red quinoa and black bean salad

"KEEEEEEN - WAAAHHHHH!!!"
That's what we say in our house when it's a quinoa meal.

for the dressing
5 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon salt
1 whole garlic clove, finely minced
¼ cups finely chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon ground cumin, or to taste
⅓ cups olive oil
½ teaspoons freshly ground pepper, to taste

for the salad

1-½ cup red quinoa ("KEEEEEEN-WAAAHHHH!")
1 Tablespoon table salt, add when boiling quinoa
1 can (14 oz. can) black beans, drained, rinsed
1-½ cup corn dkrnels, fresh (cut from about 2 large ears)
1 cup finely chopped colored sweet bell peppers
1 whole jalapeño chilies, seeded and minced (wear rubber gloves)
¼ cups finely chopped fresh cilantro
¼ cups finely chopped green onions

For the dressing:
In a small bowl whisk together lime juice, salt, minced garlic, chopped cilantro, and cumin and add oil in a stream, whisking. Add pepper to taste. Set aside.

For the salad:
In a large bowl wash quinoa in at least 5 changes of cold water, rubbing grains and letting them settle before pouring off most of water, until water runs clear. Drain in a large fine sieve.

In a medium size pot, add the table salt to 1-1/2 quarts of boiling water and cook quinoa 10 minutes. Prepare a colander with cheese cloth over it and drain the cooked quinoa into cheese cloth.

Add 2 inches of water into the pot and bring water to boil. Place the quinoa (still in the colander or another small pan, so you have a double boiler effect), cover cooked quinoa with the cheesecloth and put a lid on your pot. Steam for an additional 10 minutes. Do not let quinoa touch the water. Fluff quinoa with a fork and cool.

Combine in a large mixing bowl the beans, corn, remaining vegetables, herbs, and cooled quinoa. Toss gently with the dressing. Can be prepared a day ahead for flavors to combine. Serve at room temperature.

Serves: 6 Prep: 45 min
Source: TastyKitchen.com
~Jade H.