Southern Black Eyed Pea Salad (Printable Version)

Hearty black-eyed peas and brown rice with crisp vegetables in zesty lemon-mint dressing.

# What You'll Need:

→ Salad

01 - 1.5 cups cooked black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
02 - 1 cup cooked brown rice, cooled
03 - 0.5 small red onion, finely diced
04 - 2 celery stalks, finely diced
05 - 0.25 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped

→ Lemon Vinaigrette

06 - 0.25 cup extra-virgin olive oil
07 - 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
08 - 1 teaspoon lemon zest
09 - 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
10 - 0.5 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
11 - Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

# Steps:

01 - In a large mixing bowl, combine the black-eyed peas, cooled brown rice, diced red onion, diced celery, and chopped mint.
02 - In a small bowl or jar, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, Dijon mustard, honey or maple syrup, salt, and pepper until fully emulsified.
03 - Pour the lemon vinaigrette over the salad ingredients and gently toss to combine all components evenly.
04 - Taste the salad and adjust seasoning with additional salt, pepper, or lemon juice as desired.
05 - Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving to allow flavors to fully meld and develop.
06 - Serve chilled or at room temperature, garnished with extra fresh mint if desired.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It tastes even better the next day when all those flavors have gotten to know each other in the fridge.
  • You can throw it together in under an hour, and most of that time is just waiting for rice to cook.
  • It's the kind of dish that works whether you're feeding vegetarians, gluten-free guests, or just hungry people in general.
02 -
  • If your rice is even slightly warm when you mix it in, the heat will wilt the mint and turn your dressing cloudy—this happened to me once and I learned to always cool it completely.
  • The salad actually improves overnight as the rice absorbs more dressing and the flavors meld, so don't hesitate to make it a day ahead for a gathering.
03 -
  • Make the vinaigrette in a jar with a tight-fitting lid so you can shake it rather than whisk—it emulsifies beautifully and travels well to potlucks.
  • If you're bringing this to a gathering, transport the dressing separately and toss everything together just before serving so the salad stays crisp and bright.
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