Potato salad has its charms, but you probably wouldn’t eat a whole plate of it. Rice salad, on the other hand, can make a fine summer meal. Popular throughout the Mediterranean, there are many types, and all are summery.

Italians claim insalata di riso as their own. There are variations, of course. In the North, a rice salad may contain shrimp or other shellfish and cooked zucchini or artichokes. A Roman version will contain pickled vegetables, capers, tomatoes and tuna (and sometimes prosciutto cotto, cubed cheese and canned corn).