Brazillian black bean and red pepper salad

2    To 3 cups of regular dried
           Black beans
      1 lg Red pepper, diced
      1 lg Green pepper, diced
      2    To 3 finely chopped carrots
      2    To 3 cloves of garlic
    1/2 c  Finely chopped fresh
           Cilantro or fresh parsley
    1/2 c  Rice wine vinegar
      3 T  Water
      1 T  Ground cumin (more if
           Desired)
        x  Dash of hot red pepper
           Flakes
        x  Dash of salt (if desired)
 
  Pick through beans and soak overnight with plenty of water tocover.  In the
  morning, drain the beans and add fresh water to cover.
  
  Place beans over heat.  Add one clove of garlic and bring to a moderate
  boil.  Cook beans for approximately 30-45 minutes until beans are tender
  but NOT SOFT and mushy.  The beans should be firm enough to hold their
  shape.  Keep a close eye on their progress.
  
  When beans are cooked to the tender stage, remove garlic and drain.  Place
  warm beans in a large serving bowl.
  
  While beans are cooking, chop and dice the red and green peppers and
  carrots.  Add them to the beans.  In a 2-cup measuring cup (or something
  similiar),combine the rice wine vinegar, water, cumin and other
  ingredients.  Mince the remaining garlic and add it to the rice vinegar
  dressing. Stir well to combine ingredients.
  
  Toss the bean and vegetable mixture withtherice wine vinegar dressing.
  Cover and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.  I think tossintg
  warm beans with dressing enhances the flavors more than if using cold
  beans.
  
  The rice wine vinegar is fairly sweet and very mild.  It makes an
  exceptionally delicious replacement for olive oil in just about any salad
  dressing recipe.  The lemon-y cilantro adds a wonderful flavor; especially
  when combined with the cumin.  Try to use fresh cilantro. Dired cilantro
  just does not have the same impact. You can substitute fresh parsley if
  desired.
  
  Serve the bean salad over rice and spoon a little dressing over it. The red
  and green peppers add beautiful color and contrast nicely with the black
  beans and cilantrol.  Together it makes for an attractive presentation on
  the plate.
  
  Enjoy.  I really get a lot of very useful information from this list. I
  especially lovetrying the recipes.
  
  From: Paula Hollis . Fatfree Digest [Volume 10 Issue
  16] Aug. 26, 1994. Formatted by Sue Smith, S.Smith34, TXFT40A@Prodigy.com
  using MMCONV