The perfect picnic or potluck salad - this artichoke rice salad combines Rice a Roni, bacon, artichoke hearts, and green olives in a crunchy, flavorful summer salad.

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Prepared bowl of Rice a roni salad on a wooden board with stack of plates, bunch of parsley and green onions, and a spoon and linen.

This artichoke rice salad is the perfect picnic or potluck salad. It combines Rice a Roni, bacon, artichoke hearts, and green olives in a crunchy, flavorful summer salad. The vegetables can be chopped, the rice and bacon can be cooked, the whole salad can be prepared ahead of time and chilled, easily ready when you are!

Glass bowl of artichoke rice salad on a wooden board.

We love this artichoke salad made with Rice a Roni because it’s refreshing and easy to make, but it also has substance to it so it makes a hearty side dish or a light main meal. The crunch from the green bell pepper and celery, along with the chicken-flavored rice, create a texture party in your mouth. It’s an old-fashioned recipe that makes perfect picnic or potluck food.

We often add this to the menu when we have a large family gathering or holiday lunch. It goes perfectly with Southern fried chicken, fluffy pistachio pineapple jello salad and a glass of strawberry sangria.

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🫒 Ingredients:
Substitutions and Variations
🔪 Instructions:
Recipe Tips for Rice a Roni Salad
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Artichoke Rice Salad

🫒 Ingredients:

1 pkg. Rice-a-Roni (chicken flavor), prepared according to package instructions (this requires water and a couple tablespoons of butter)
3-ounce jar pimento-stuffed green olives, drained and sliced
6-ounce jar marinated artichoke hearts – drain artichokes and chop them into bite sized pieces
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced green pepper – red, orange, or yellow bell peppers (or a combination) will also work
½ cup sliced green onions or chives – my best tip for quickly slicing green onions or chives is to use a pair of kitchen scissors or shears – so quick to just hold the bunch in your hand and snip!
6 slices (about ½ pound) bacon, cooked and crumbled – cook this however you like, we love this easy air fryer bacon method.
1 cup mayonnaise – I recommend Best Foods mayo, but you can use a reduced-calorie mayo. I wouldn’t use Miracle Whip or a sweeter mayonnaise.
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar – this really gives the salad some bright zing like you would taste in a bean salad, you can substitute lemon juice, rice vinegar or white vinegar

For a full list of ingredients and their measurements, 📋 please view my printable recipe card at the bottom of the post.

Optional Garnish:

Reserve a few of the sliced olives or a sprinkle of bacon and chives to garnish the top of the salad bowl for serving!

Substitutions and Variations

Using packaged rice mix makes it easy to get the seasonings right, but you can also make your own rice and vermicelli mix. Sauté rice and vermicelli in olive oil or butter, then add chicken broth and seasonings and cook til tender. You will need to salt it well.
Curried rice salad – add 1 teaspoon of curry powder to the mayonnaise and stir into the salad.
Lighten it up – swap half of the mayonnaise for Greek yogurt or a light sour cream for a tangier and lighter flavor.
Protein swap – Instead of bacon, use chopped ham or rotisserie chicken. Fried pancetta would also be yummy.
Vegetarian – Omit the bacon and add in crispy chickpeas or toasted sunflower seeds for crunch and protein. Swap out the chicken-flavored Rice a roni for a vegetarian version like “herb and butter” or simply “rice pilaf.”

🔪 Instructions:

PREP: This salad is simple to make. It’s a matter of prepping all the ingredients and simply stirring them together! You can cook rice and/or bacon 1-2 days in advance (store in the fridge) and dice all of the vegetables up to a day ahead.

Glass bowl filled with cooked Rice a Roni, bowl of chopped celery and herbs.

Step 1: Prepare the Rice a Roni according to the package directions. This is typically done in a large skillet on the stovetop. You’ll toast the rice and vermicelli in some butter, then add water and package seasonings and simmer until the rice is done. Allow the rice to cool before moving on to the next step. Please note: the ingredients for the Rice a Roni (butter, water) are not included in this recipe ingredient list.

Glass bowl with piles of artichoke rice salad mixins mounded on top: mayo, celery, olives, bell pepper, artichoke hearts, and chives.

Step 2: Add all of the other ingredients to a large bowl with the rice mixture and stir until well combined. If you are not serving the salad shortly after assembling, you may wish to stir the bacon in just before serving so that it stays extra crispy.

Glass bowl full of mixed up artichoke rice salad, wooden spoon, blue and white linen.

Step 3: When your ingredients are combined, cover the rice a roni salad with plastic wrap and chill for 1-2 hours. The salad is delicious right when it’s mixed, but it’s even better extra cold.

I like to slice the bacon into pieces prior to cooking it, but you can also crumble the bacon after cooking. If you freeze your bacon, thaw it just a tad and then chop it into pieces right off the whole frozen slab – super easy trick I learned from Food Network years ago.

GARNISH/SLICE/SERVE: Transfer the chilled rice salad to a serving bowl and sprinkle a bit of bacon or sliced olives over the top for garnish.

Recipe Tips for Rice a Roni Salad

The Rice a Roni artichoke salad will keep in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Remember that this is a great make-ahead recipe. You can prep everything a day or two in advance or you can even mix up the entire salad up to 2 days ahead, though I would recommend stirring in the bacon just before serving so that it maintains its crispness.
After cooking, allow the rice to cool to room temperature, tossing every now and then to keep it from sticking together in large clumps. Transfer the cooled rice to a medium bowl, cover, and store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Be sure that has cooled completely before mixing in the other ingredients.

Spoon scooping into prepared bowl of Rice a roni salad on a wooden board with stack of plates, bunch of parsley and green onions.

More Summer Favorites

If you tried this Artichoke Rice Salad or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you liked it in the 📝 comments below.

4.16 from 19 votes (17 ratings without comment)

Artichoke Rice Salad

🫒 Ingredients:

Substitutions and Variations

🔪 Instructions:

Recipe Tips for Rice a Roni Salad

More Summer Favorites

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