a different kind of potato salad

I've reached what I consider a sort of culinary milestone: This week, I cooked beans myself for the first time in my life. Of all possible kitchen achievements, this one is low on the skill-level spectrum, but it's one about which I'm nevertheless sort of proud.

At the time, though, the hungry part of me (which was very hungry) thought, This is a huge pain in the ass. And compared to opening up a can and, presto, having your beans ready to rock, cooking them yourself really is less convenient. But dried-then-cooked beans are cheaper than canned, not swimming in salty liquid, and you can control their relative firmness or mushiness by how long you cook them. In no way am I suggesting that my relationship with canned beans is over; it's not. But when I have the time and the forethought to soak and cook my own, I think I will.

Everything that Mark says about this salad is true. Except for the addition of some leftover brown rice, I followed his recipe to the letter, so I'm not going to bother posting it. Lazy, but true.