Quinoa Salad With Black Beans and Mango
4-6 servings
Quinoa is a complete protein, which means that is has all nine amino acids- which makes it a popular choice for vegetarians and vegans. This salad recipe is pretty much straight out of Veganomicon, The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook, by Isa Chandra- with a few tweeks- for example- reducing the amount of cilantro and using lime juice vs vinegar for the acid- as I felt it complimented the mango better. Here i have used “red” quinoa- but it can certainly be made with white. I like to serve this chilled- but room temp is good as well.
1 mango, peeled, pitted and cut into small chunks
1 red bell pepper- small diced
6 scallions- washed, trimmed and sliced thin- white and light green parts
about 6 sprigs of fresh cilantro-removed from stems and torn into bits
2-3 T olive oil
juice of 2 limes
3/4 t kosher salt
2 cups cooked quinoa, cooled*
1 15 ounce can of unseasoned black beans rinsed well and drained
Combine the red peppers, scallions, cilantro, and quinoa in a wide mixing bowl. Add the lime juice, olive oil, and the salt. Combine well. Fold in the beans and the mango. Adjusting seasoning. Chill for at least a few hours for the flavors to meld.
* Cook the quinoa according to the package directions. If you are buying in bulk here is a basic technique:
1 cup red quinoa
1 1/4 cups water
Put the quinoa in a fine strainer and rinse it for about a minute under cold water. Bring the water to boil in a medium saucepan. Add the well rinsed quinoa. Cover the pan and simmer for about 15 minutes until all the liquid has absorbed. Let rest with the lid on for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. At this point I transfer it to a shallow dish- spread it out and put into the fridge while i get the rest of the salad together.
