Day 4: Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Mango

While preparing this quinoa salad, I felt like I should be listening to some Peter, Paul and Mary, Creedence Clearwater Revival, or some other hippie-esque music. It's a total vegan hippie dish. But it's also quite tasty.

Just in case, like me before yesterday, you have no idea what quinoa is, it's a super small grainy, seedy thing, similar in texture and consistency to rice. It's quite healthy, with almost zero fat, lots of protein, and tons of fiber. Kind of like oatmeal.

To prepare it, you simply bring one cup quinoa and two cups water to a boil, then let simmer for about 15 minutes, or until all the water has been soaked up:

Please excuse our messy kitchen. All this cooking (and eating) leaves little time for cleaning!

Here's how to make the rest of the salad.

Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Mango (from Veganonmicon):

2 cups cooked quinoa, cooled

1 mango, peeled and diced

1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced

1 cup chopped scallions (or onion)

1 cup chopped cilantro

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons grapeseed oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 can black beans (we used 2 cups dry bulk beans, cooked)

Combine the mango, bell pepper, scallions, and cilantro in a mixing bowl. Add the vinegar, oil, and salt, and stir:

Add the quinoa. Then fold in the black beans:

You really can't get much healthier than this. Beans, whole grains, fruit, and veggies--all in one little salad! 

Next time we make this, we're going to add some lime juice and a couple hot peppers to give it a little kick. 

Anyone out there have any other good quinoa recipes?

-Kristin