Brown rice, chicken, edamame and snow pea salad

Tamara West

For the rice salad

1 cup	Brown rice (Main)
1 ½ cups	Water
2 stalks	Lemongrass, remove the tough outer stalk and finely chop
600 g	Boneless chicken thighs, skinless (Main)
1 ½ cups	Edamame beans, frozen and podded (Main)
2	Celery stalks, finely diced
2	Spring onions, finely sliced
1	Red pepper, diced
2 Tbsp	Toasted sesame seeds
½ cup	Roasted peanuts, roughly chopped
¾ cup	Fresh coriander, chopped
¾ cup	Mint leaves, chopped
1	Chilli, finely sliced optional
100 g	Snow peas

For the dressing

2 Tbsp	Gluten-free tamari
1 Tbsp	Sesame oil
2 Tbsp	Lime juice
2 Tbsp	Rice vinegar
1 Tbsp	Fish sauce
2 tsp	Brown sugar
1 piece	Fresh ginger, approx 1cm, peeled and grated
1 tsp	Chilli paste, optional

Directions

1. Place rice, water and a pinch of salt in a pot and bring to a boil. Cover with a tight fitting lid and reduce to lowest heat to cook for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and leave to steam, still covered, for a further 8 minutes.
2. Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium high heat. Stir fry the lemongrass for 1 minute, until fragrant. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes on each side. Add ? cup of water and cover with a lid. Cook until the chicken is cooked through and the liquid is almost all evaporated, about 6 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Once cool, shred the chicken, and stir back through the lemongrass. Reserve.
3. Cook edamame beans in boiling salted water for 2 minutes. Add snowpeas and cook for a further 1 minute. Drain and refresh the edamame and snow peas under cold water — this will keep them crunchy and bright green.
4. Mix all dressing ingredients together.
5. Toss cooked brown rice, chicken, edamame, snowpeas, celery, spring onions, red peppers, sesame seeds, peanuts, herbs and chili if used. Add dressing just before serving and mix well.