Black-Eyed Bean Salad with Crispy Capers

5 from 1 vote

Our Black-Eyed Bean Salad with Basil Caper Dressing is a great make-ahead salad ideal for barbecues and picnics. The fried capers are sensational!

Prep Time10

Cook Time5

Total Time15

Course: Salad

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: bean salad, black eyed beans, black eyed peas, caper dressing

Difficulty: Easy

Diet: dairy free, nut free, Vegan, Vegetarian,

Servings: as a side

Calories: 275kcal

400 grams black-eyed beans - one can 14 ounces
500 grams cherry tomato medley - 1 large punnet, 17.64 ounces or 4 cups
1 medium green banana pepper - or half a green pepper/capsicum, 1.6 ounces or ¼ cup chopped
½ Medium red onion or 1 French shallot
Sea salt and cracked black pepper

1 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup olive oil
¼ cup lemon juice
1 cup basil leaves, torn
¼ cup capers, drained and well rinsed
1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup - this is optional and will depend on how tart your dressing is (not included in nutritional breakdown)

Drain your can of beans in a colander and rinse well under cold water (the water should run clear).
Wash your cherry tomatoes under cold running water, pat dry and cut in half.
Wash your capsicum, remove the seeds and core, then cut itno rounds or a small dice.
Remove the papery skin from your onion, trim the ends, then cut into small dice.
Place all the dressing ingredients into a small food processor and blitz until well combined, add 3-4 tablespoons of water to loosen if it is too thick.
If you find that your dressing is too tart and puckery at this point then you could add a teaspoon of hone or maple syrup to sweeten it.

Drain a ¼ cup of capers, rinse well and pat dry so they don't splutter too much in the oil.
Heat some olive oil (approximately 3-4 tablespoon in a small frypan until very hot.
Carefully add the capers and cook for about two minutes, moving them around gently with a slotted spoon.
They should "flower" and look light brown and golden, then drain on paper towels to dry.

Pour the dressing over the salad and mix until the salad is well coated with the dressing. Taste adjust seasonings to your taste.
Arrange the salad in a salad platter and garnish with the shredded basil and fried capers. Serve and enjoy!

While this is a lot of dressing, it is great to dunk fresh bread into the juices. If you prefer, just use half and save the rest for another salad.
To make a half batch of dressing, you need 2 tablespoons each of olive oil, lemon juice and capers, half a cup of basil leaves, half a clove of minced garlic and if necessary, half a teaspoon of a sweetener such as honey or maple syrup.
Chiffonade is a slicing technique where leafy green vegetables and herbs, such as spinach, basil, sorrel, etc., are cut into long, thin strips. To do this, stack the leaves on top of each other, gently roll them into a cigar, and then use a sharp knife to slice them into thin ribbons.