Hearty greens and vegetables make this Roasted Beet & Butternut Squash Salad with Wild Rice a winner for fall and winter meals!
A simple maple mustard vinaigrette ties the whole salad together.
Easy, filling, and customizable, this is a gluten free salad recipe worth raving about.
Quick Look: Roasted Beet & Butternut Squash Salad
Ready In: 55 minutes
Servings: 4-6
Nutrition: 349 Calories
Main Ingredients: Beets, butternut squash, kale, maple syrup, stoneground mustard
Dietary Notes: Gluten free, Dairy free, Nut free
Why You'll Love It: This hearty salad works as a side dish or as a meal when paired with Perfect Crispy Skillet Chicken Thighs or Cast Iron Chicken Breast!
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While it's got a mouthful of a name, this beet & butternut squash salad has a lot going for it.
Vibrant red beets, slight sweet butternut squash, hearty kale, and nutty wild rice all come together for a filling salad that keeps well.
Hearty salads like Wild Rice Salad with Chicken & Kale or Warm Winter Kale Salad with Maple Vinaigrette are great to have on hand!
Add some cooked chicken to make this a meal. Portion it out, and you've got meals prepped for the week!
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Ingredients needed for this salad recipe
While many of the ingredients are right in the title of this recipe, it's worth bringing up some notes about each!
Beets: 2 medium-sized red beets should be enough here! You'll want to scrub the beets well before roasting for this recipe.
You can peel the beets if you would like, but frankly I don't always peel them - as long as you scrub them well enough, they shouldn't have any dirt residue.
Butternut squash: You'll just need 1 small butternut squash for this recipe. I realize "small" is subjective; you should have 3-4 cups of raw cubed squash.
If butternut squash isn't your jab, feel free to use another squash in place of it.
Kale: I love adding kale to salads (try Apple & Sweet Potato Salad with Kale or Chopped Brussels Sprout & Kale Salad with Lemon Tahini Dressing) because it holds up well with other dense ingredients! Plus, kale keeps well for a few days in the fridge, making this a great meal prep recipe.
You can use curly kale or lacinato kale - your choice!
Wild Rice: Like domesticated rice, wild rice is a great source of carbohydrates. But it also has twice the amount of protein!
In this recipe, the nutty flavor and chewy texture keeps the whole salad interesting and filling - if you love it here, you've got to try Wild Rice & Arugula Salad with Maple Tahini Vinaigrette!
Maple syrup: Use real maple syrup, not maple-flavored syrup. The light sweetness ties the whole salad together, so don't skip it!
Mustard: Stoneground mustard is my go-to for these kinds of recipes - I think the mustard flavor plays so well with maple syrup!
If you prefer Dijon, you can give that a try.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make Roasted Beet & Butternut Squash Salad
This beet and butternut squash salad does require a couple different pieces of prep, most of it is hands-off.
Roast the beets and butternut squash - Roast on one large sheet pan or two separate pans at 425 degrees F for 30-40 minutes, until tender. Be careful not to overcrowd the pan.
Cook the wild rice - Follow the package directions. My go-to, though: rinse the wild rice, then add to 2 cups boiling water. Reduce heat to a simmer and cover, simmering for about 45 minutes until most, but not all, of the grains have burst.
Wild rice won't absorb liquid the way domestic rice does, so you'll have to strain out excess water.
Prepare the kale - For salad using kale, I like to soften up the tough fibers of this hearty green by drizzling a small amount of olive oil over the leaves and massaging the oil in with my hands like in my Fall Apple & Sweet Potato Salad with Kale.
Alternatively, you can parboil the kale by adding it to boiling water for a minute or two, then drying before slicing for the salad.
Make the dressing - Whisk everything together and taste. Adjust as you see fit!
Toss it all together - Couldn't be easier than that! Give it all a good toss and you're ready to go.
FAQs and other questions
You could give it a try using long-grain rice, BUT this recipe is meant to be made with wild rice. If you've never had it, this is a great recipe to give it a go!
Absolutely! I'll be honest, butternut squash isn't my typical go-to. 🙂
Kabocha squash, delicata squash, turban squash, or buttercup squash could all work well here.
Yes, with all the hardy vegetables included, this salad keeps wonderfully in the fridge for up to a week!
That makes it great for meal prep!
If you'd like to use this beet and butternut squash salad as meal prep or packed lunch, add ½- to ¾-cup leftover rotisserie chicken or make some cast iron chicken breast to chop up and add to the salad.
Variations and substitutions
Make it into meal prep
Add leftover rotisserie chicken or make some cast iron chicken breast to chop up and add to the salad.
When separating into containers, I suggest putting chicken on the bottom with the dressing, then the wild rice, then beets and squash, and finally topping with kale.
Truthfully, though, the kale and veggies are hardy enough to stand up to storage in the fridge for a few days, so you can store this pre-mixed as well!
Add feta or goat cheese
I mean, what salad doesn't benefit from a little cheese?
Add up to 3 ounces of feta, diced into ½" blocks, or goat cheese, crumbled.
Add toasted nuts
I am a big fan of toasted, nutty flavor in salads (which might be why I like wild rice salads for meal prep lately!), so why not enhance it with some toasted pecans or walnuts?
Use a different type of squash
I'm not shy about butternut squash ranking pretty low in my overall squash ratings.
If you're in the same boat as me, feel free to use another squash here!
Kabocha squash, delicata squash, turban squash, or buttercup squash could all work well here.
Change up the flavor with fresh herbs
You can alter the flavor of the salad by adding in some fresh herbs, finely chopped - parsley or a little thyme come to mind first!
More gluten free salad recipes to try
Did you try this roasted beet & butternut squash salad? Please leave a comment and rating or tag me on Instagram - I love your feedback.
Print📖 Recipe
Roasted Beet & Butternut Squash Salad with Wild Rice
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 40
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
- Category: Salad
- Method: Roasted
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
Hearty greens and vegetables make this Roasted Beet & Butternut Squash Salad with Wild Rice a winner for fall and winter meals! Add leftover chicken to make this salad a meal.
Ingredients
- 1 cup wild rice, rinsed
- 2 lb beets, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes (approximately 4 cups, cubed, from 4 medium beets or 2 large beets)
- 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes (approximately 4 cups, cubed)
- ¼ cup plus 2 ½ tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 ¼ teaspoon sea salt, divided
- 1 ½ teaspoon black pepper, divided
- 1 bunch kale, thick stems discarded
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoon stoneground mustard
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Cook the wild rice according to package directions.
- Meanwhile, on a large rimmed baking sheet, toss beets and squash with 3 tablespoons olive oil, ¾ teaspoon salt, and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Transfer half of the veggies to a second sheet and roast vegetables, rotating pans once, until tender, 30 to 40 minutes.
- Prepare the kale, if desired, by drizzling with ½ tablespoon olive oil and massaging the oil into the leaves to break down the tough fibers. Roll up the leaves in a tight cigar shape and thinly slice.
- In a large bowl, whisk together apple cider vinegar, mustard, thyme, maple syrup, remaining 3 tablespoons oil, remaining ½ teaspoon salt, and remaining ½ teaspoon pepper. Add wild rice, roasted vegetables, and kale and toss to combine. Serve immediately. This salad will keep well in the fridge, stored in an airtight container, for up to a week.
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