Quick, fresh and tasty. I love the ingredients of this recipe.
- salt to taste
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 green bell pepper diced
- 1 small onion diced
- 2 cups cooked brown rice
- 1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans rinsed and drained
- 1 (15 ounce) can black beans rinsed and drained
- 1 (15.25 ounce) can whole kernel corn drained
- 2 jalapeno peppers seeded and diced
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
- Carbohydrate 11.1594554173582 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.445908270982429 g
- Fiber 1.21980362865855 g
- Protein 1.24821394689649 g
- Saturated Fat 0.0827462732348723 g
- Serving Size 1 1 serving (67g)
- Sodium 350.797384213403 mg
- Sugar 9.93965178869964 g
- Trans Fat 0.0526995068366936 g
- Calories 53 calories
Step-by-step
- In a large salad bowl, combine the brown rice, kidney beans, black beans, corn, onion, green pepper, jalapeno peppers, lime zest and juice, cilantro, garlic, and cumin. Lightly toss all ingredients to mix well, and sprinkle with salt to taste.
- Refrigerate salad for 1 hour, toss again, and serve.
What temperature should this cold grain salad be when it hits the table? Allowing chilled bean and rice salads to sit at room temperature for fifteen minutes before serving softens the starch in the brown rice and unlocks aromatics suppressed by cold temperatures. Cumin and fresh garlic benefit particularly from this brief tempering window.
Pairing Strategies and Ingredient Shifts
Acidity cuts through the dense starches of kidney beans and corn. Pair this salad with charred flank steak or grilled pork chops where the smoke contrasts with the sharp lime dressing. Canned beans offer convenience and consistent texture, whereas starting from dried beans soaked overnight requires boiling them for roughly forty-five to sixty minutes until tender, yielding a firmer interior texture.
- Blandness usually indicates under-salting; add kosher salt gradually while tasting the rice specifically, as grains absorb sodium slowly.
- Watery results stem from inadequate drainage in canned corn and beans; shake them in a colander and blot with paper towels.
- Soggy herbs occur when chopped cilantro is added too early; fold delicate leaves in just before the final refrigeration cycle.
