Spanish Style Rice Salad

We had a little tub of rice and butterbean salad from Marks & Spencer for lunch last week, and unlike lots of pre-prepared salad tubs, it was pretty tasty. Tasty enough to consider recreating it in fact! The rice is infused with smoked paprika and a zingy sherry vinegar dressing, giving that underlying Spanish feel. Then sliced green Spanish olives, roasted red peppers, butterbeans and parsley are stirred through… how very simple, and most Spanish.

Spanish Style Rice Salad (dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free, soya-free, sesame-free. gluten-free, vegetarian and vegan)

serves at least 4

• 1 cup rice
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 1.5 lt vegetable stock
• 3 spring onions, sliced
• 1/2 jar chargrilled red peppers in oil, drained
• 200g tin of Spanish green olives, sliced
• 1/2 tin of butterbeans, brained
• Handful of parsley, finely chopped

For the dressing:

• 1 1/2 tbsps sherry vinegar
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• 4 tbsps oil, from the jar of red peppers
• Salt, pepper and sugar to taste

– Cook the rice in plenty of vegetable stock flavoured with the smoked paprika drain
– Stir in the spring onions, red peppers, olives and butterbeans.
–  Mix together the dressing
– Pour over the rice and thoroughly mix
– Taste and adjust the seasoning
– Sprinkle with the parsley and serve