Tangy Bean Salad
A Bean Salad recipe for bean lovers! A terrific make-ahead dish for
Bean salad is always a favorite side dish. This one is as easy as opening a few tins of beans and whipping up a tangy sweet and sour dressing.
Need a side dish that you can make ahead? One that's portable for picnics, or colorful and pretty for a barbque or buffet table? Bean salad to the rescue!
This bean salad recipe goes beyond the basic by adding a wide variety of beans. It's filling and delicious. In the winter months, you can whip this great veggie dish up for school lunches, or as a side dish for dinner.
You can adjust the sweetness by adding a bit more sugar than the recipe calls for. If you've got yellow or green beans in your garden or have some extra from the market that need to be used up, you can subsitute them for the canned variety. You'll want to parboil them first though, so that they'll soften just a bit.
To parboil your beans, first wash them and chop them into 1-inch pieces. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil and place the prepared beans in the pot. Boil for one minute; drain the beans immediately and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking process.
Where I live, the beans are available in 14-16 ounce tins. The exact measurements aren't all that important, as long as you're using close to an equal amount of each type of bean.
Tangy Bean Salad
- 1 can red kidney beans
- 1 can chick peas (garbanzo beans)
- 1 can green beans (not French cut)
- 1 can yellow wax beans
- 1 can lima beans
- 1 can white kidney or navy beans
- 1 cup chopped red onion
- 1 small green bell pepper, chopped
- 1 small red, orange, or yellow bell pepper, chopped
- 2 stalks celery, sliced thinly
- 2/3 - 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup vinegar
- 1/2 cup light canola or salad oil
- 2-3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/2 teaspoon dill
- 1/2 teaspoon basil
- 1/2 teaspoon rosemary
- salt and black pepper to taste
Open cans and drain all beans. In a large mixing bowl, combine beans, onion, bell pepper, and celery. Mix well to combine.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, vinegar, and oil. Stir constantly until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and add dried herbs.
Pour dressing over the bean mixture. Add parsley and stir well to coat. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve - at least 4 hours. This salad will keep for several days in the refrigerator, and tastes best the day after preparation.
Makes 8-10 servings.
