Recipe testing: Mango Pineapple Black Bean Salsa
- Mar 22
- 3 min read
Updated: Mar 25
Transport yourself to the beach with this summery recipe borne out of me testing two recipes I found online. All three (the following, plus the two I adapted this one from) are worth trying! Just make sure you have enough tortilla, veggie, or pita chips ready. 😊
I've always been a big fan of beans. Less a fan of a sweet + savory combo. So I've always kind of hesitated at the idea of mango black bean salsa. Recently, though, I realized it had been a while since I tried it, and it's a recipe that is particularly nutritious: fiber and micronutrients from beans, fruits, and vegetables, plus the opportunity to add other fruits and vegetables above and beyond, and the versatility of its application from on top of salmon to on the side of burgers to on its own as an appetizer or snack . . . it was time to try it again.
When I started looking for recipes to try, I was torn between a more traditional mango black bean salsa recipe by Meme Inge at Living Well Kitchen and a hearty mango black bean salad from Sara Wells at Our Best Bites that incorporated quinoa and a delicate dressing. Since the ingredients overlapped pretty well, I decided to attempt both and adapt from there.
As is usually the case, I had to make a few substitutions for the recipes. First was that instead of cooking my own quinoa for the quinoa mango black bean salad, I wanted to use quick-cooking quinoa to increase the convenience. I couldn't find quinoa on its own, so I used a Seeds of Change brown rice and quinoa mixture. The recipe noted that brown rice could be used instead of quinoa, so I figured it was a good swap-in.
I tested the recipes and prepared to adapt my own by setting out three bowls and assembling each by ingredient, since, again, so many ingredients overlapped.
Here are my results from the Black Bean Mango Quinoa Salad. It was good - felt filling and more like a salad - more savory - than the salsa, but still had that tropical feeling with the mango:
My attempt at the Mango Black Bean Salsa was also successful. I used pickled jalapeño peppers instead of fresh because I had pickled on hand. I think it worked out well.
I tried each recipe with 3 types of chips for dipping. One was a standard tortilla chip, one was a vegetable chip (Terra brand, original with sea salt), and one was a multigrain pita chip (Stacy's brand). I think the standard tortilla chip tasted the best with all 3 versions of the mango black bean salsa/salad, but the others could also be good options for some extra fiber (multigrain pita chips) or color (vegetable chips).
After testing both of the inspiration recipes, I decided to adapt the Mango Black Bean Salsa recipe by adding some diced pineapple, a few more beans, and a dash of extra virgin olive oil to tie everything together.
Mango Pineapple Black Bean Salsa
Adapted from Mango Black Bean Salsa by Meme Inge of Living Well Kitchen
Prep time: 40 minutes  Cook time: 0 minutes Â
Total time: 40 minutes  Yields: 8 servings
Ingredients
1 15-oz can black beans, reduced sodium, rinsed and drained
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1Â medium red bell pepper, diced
1 medium mango, diced
1/4 cup pineapple, diced
2 tsp pickled jalapeño peppers, minced
3 TBSP lime juice
1/4 tsp minced garlic
1/2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
To taste: salt and black pepper
Directions
Prepare all fruits and vegetables, finely chopping or dicing into small pieces, as noted in the ingredients. Drain and rinse black beans and set aside to dry.
Place diced red onion into a saucepan. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let onions soak and soften for 5-10 minutes. Drain and cool.
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Stir until mixture is evenly coated with extra virgin olive oil and lime juice and ingredients are evenly distributed.
Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Enjoy with chips, or consider as a side or topping for pulled pork, grilled chicken, hamburgers, or tacos.
Thanks for reading! Have questions or comments? Email me here!
References
