Black Eyed Pea & Roasted Corn Salad with Smoky Vinaigrette
2 cups fresh okra, untrimmed
2 tsp olive oil
2 cups cooked black eyed peas, drained and cooled
4 ears fresh corn, cooked on the grill or boiled, kernels cut off cob (about 2 cups)
1 shallot, minced
1 cup cherry tomatoes, cut in half
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 T chopped fresh basil
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
2-3 T goat cheese, crumbled
Smoky Vinaigrette (recipe below)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse and dry okra. Toss okra in olive oil and spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Place in preheated oven and roast 15-20 minutes, stirring okra halfway through. Remove from oven and let cool. Trim off stems and discard. Cut okra into ¼” pieces.
In a large bowl, combine cooked black eyed peas with okra, corn, shallot, cherry tomatoes, cilantro and basil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, to taste.
Toss salad with Smoky Vinaigrette and top with goat cheese.
**As with any recipe, adjust the ingredients to your taste! Change the cheese to feta or parmesan if you prefer, or for a dairy free salad, skip the cheese altogether. Short on time? While there’s nothing like fresh corn on the cob, I won’t tell anyone if you use a bag of frozen corn. Another option: Save the okra idea for next time and substitute green beans (sauté in 2 T olive oil and a minced clove of garlic for 5 minutes to make slightly tender).
Smoky Vinaigrette
3 T rice vinegar
½ tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp brown sugar
Dash of Sriracha sauce
1/3 cup olive oil
Sea salt and pepper, to taste
Whisk together vinegar, paprika, brown sugar and Sriracha sauce. Drizzle olive oil into mixture, continuing to whisk until combined. Season with salt and pepper.
**Substitute the smoky vinaigrette with your favorite oil and vinegar based dressing. Or, this salad has so many great flavors to begin with, add some avocado and skip the dressing all together.
