Roasted butternut squash black eyed pea salad is a hearty and protein rich salad perfect for a filling lunch or as a side dish with a main meal. It is a vegan and gluten free salad.
This quick and easy squash and black eyed peas salad is a perfect weekday meal, requiring minimal prep and basic ingredients that you likely already have in your pantry.
The best part of this plant based protein salad is that you could swap out the vegetables and spices to tailor the salad to your family’s preferences. It’s a great way to add more vegetables to your diet.
Ingredients
- For Roasting: Butternut Squash, crushed black pepper, salt and extra virgin olive oil.
- For Dressing: Extra virgin olive oil, salt and chilli flakes
- To Assemble Salad: Black eyed pea, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, yellow bell pepper, baby spinach, pumpkin seeds and dried cranberries.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Step By Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat oven to 200C (400F).
Step 2: Place squash cubes on a lined baking tray in a single layer.
Step 3: Add pepper, salt and drizzle extra virgin olive oil on squash cubes. Toss until cubes are well coated.
Step 4: Put the tray in the oven and roast for 20 minutes until the squash is tender and slightly caramelised.
Step 5: Flip the cubes halfway through roasting.
Step 6: Once the squash is done, set it aside to cool slightly.
Step 7: While the squash is cooling, prepare the dressing.
Step 8: In a bowl, combine salt, chilli flakes, mint leaves and extra virgin olive oil.
Step 9: Mix well with a spoon and set it aside to use later.
Step 10: In a wide bowl, combine cucumber, cherry tomatoes, spinach, yellow bell pepper, black-eyed peas and cooled roast squash.
Step 11: Now add dressing and toss until everything is well combined.
Enjoy simple yet highly nutritious black eyed pea butternut squash salad as a light lunch or as a side dish with your main meal.
Substitutions and Variations
Vegetables: Try other vegetables such as corn, carrot, arugula, kale, lettuce or red onion.
Spices: Cumin or cinnamon powder elevates the flavour of squash. Add it with other spices to squash and toss to coat.
Herbs: For flavour variations, try dried oregano, parsley, coriander leaves, or any other fresh herbs instead of mint.
Nuts and Seeds: For extra crunch, add a handful of roasted peanuts, spicy roasted almonds, sunflower seeds, or walnuts.
Storage
If you’re preparing this salad in advance for meal prep or a party, roast and store the squash and raw vegetables in separate airtight containers, and keep the dressing in a clean jar in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you plan to use dry peas, cook, drain, and refrigerate the black-eyed peas up to 3 days ahead.
When it’s time to serve, simply combine the roasted squash, raw vegetables, and black-eyed peas, then drizzle with the dressing.
Tips and Tricks
Dressing: Add the dressing just before serving to avoid the salad becoming soggy.
Black-eyed Pea: For canned black-eyed pea, make sure to drain the liquid and rinse the peas thoroughly with water to reduce excess sodium.
Cool Squash: Allow the roasted squash to cool for a few minutes before assembling the salad.
Related
Looking for other salad recipes? Try these:
More Butternut Squash and Black Eyed Pea Recipes
KEEP IN TOUCH
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Butternut Squash Black Eyed Peas Salad
Equipment
- 1 Parchment paper
- 2 spoons
Ingredients
1 Cup = 250ml ; 1 Tablespoon = 15ml ; 1 Teaspoon = 5ml
For Roasted Squash
- 1 Cup (or) 230 gms Butternut Squash peel, cut, remove seeds and dice into bite size pieces
- Crushed Black Pepper as required
- Salt as required
- 1 Teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
For Dressing
- 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- ½ Teaspoon Red Chilli Flakes adjust to suit your spice preference
- 2 sprigs Fresh Mint Leaves remove leaves from stem, wash and chop leaves finely
- Salt as required
To Assemble Salad
- 1 Cup (or) 100 gms Black Eyed Peas cooked
- ¾ Cup (or) 100 gms Cucumber wash and dice into bite size cubes
- 8 (or) 80 gms Cherry Tomatoes wash and cut each into half
- ½ Cup (or) 70 gms Yellow Bell Pepper (Capsicum) chop finely
- ½ Cup (or) 20 gms Baby Spinach
- 2 Tablespoons Pumpkin Seeds
- 2 Tablespoons Dried Cranberries
Instructions
Roast Butternut Squash
- Preheat oven to 200C (400F).
- Place squash cubes on a lined baking tray in a single layer.1 Cup (or) 230 gms Butternut Squash
- Add pepper, salt and drizzle extra virgin olive oil on squash cubes. Toss until cubes are well coated.Crushed Black Pepper, Salt, 1 Teaspoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Put the tray in the oven and roast for 20 minutes until the squash is tender and slightly caramelised.
- Flip the cubes halfway through roasting.
- Once the squash is done, set it aside to cool slightly.
Dressing
- While the squash cools, prepare the dressing.
- In a bowl, combine salt, chilli flakes, mint leaves and extra virgin olive oil.1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil, ½ Teaspoon Red Chilli Flakes, 2 sprigs Fresh Mint Leaves, Salt
- Mix well with a spoon and set it aside to use later.
Assemble Salad
- In a wide bowl, combine cucumber, cherry tomatoes, spinach, yellow bell pepper, black-eyed peas, pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries and cooled roast squash.1 Cup (or) 100 gms Black Eyed Peas, ¾ Cup (or) 100 gms Cucumber, 8 (or) 80 gms Cherry Tomatoes, ½ Cup (or) 70 gms Yellow Bell Pepper (Capsicum), ½ Cup (or) 20 gms Baby Spinach, 2 Tablespoons Pumpkin Seeds, 2 Tablespoons Dried Cranberries
- Now add dressing and toss until everything is well combined.
- Enjoy simple yet highly nutritious black eyed peas butternut squash salad as a light lunch or as a side dish with your main meal.
Notes
Nutrition
Welcome to Flavours Treat. I share vegetarian recipes made with wholesome, mostly fresh ingredients. Every recipe has easy-to-follow instructions with process shots (detailed step-wise pictures), a short video and lots of tips to help your cooking journey. Read more
