Black Bean Salad

Black Bean Salad

 I have to admit that there's nothing Turkish about this recipe. Practically no one has heard of black beans, cilantro or quinoa in Turkey. Until 10 years ago avocado and using corn in salads were unheard of. But, here I go. In fact, when we first came to the U.S., I bought a bunch of cilantro, mistaking it for the Italian (flat leaf) parsley. I could not stand the aroma of it at first. Living in California, starting with chips & salsa, I eventually not only got used to the taste of cilantro, I now look for it in certain salads and dishes. In this recipe, however, if you don't like cilantro, you can substitute parsley. 

When Cathy, Dianne and I had one of our potluck lunches, Dianne had prepared Black Bean Salad for us. I had brought fish and quinoa pilaf, Cathy brought dessert. We decided to add a couple of spoonfuls of quinoa to the bean salad, it was delicious. So I added it to the recipe as an optional ingredient. Hope you like it. 

Black Bean Salad

Black Bean Salad with Quinoa

 

Ingredients

• 1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, rinsed, and drained (or 1 1/2 cup of cooked black beans)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen corn, defrosted (or fresh corn, boiled, drained, cooled)
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 2 pickled or fresh jalapeño peppers, seeded and minced
• 2 fresh medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped (about 1/2 cup)
• 1 avocado, peeled, seeded, and cut into chunks
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro or parsley
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
• 2 tablespoon lemon or lime juice(about 1/3 lemon, or 1 lime)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 tablespoons of cooked quinoa (optional)

Directions

If you are going to use quinoa, cook according to the instructions on the box. Set aside, let it cool. Rinse and drain the beans and corn. In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, onions, jalapeno peppers, tomatoes, quinoa (optional), cilantro (or parsley), basil, lemon (or lime) juice and olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix all ingredients with a spoon. Add avocados last to avoid mashing them.  Chill in the refrigerator for at leaset 1/2 hour before serving.

Afiyet Olsun! Bon Appetit!