chili lime vinaigrette - an all-time fave! Made with white wine vinegar, olive oil, chili powder, garlic, lime juice, honey and dijon, it's absolutely delicious.
Step by step directions
Prepare Sweet potatoes
Heat oven to 425°F. Toss sweet potato in olive oil, and season with salt & pepper. Arrange on a baking sheet or baking dish.
Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and turn the, then continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes until a fork goes into the sweet potatoes easily. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
Prepare Wild Rice
Cook rice according to package directions. You should end up with just over 2 cups of cooked rice. Allow to cool completely before assembling the salad.
Vinaigrette
Shake together all ingredients for the chili lime vinaigrette.
Combine Salad
Combine cooled sweet potato, cooled rice, and remaining salad ingredients including carrot, celery, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, and cilantro. Add the chili lime vinaigrette, and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Tips for the perfect salad
- hot or cold? we prefer to serve this salad cold, and allow the rice and sweet potatoes to cool before mixing it all together. It would be delicious warmed as well!
- big batch - this makes 8 servings, so it's good for feeding a crowd. You can easily cut the recipe in half if you need to.
- meal prep - this salad does not keep well after tossing in the dressing, but you could meal prep it by prepping all the ingredients except the cilantro. Leave the dressing off until you are ready to serve.
fAQ
Yes, you can! Just swap the honey for maple syrup at a 1:1 ratio.
Sure! You could swap for quinoa, or brown rice for a similar texture. We haven't tested this recipe with cauliflower rice, but it could work out for a more low-carb option!
We love this Instant Pot wild rice pilaf, cranberry almond rice pilaf, and Thai slow chicken and wild rice soup!
Variations
This is a really great 'clean out the fridge' kind of salad! There are so many variations and different veggies that would be great to include:
- roast up some cauliflower, zucchini, carrots, brussels sprouts or broccoli with the sweet potatoes
- add in some fresh tomatoes when serving
- make it spicy with some fresh minced jalapeno peppers
storage + meal prep
This salad does not keep well after tossing in the dressing, but you could meal prep it by prepping all the ingredients except the cilantro. To store for meal prep:
- Omit the cilantro and add a can of black beans (optional, but adds protein if serving as a meal).
- Leave the dressing off until you are ready to serve.
- Portion out into 2 cup meal prep containers and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!
Southwestern Wild Rice and Sweet Potato Salad
Ingredients
Roasted Sweet Potato
- 4 cups sweet potato peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes; roughly 1 large or 2 small sweet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt & pepper
Salad
- ¾ cup wild rice blend uncooked
- 1 carrot peeled and grated
- 1 celery finely chopped
- 1 red pepper diced
- 1 yellow pepper diced
- ¼ cup red onion finely chopped
- ½ cup cilantro leaves roughly chopped; loosely packed
Vinaigrette
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 2 teaspoons honey maple syrup to make it vegan
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Roast Sweet Potatoes - Heat oven to 425°F. Toss sweaHeat oven to 425°F. Toss sweet potato in olive oil, and season with salt & pepper. Arrange on a baking sheet or baking dish.Bake for 15 minutes, remove from the oven and turn the, then continue to bake for another 10-15 minutes until a fork goes into the sweet potatoes easily. Remove from oven and set aside to cool.
- Prepare wild rice - Cook rice according to package directions. You should end up with just over 2 cups of cooked rice. Allow to cool completely before assembling the salad.
- Vinaigrette - Shake together all vinaigrette ingredients and toss salad thoroughly.
- Combine salad - combine cooled sweet potato, cooled rice, and remaining salad ingredients including carrot, celery, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, and cilantro. Add the chili lime vinaigrette, and toss to combine. Enjoy!
Tips:
- Omit the cilantro and add a can of black beans (optional, but adds protein if serving as a meal).
- Leave the dressing off until you are ready to serve.
- Portion out into 2 cup meal prep containers and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
Video
Nutrition Information
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S J says
Delicipus Southwestern salad. Good for a satisfying lunch.
Regina says
This salad is absolutely fabulous!! Not only is it visually beautiful but more importantly tastes great. I meal prepped it for lunch serving it with black beans one day and lime cilantro chicken the next. Served it to a friend for lunch. Not only did she love it but also asked for a to-go bowl. Thank you for such a yummy lunch!!!
Jasmine @ Sweet Peas & Saffron says
Hi Regina, so happy to hear that you and your friend both enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for taking the time to come back and leave a rating and review!
Emily says
This was really great! I noticed that the dijon mustard was left out of the recipe ingredients but you mentioned it in the post. I might try to add a little dijon next time!
Wendy says
I made this for my husband for his lunch and he called me to tell me "my lunch was delicious"! I agreed with him - YUM!!!! TY for a great recipe!
Denise says
Yay! So happy to hear this, Wendy! I appreciate you taking the time to leave a review 🙂