Bean Salad

This is a very versatile recipe. It can be a side dish, or a main course. You can add or subtract ingredients, easily - just use a properly chosen container to marinate the beans - mix / stir frequently, for several days, for best flavour.

If you make this regularly, you'll want to buy juice in 128 oz plastic bottles. You can marinate the salad in a used empty bottle, cut the bottle open open to remove the salad, when done - then discard the bottle. A funnel, large enough to pass beans easily, yet small enough to fit inside the mouth of the bottle, will be very useful when pouring beans into the bottle.

Here, I substituted 8 oz of sliced mushrooms for the green and wax beans.

This is the veggies, marinating in the bottle. See the vivid colours? Each colour represents a different flavour.


Ingredients

• 2 Can black beans
• 2 Can garbanzo beans
• 1 Can green beans
• 2 Can pinto beans
• 2 Can red beans
• 1 Can wax beans
• 8 oz mushrooms - "bits and pieces", or "sliced".
• 1 onion (red is best), or 1 bunch green onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, minced
• 1 sweet pepper (green or red), or 1 each, diced
• 1/2 C oil
• 1/2 C sugar
• 1/2 C vinegar
• dash pepper
• dash salt
• dash paprika and / or tumeric

Preparation

1. Drain and rinse beans thoroughly. Use a very large pot, and lots of water.
2. Mix beans, and other veggies. Make sure that all beans and veggie pieces will fit through the funnel or neck of the bottle. Dice as necessary.
3. Put veggie mixture in a bottle or marinating container. You may need more than 1 container.
4. Mix dressing mixture (oil, sugar, vinegar, spices) thoroughly.
5. Pour dressing mixture into marinating container(s).
6. Marinate 12 - 48 hours (longer is better). Mix or turn over the container, regularly. 1/2 of the vegetables should be draining, as the other 1/2 is soaking, constantly. This works best, with the bottle on its side, and turned end over end - not rotated.