A salad is more than just a pile of green leaves. Take this quinoa salad, for instance. It’s a fiesta of flavor, packed with southwestern staples like black beans, corn, red peppers, and onions. The vegetables may be eaten raw or roasted, lending a touch of ever-so-slightly charred smoky goodness.
Drizzled with a chili-lime vinaigrette, this salad transports me straight to Santa Fe, New Mexico where I lived for a period. This quinoa salad is a timeless classic, a taste of the past, and a reminder that sometimes, the simplest things are the most satisfying.
Arliano Update (Aggiornamento Arliano):
Except for leeks, our 2024 garden is kaput! Finished. Done. And it’s only the beginning of September! Lessons learned: 1. Soft irrigation hoses only last for three years maximum. We need to find an alternative solution, or the husband will repeatedly tell me that it’s cheaper to buy produce in the supermarket. 2. Laziness of not weeding only pays off for tomatoes and okra. Otherwise, the vegetables remain too moist with trapped water. Next year I will lay down large sheets of cardboard and other weed blockers. 3. Okra is a garden star. If you like okra, it does well under a full, hot sun and produces continuously for over a month. We’ll definitely grow it again. 4. Having automated water timers is a Godsend, but they need to be monitored, especially if it rains. 5. That said, it didn’t rain all that much and we had several heat waves with hot, strong winds nearly every afternoon.
Renovations on the rental house have resumed with all the workers returned from their summer vacations. They are focusing on external needs before the rainy season starts, replacing the roof and putting insulation around the house, puffing it up like a styrofoam cooler. Our electrician and engineer came by to determine the position of the solar panels. We joke that we are spending tens of thousands of euros on the solar panels only to save mere hundreds on electric bills. I’m not convinced that there will ever be a break even point, but if there’s ever a zombie apocalypse, at least we’ll be energy self-sufficient. Such is life and trying to be green. 🙂
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Raw or Roasted Southwesters Quinoa Salad
Ingredients
- 1 + 1/2 cups quinoa (250 grams), any type
- 3 cups broth (vegetable or chicken) or water
- 1 cup cooked black beans (either from a can, drained and rinsed, or cooked, soaked overnight, then boiled until soft. If boiling your own, consider adding 1 teaspoon each of cumin powder and smoked paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon of kosher or sea salt)
- 1 cup corn kernels (either cut fresh from a cob, frozen, or canned)
- 1 large red bell pepper, diced 1/4-inch (.5 cm)
- 1 medium red onion, small diced
- 1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped (optional) ___________________________
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (about 2 limes)
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon ground hot chili powder (e.g. cayenne)
Chili Lime Vinaigrette
Directions
- Bring 3 cups of water or broth to a boil. Add the quinoa and cook according to package directions, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Once cooked, transfer the quinoa to a large mixing bowl and let cool
- Dice the vegetables. Decide if you want to keep them raw or give them a quick broil. If broiling to achieve a slight char and smoky taste, arrange them on a cooking sheet and broil for 6 – 8 minutes, with the oven rack placed slightly above the upper third of the oven (not too close to the broiler). Keep an eye on the vegetables so that they don’t burn, although a little char is desirable
- Add the vegetables to the bowl with the quinoa
- Whisk together all the vinaigrette ingredients, add it to the quinoa and vegetables, and mix thoroughly. You may eat this immediately, but it’s better if you let it sit for an hour so the vinaigrette can get absorbed into the quinoa and vegetables and the spices may further “bloom”
Greg Nelson Cooks 
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