A salad this straightforward has no enterprise being so scrumptious, however it simply is. This Basic Three Bean Salad has minimal components, essentially the most fundamental of fundamental dressings, and but I can’t appear to get sufficient of it. The creamy beans are the proper distinction to the tangy-sweet dressing, and there’s simply sufficient savory crunch from the crimson onion to maintain the flavors grounded. It’s the proper summer time facet dish for all your BBQs and potlucks, or on these busy weeknights while you don’t need to spend so much of time fixing dinner.
Pin this recipe for later!
All recipes are rigorously examined in our Nashville Check Kitchen to make sure they’re straightforward, inexpensive, and scrumptious.
“I made this recipe yesterday. I adopted it to the letter, no alterations and no substitutions. It was FANTASTIC. I’ll make it many times. So flavorful and scrumptious and satisfying. Thanks!”
Isabelle
Straightforward Three Bean Salad Recipe
My three bean salad has darkish kidney beans, cannellini beans, and inexperienced beans. You can too strive different beans like chickpeas, wax beans, purple hull peas, or black eyed peas. This recipe is actually versatile, so you may swap out the beans, and you’ll even add greater than three beans in the event you’d like. Nevertheless, I like to recommend having quite a lot of colours, textures, and shapes. Be sure that to have not less than one creamy bean, too!
I additionally made a fundamental, barely candy French dressing with simply sufficient Dijon to present it slightly zing. You possibly can simply tweak the sweetness or tang to your liking and even use your favourite bottled dressing (like Italian dressing) for a unique taste. This recipe is SO straightforward to make your personal, so have enjoyable with it!
Basic Three Bean Salad
- 1 15 oz. can kidney beans ($0.94)
- 1 15 oz. can cannellini beans ($0.94)
- 1.5 cups frozen inexperienced beans (thawed, $0.59*)
- ¼ cup crimson onion (finely diced, $0.12)
- ¼ cup contemporary parsley (chopped, $0.17)
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar ($0.24)
- ¼ cup olive oil ($0.64**)
- 2 Tbsp sugar ($0.12***)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.03)
- ¼ tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.02)
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard ($0.03)
-
Rinse and drain the kidney beans and cannellini beans. Place the kidney beans, cannellini beans, and thawed inexperienced beans in a bowl.
-
Slice the crimson onion, then soak the onion in a bowl of ice water for about 5 minutes earlier than draining and finely dicing. Chop the parsley. Add the onion and parsley to the bowl with the beans.
-
In a separate bowl, whisk collectively the vinegar, sugar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and Dijon.
-
Pour the dressing over the beans, onion, and parsley, then stir to mix.
-
Switch the bean salad to the fridge and let the beans marinate within the dressing for about half-hour earlier than serving. Give the salad a very good stir simply earlier than serving to redistribute the dressing.
See how we calculate recipe prices right here.
**Olive oil is my most well-liked alternative for this French dressing. It provides richness, helps steadiness the acidity, and creates a brief emulsion; I by no means skip it! With out it, the vinegar and Dijon flavors might be extra pronounced, the texture might be lighter, and the flavour might be a lot sharper. You possibly can strive leaving it out if most well-liked, however all of it comes right down to your private desire.
***The dressing is supposed to be barely candy to mellow the sharpness of the vinegar and mustard, however be at liberty to regulate it to your style. In the event you’re delicate to sweetness, begin with a smaller quantity of sugar and add extra if wanted.
Serving: 1cupEnergy: 301kcalCarbohydrates: 41gProtein: 13gFats: 11gSodium: 666mgFiber: 12g
Learn our full
vitamin disclaimer right here.
Tips on how to Make Three Bean Salad Step-by-Step Images
Prep the beans: Rinse and drain one 15 oz. can of kidney beans and one 15 oz. can of cannellini beans. Add them to a bowl with 1.5 cups of thawed frozen inexperienced beans.
Shock the onion: Slice some crimson onion and soak them for about 5 minutes in a bowl of ice water (this takes the sharp edge off their taste). Finely cube about ¼ cup of the crimson onion. Chop about ¼ cup contemporary parsley.
Make the dressing: Whisk collectively ¼ cup apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup olive oil, 2 Tbsp sugar, 1 tsp salt, ¼ tsp freshly cracked pepper, and 1 tsp Dijon mustard.
Mix: Add the onion and parsley to the bowl with the beans, then pour the dressing over prime. Stir every little thing to mix.
Chill and serve: Refrigerate the three bean salad for about half-hour to let the beans marinate. Give it a very good stir, after which serve!
What to Serve with Three Bean Salad
The sweet-tart taste of this three bean salad makes it an ideal match for different sweet-savory dishes, particularly something with BBQ sauce. Within the images right here, I served it with my BBQ cheddar baked rooster and a giant scoop of potato salad, and the combo was extremely satisfying. It additionally pairs fantastically with glazed ham steaks (the Dijon dressing goes so effectively with the candy glaze), creamy pork chops for a enjoyable distinction, or crispy air fryer drumsticks while you want a fast weeknight meal.
Storage Directions
Three bean salad is a kind of recipes that truly will get higher with time within the fridge. Because it refrigerates, the beans start to soak up the flavors within the dressing, and every little thing will get SUPER tasty. This salad will in all probability keep good within the fridge for about 4 days (in the event you don’t eat all of it by then).
Our Basic Three Bean Salad recipe was initially printed 6/21/21. It was retested, reworked, and republished to be higher than ever 7/3/25.
