Mexican Salad with Jalapeño Pepper
Warm zucchini, charred and golden from the grill pan, lands on a bowl of raw black beans, tomato wedges, avocado, and fresh jalapeño. The dressing is nothing more than olive oil, lemon, salt, and pepper.
Fifteen minutes of work, no oven, and the plate puts 29 grams of fiber in front of you, nearly the full daily recommendation in a single lunch. The black beans carry most of it, but the avocado, whole wheat bread, zucchini, and tomatoes all add their share. Six ingredients stacking up to a number most meals never reach.
Warm zucchini, charred and golden from the grill pan, lands on a bowl of raw black beans, tomato wedges, avocado, and fresh jalapeño. The dressing is nothing more than olive oil, lemon, salt, and pepper.
Fifteen minutes of work, no oven, and the plate puts 29 grams of fiber in front of you, nearly the full daily recommendation in a single lunch. The black beans carry most of it, but the avocado, whole wheat bread, zucchini, and tomatoes all add their share. Six ingredients stacking up to a number most meals never reach.
Ingredients
- black beans 0.75 cup
- zucchini 1
- red onion 0.5
- avocado 0.5
- tomatoes 2
- jalapeño pepper 1
- olive oil 1.5 tablespoon
- lemon juice 1 squeeze
- bread, whole wheat 2 slices
Method
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Rinse the black beans with water in a colander. Slice the zucchini. Cut the onion, avocado and tomatoes into wedges. Dice the jalapeño pepper.
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Whisk a dressing with half of the oil, the lemon juice and salt and pepper.
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Spread the remaining oil over the zucchini and season with salt and pepper. Heat a grill pan and cook the zucchini for 3-4 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Set the zucchini slices aside on a plate.
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In a bowl, combine a salad with the beans, avocado, onion, jalapeño and tomato. Arrange the zucchini over the salad and drizzle with the dressing.
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Serve the salad warm and serve with the (toasted) bread.
Slice the zucchini no thicker than half a centimeter and let the grill pan get properly hot before the slices go in. Thick slices steam from the inside before they brown on the outside, giving you limp zucchini instead of the crisp, caramelized edges that hold up against the cold raw salad.
Why This Works
Behind this recipe
Is 29 grams of fiber in one meal too much?
It is a lot for a single sitting, but it is not dangerous for most people. The daily recommendation is 25 to 30 grams, and most adults eat only about half of that. This salad delivers nearly the full target in one meal, which means you are front-loading your intake rather than spreading it across the day. If you are not used to high-fiber meals, your gut may need a few days to adjust. Start with a smaller portion of the beans and increase over time.
Read the full evidence reviewWhy does this salad have 42 grams of fat?
The fat comes from two sources: half an avocado and one and a half tablespoons of olive oil. Both are unsaturated fats. Beyond flavor, the fat in this salad plays a functional role. A study on meal composition showed that lycopene from tomatoes became more than four times as absorbable when avocado was part of the plate, versus eating the tomatoes on their own. The olive oil dressing and the avocado wedges both act as carriers for the fat-soluble nutrients in the raw tomatoes.
Can I skip the jalapeño if I do not like heat?
Yes. Replace it with half a red bell pepper cut into strips, or leave it out entirely. The macros barely change, and the salad still works as a fresh, hearty bowl. If you want mild heat without the burn, remove the seeds and white membrane from the jalapeño before dicing. The seeds and membrane carry the bulk of the heat.
