Kidney Bean Salad

Food, just like life, is best served up light and easy in the summertime. This colourful kidney bean salad is easy to make, packs plenty of vitamins, minerals and easy-to-digest proteins, and has a laid-back spicy zest that goes well with a glass of red wine or a cold beer.

Kidney bean salad

Salad:

1 1/4 cups dried red kidney beans
1 cucumber, diced
2 large tomatoes, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
2 large jalapeño peppers, finely diced
2 green onions, sliced

Dressing:

1/2 cup rice wine or apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder

Soak the beans overnight in a large pot of water and a teaspoon of yoghurt whey or lemon juice. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover, cooking for 1 hour or until the beans are tender but still firm.

Combine the salad ingredients in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the salad and toss. Chill for 1 hour before serving.

I'm sending this along to Archana, who is hosting an event focusing on one dish meals that are high in protein. The theme this month is salads.