Black-eyed Pea Salad

Black-eyed Pea Salad

I taught a vegetarian cooking class last week and this recipe was a big hit. Several of the people in class said they never thought of eating black-eyed peas in a salad. They had only had them in hot dishes before.

Black-eyed peas, like other legumes, are a wonderful addition to both hot and cold dishes. This recipe was presented as a great vegetarian option for dinner. Truth is, this makes a nice salad for almost any summer party, picnic or cookout. Even the carnivores should be pleased.

It is a simple recipe you can make ahead of time. Not too many ingredients, but packed with flavor.

I used dried peas and cooked them in my pressure cooker. If you are really pressed for time, you could use canned black-eyed peas instead. You’d need  4 or 5 cans. A can of black-eyed peas ( 14 oz.) will give you about a cup and a half of peas. A pound of dried  gives you about 7 cups of cooked peas.

Here is the recipe. Great summertime salad. Serve it plain- or over a bed of salad greens.

Black-eyed Pea Salad

1 lb. dried black-eyed peas

1 large sweet onion, chopped fine

1 sweet pepper, seeded and chopped

1/4 c. olive oil

1/4 c. red wine vinegar

1/4 c. chopped fresh parsley

1/2 t. dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste

Cover beans with cold water in saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil 5 minutes. Turn off heat and allow to stand 1 hour. Drain and rinse beans. Return to saucepan and cover with cold water. Simmer beans until tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Drain. Place cooked beans in a bowl and cover with remaining ingredients. Toss to coat, cover and chill. Serve as a main dish or on the side. Also tasty served over salad greens or stuffed in a hollowed out tomato. Serves 6-8.