Black Bean and Quinoa Salad
1/2 cup quinoa
1 cup white corn [u]Dressing[/u]:
3 to 4 tablespoons light vegetable oil, not heavy like olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice or balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
cilantro or parsley, minced, to taste
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
2 scallions, chopped
1. Soak quinoa in water for 5 minutes, then drain. Cook either in vegetable stock or water for 15 minutes.
2. During the last five minutes of cooking, put in the corn if using frozen. Drain and cool.
3. Dressing: Thoroughly mix together vegetable oil, lemon juice, garlic, parsley, salt, and pepper.
4. Mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl (black beans, celery, green bell peppers, tomatoes, and scallions) with the quinoa and corn.
5. Pour the dressing in and mix well.
This is good the next day as well. Best if served cold. Substitutions can be made for the vegetables...red onions, grated carrots, what ever you prefer. I have also added a small amount of jalopeno peppers before because my husband likes it hot....
SO HOW'D IT GO?
My normal grocery store doesn't carry quinoa so the first time I made this recipe I used giant couscous instead. I've used quinoa since and I actually like the couscous version better (even though it's not as healthy).
I also substitute cucumbers for the peppers and celery.
Still, it's a great easy and adaptable recipe. I work outside a lot and bring it for lunch all the time!
AMAZING...I love it scoped on a bed of tortilla chips.
This is wonderful!!!!! It's light and refreshing and just perfect. I was really surprised how much this recipe makes, by the way. And it's so easy to make :)
I didn't have all the ingredients so I added sliced green grapes and finely chopped walnuts and extra celery and tomatoes instead of the corn and scallions. And I used olive oil and both balsamic and lemon juice. Next time I make this I'm going to try it with the suggested ingredients - corn would have been a great addition to this.
Try it!!!!!!!!!
Wow, Rubybottlerocket, that sounds wonderful. I will be making this, probably with Udo's oil and raw apple cider vinegar. I'm also going to try it on the greens, possibly chard since it is winter. Mmmm.. can't wait!
This is one of my favorite dishes. I have used olive oil for this recipe and also have tried another version adding frozen and thawed tofu marinated in a mixture of sesame oil, ginger, onion, garlic, cilantro, lemon juice and vinegar. It's really good served over some arugula or other salad greens.
I made this yesterday and it was awesome. I took it to hear live music in the park with my friends and it was a huge hit. Here's how I made it: with red onions instead of green, grape to matoes, quartered, an extra clove of garlic, and a good, heavy olive oil. I omitted all the other vegetables. Next time I would use proportionately more quinoa and more green chilies. A recipe definitely worth making!
Excellent hot weather dish!!! Easy and beautiful.
Easily adaptable as well.
Pages