Easy Black-Eyed Peas Salad - Lobia Salad - Cowpea Salad Recipe

Do you love salads for dinner? Then make this easy black-eyed peas salad recipe and serve it with mashed potatoes or pasta for a quick weekday dinner or a calming New Year party. This vegan and gluten-free salad is easy to make and can be carried for lunch.

I love bean salads as they are easy to make and keep us full for a long time. I like to add steamed or baked potatoes or sweet potatoes to this salad and pack it as a lunch box item.

Ingredients

• Black-eyed peas: I used home-cooked black-eyed peas to make this salad. You can quickly cook the dried peas at home. You can also use canned black-eyed peas to make the salad. If using canned peas, drain them and rinse them once in clean water.
• Veggies: Fresh veggies like cucumber, tomato, and red onion will give the salad the perfect texture and taste.
• Salad dressing: Lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, pepper powder, and salt act as a salad dressing for this quick recipe. I have added a little cumin powder to make it more flavorful. Add chopped jalapenos or red chili flakes to make the salad spicy.
• Cilantro leaves: Cilantro adds a fresh, lemony, and slightly peppery note, complementing the other ingredients beautifully.
• Sunflower seeds (optional): These add a nutty crunch, elevating the texture profile of the salad.
• Boiled potato cubes (optional): Potatoes add a comforting, starchy component to the salad, making it more filling.

How to make Black-Eyed Peas Salad

Step 1: Cook the black-eyed peas

• Soak the black-eyed peas for 6 to 8 hours. (optional)
• Wash the soaked or dried black-eyed peas and add them to the Instant Pot inner pot.

• Then add water and salt. Close the Instant Pot with its lid. Seal the pressure valve. Use 2 cups of water for soaked peas and 3 cups for dried black-eyed peas.

• Select manual or pressure cook mode and cook it for 5 minutes on high pressure for soaked black-eyed peas. Cook it for 16 minutes on high pressure for dried black-eyed peas.
• Once the Instant Pot finishes cooking, wait 10 minutes and manually release the pressure. Strain the cooked peas and keep them aside.

Step 2: Prep the ingredients

• Boil, steam, or bake the potatoes and keep them aside. I use boiled and diced potatoes in this salad recipe.
• Finely chop onion, tomatoes, cucumber, and cilantro.

Step 3: Make the black-eyed peas salad

• Take a mixing bowl. Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and freshly ground black pepper powder to the bowl and whisk together.

• Add finely chopped onions, tomatoes, cucumber, cilantro leaves, and potato cubes (if using).

• Mix it well so the salad dressing is coated well with the veggies.

• Then goes boiled black-eyed peas and sunflower seeds.

• Mix everything well and serve the delicious black-eyed peas salad immediately.

Tips, Variations & Substitutions

• Don't like black-eyed peas? Then, make this salad recipe with chickpeas, black beans, or kidney beans.
• For a crunchier salad, add the cucumber and tomatoes just before serving. And if you like a softer texture, let the salad marinate in the refrigerator for a few hours.
•  Do you want to exclude potatoes? You can easily omit potatoes and have this peas salad as a side dish. 
•  Instead of potatoes, you can also use cooked pasta to make this black-eyed peas salad.
•  If you do not like the taste or smell of raw onions, you can safely skip them.
•  Additional Vegetables: You could use different veggies like steamed cauliflower, broccoli, and green beans. I sometimes use raw veggies like red bell peppers and carrots.
•  Diced avocado and steamed or grilled sweet corn will also taste good in this salad.
•  Are you out of cilantro leaves? You can omit the leaves. Other herbs like mint, dill leaves, basil leaves, and green onions will flavor the salad. 
•  Add salt and sunflower seeds to the salad just before serving. Salt will release water from the veggies, and the salad will become watery.
• Spice Adjustments: Adjust the amount of pepper powder and cumin to suit your taste preferences. A little bit of chili powder can also add a nice kick.

Serving suggestions

If you use potatoes to make this salad, you can serve the salad as the main dish or as a standalone meal. And this will be a filling meal also.

If you skip potatoes in this recipe, serve the black-eyed peas salad as a side dish with pasta, mashed potatoes, or toasted sourdough bread.

Mix this salad with cooked millet or quinoa for a hearty, filling meal or lunch box item. I also use leftover salad in wraps and tacos.

Storage

I enjoy this salad fresh, as the cucumbers and tomatoes can release water over time, changing the texture. But this salad keeps well in the refrigerator for a day. And I highly recommend skipping onions if you intend to store the salad in the fridge as onions might smell bad.

I do not freeze this salad as the texture will change significantly. Instead, freeze the cooked black-eyed peas and make this salad when needed.

FAQ

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