Ingredients:
3/4 |
cup |
dried pinto beans -- washed, and picked over |
1 1/2 |
cups |
very-small pasta shells |
2 |
tablespoons |
olive oil |
2 |
medium |
poblano chiles -- roasted, peeled, seeded and diced |
2 |
medium |
red peppers -- roasted, peeled, seeded and diced |
1 |
teaspoon |
coarse salt |
1/2 |
teaspoon |
freshly-ground black pepper |
1/2 |
bunch |
oregano leaves -- washed, and chopped roughly |
1/4 |
cup |
red wine vinegar |
1/2 |
cup |
olive oil |
|
Preparation:
Place the beans in a large pot and cover generously with water.
Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, covered, until the beans are creamy inside, but not mushy, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Drain beans and transfer to a large bowl to cool.
Cook shells in rapidly boiling salted water. When done, drain in a colander, then spread shells on a cookie sheet to allow steam to escape. Drizzle with a tiny bit of olive oil. When cool, combine pasta with the pinto beans. Add peppers.
In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Drizzle dressing over salad and toss gently to combine.
To roast chiles and peppers: Place over a gas flame or on a tray under a broiler. Keep turning so that the skin is evenly charred, without burning and drying out the flesh.
Transfer charred peppers to a plastic or paper bag, tie the top closed and allow to steam until cool to the touch, about fifteen minutes. (To speed things up, place bag in a bowl of ice water.) Peel the peppers by hand, then dip the them briefly in water to remove any blackened bits. |