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This easy White Bean Salad is simple to make in a couple of minutes and full of so much flavor. It’s great for prepping and stashing in the fridge for busy weekday lunches and dinners. With just 5 ingredients, it’s a hearty side dish to pair with any protein.
When it comes to simple side dish recipes, this White Bean Salad is one of our go-tos. It’s comforting and hearty, but also full of fresh flavor thanks to all of the herbs. With just a handful of ingredients, it’s a gourmet salad that’s tossed together in only 5 minutes!
Ingredients in White Bean Salad
- Shallot: Add a savory onion/garlic flavor.
- Red wine vinegar: Adds nice tang to the salad. You can also use white wine vinegar, tarragon vinegar or white balsamic vinegar.
- Olive oil: for the best flavor, use a high-quality robust extra-virgin olive oil.
- Fresh herbs: I prefer a mix of fresh mint and dill, though fresh parsley, cilantro and chives are all great options. Use at least 2 different herbs for the best flavor.
- Canned white beans: I like cannellini or navy beans, drain and rinse them well.
- Pepper flakes: Add a little pinch depending on how much heat your like. If you’re looking to upgrade your salad, try Urfa pepper for a milder, smoky heat.
How to Make White Bean Salad
- Marinate the shallot. Combine shallot, vinegar and ½ teaspoon kosher salt in a small bowl; let sit 5 minutes.
- Infuse the oil with fresh herbs. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine herbs with oil to coat.
- Assemble the salad. Add beans, pepper flakes and shallot-vinegar mixture; toss gently to combine and season with salt and additional pepper flakes to taste.
Tips for Making White Bean Salad
- Try a different bean. If you want to use something other than cannellini beans, try chickpeas, navy beans or gigante beans.
- Soaking the shallots in vinegar makes them less potent. Raw shallot can be really potent in flavor, but soaking them in the vinegar for a bit, some of that potency gets tamed.
- Use whatever herbs are in season. The beauty of this salad is you can customize all the flavors to your liking depending on what is at the market or the store!
Storing Herbed Bean Salad
Store this salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. I like to let it sit out for 10 minutes to take the chill off. Then give it a stir and an extra drizzle of olive oil before serving.
What to Serve with White Bean Salad
The options are endless, it pairs great with other vegetables or with so many proteins, here are our suggestions.
Bean Salad FAQs
This salad is perfect for meal prep, it can be made, covered and refrigerated up to 3 days ahead of time.
Thinly sliced celery or English cucumber are both delicious, as are 1-inch pieces of blanched green beans. I also love adding pitted castelvetrano olives or capers. For some brightness consider adding some grated lemon zest.
You can definitely make this with dry beans. Cook them as you normally would then measure out about 1 ⅓ cup beans.
More Salads with Beans Recipes
Herbed White Bean Salad
Description
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Ingredients
- ½ large shallot, finely chopped (3 tablespoons)
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- Kosher salt
- ½ cup finely chopped tender herbs, such as mint and dill (parsley, cilantro and chives also work)
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 (15-ounce) can white beans, drained and rinsed (cannellini beans, navy beans, black eyed peas and/or chickpeas all work)
- ½ –1 teaspoon pepper flakes of choice, such as urfa pepper or crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Combine shallot, vinegar and ½ teaspoon kosher salt in a small bowl; let sit 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine herbs with oil to coat.
- Add beans, pepper flakes and shallot-vinegar mixture; toss gently to combine and season with salt and additional pepper flakes to taste.
Notes
Nutrition
