Black Bean Bowl

Being a vegan, means eating A LOT of beans. They are a nourishing staple to every wholesome diet. I’ve been recently trying to switch to buying bulk instead of canned beans 😳. What’s awesome is the shelf life, price, and pretty pantry you get from shopping bulk. What’s different for me is this new soaking process. It’s crucial to soak, rinse, and cook those beans. 🌟

About two days ago, I had some friends over for a homemade Indian dinner. I was thrilled to show off my new passion for the kitchen by cooking up some cuisine. I decided to soak some black beans and make a twist on vegetable curry. My friend who was going to bring lentil soup, forgot to soak her beans in time, an easy mistake when you switch to the dry, bulk foods. Those hours of soaking are so important but in this world where we want things immediately it’s easy to forget to prep this step. 

We ended up just featuring this warm black bean bowl, which was a Mexican twist on vegetable curry. A sure success for any dinner night 😊. #enjoy 

  
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup black beans
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 red onion
• 2 jalapeño peppers 
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 cups vegetable stock 
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro
• 1tsp cumin
• 1 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper 
• 1tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 sliced avocado for garnish 

  
Directions:

Black Bean:

1. Soak beans overnight
2. Rinse in the morning
3. Bring 1cup water and 1 cup of vegetable stock to s boil
4. Add beans, reduce heat, and let simmer for one hour
5. Once cooked, strain
6. Add 1/2 the beans to a food processor and process until mashed (1minute)
7. Put all the beans back in sauce pan and cook on low

Vegetable Cayenne 

1. Heat 1tbsp olive oil 
2. Add chopped garlic and chopped red onion
3. Cook 2 minutes
4. Add cumin and cayenne pepper and stir
5. Add chopped jalapeño peppers and diced fire roasted red bell pepper
6. Cook for 7 minutes or until tender
7. Stir into finished black bean paste 

Rice:

1. Bring 1 cup water 1 cup vegetable stock to a boil
2. Add 1cup dry brown rice, lower heat to a simmer 
3. Add 1/2 cup frozen peas 
4. Let cook for 10 minutes.
5.  Strain and stir in chopped cilantro

To plate: 

1. Scoop a serving of fluffy rice
2. Top with warm, spicy black bean and vegetable paste 
3. Garnish with avocado slices

   
#healthyself