Wednesday, August 27, 2008

full of beans

often seen at picnics, get-togethers, potluck dinners and bbq's, bean salads are popular because they keep well and are very simple to make. they are also very inexpensive, can be made the night before (they should be to improve flavours!), and do not deteriorate quickly as do many other salads.


there really aren't any hard & steadfast rules for making a bean salad — it is essentially just a mix of your favourite beans, vegetables and salad dressing. the only real rule is to let the salad marinate for a few hours so the vegetables and beans can absorb the flavours of the marinade you are using. i tend not to go too heavy on the vegetables and prefer a balanced dressing, and not one which is highly acidic.

served in small portions, the following will stay good for at least a full week. the salad tastes best served at room temperature. if the flavours have faded a bit over the following days, you can perk things up by adding a bit more of "this and that" before serving.


marinated bean salad

makes enough for 6 - 8 people

ingredients:

19 oz can mixed beans (or your fave)

1/4 - 1/2 large green pepper
2 - 3 sun dried tomatoes, chopped
1/8 - 1/4 red onion
4 - 6 tbsp corn

2 - 3 tbsp olive oil
2 -3 tbsp vinegar (reg white or apple cider)
1 -2 tbsp honey*
1/4 tsp each garlic & onion powder (or 1 clove chopped garlic)
1/4 tsp salt - or more
1/8 tsp black pepper

chopped parsley or coriander (optional)

*can use brown rice syrup (vegan) or regular sugar also.


method:

drain and rinse the beans and set aside in a strainer so all the water runs off.

meanwhile, prepare the vegetables: thinly slice the green pepper and red onions, chop the sun dried tomatoes and measure out the corn. place the vegetables in a bowl.

add or change the vegetables as you like. some people typically add cooked green (haricot) beans as a standard.

add the drained beans to the vegetables and then add the dressing ingredients. mix everything together and add the parsley or coriander if using.

let the salad marinate for a few hours on the counter. the cold of the fridge tends to slow the absorption process so let it marinate first.

simple, quick and easy

enjoy!


10 comments:

Aim said...

Yummy. Looks really good!

burekaboy — said...

hi aim - thanks for your visit and comment ;) i always forget about making this salad - finally used up that can sitting in the pantry!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

That's exactly the kind of bean salad I love! Scrumptious!

Cheers,

Rosa

Anonymous said...

healthy dishes lately!! i make a very similar salad, we call it "judias en vinagreta" but i find your dressing very interesting : have never added honey to this. i'll give it a try whilst you can try add some capers, you'll like it.

Nicole said...

I really like bean salad and think it's very under-rated. Thanks for reminding me to make this again!

Nafeesah said...

So you finally post a new recipe BB! I was beginning to wonder when I would be able to see more yummy pics on your blog :p this looks great, I'm on the prowl now looking for easy yummy recipes to make for iftaar during ramadhaan, this sounds really nice and simple :)

TopChamp said...

beans beans good for the heart......

I hate beans. Even you can't make me think "mmm.. those beans look delicious".

burekaboy — said...

rosa - moi, aussi :)) we eat it here all year round - not just for summer when you most see it.

sari - healthy, me? HA HA. in N.A., bean salads are often made with a sweet/sour dressing. haven't tried it with capers - sounds good (don't think you'd ever find those in a bean salad here however! LOL). lemme know what you think, if you try it.

nicole - hi there. under rated, indeed -- though people often change their minds about it once they start eating it. i always feel like it's one of those side dishes we get reminded to make every once in a while once we see it somewhere. thanks for your comment :)

embellished - hey there! ramadan karim (did it start yet?) i could really deal with eating a full month of goodies! LOL. payback for starving, i mean, fasting, all day :p i have a hard enough time with our ONE day (26 hrs) of fasting on yom kippour. took a bit of a break from blogging - hope to get some more stuff on here soon. i trust things are going well with you. i'm sure you'll be 'baking your brains out' for iftar. this salad is fast and easy, also healthy. give it a try!

TC - TC, what can i say to that? {i WON'T respond with the other 1/2 of what you said!} LOL. at least, you're 100% honest. hehe. now go eat some cake.

Dovid said...

I've had a salad like this with oregano and caraway. The caraway is allegedly good for flatulence.

For those who don't like the sharpness of raw onion, you can either blanch the onion (use a sieve to suspend the chopped onions in boiling water) before adding it to the salad, or microwave them on high. Microwaving has the advantage of not contributing more liquid to the salad.

burekaboy — said...

hi jay - i don't think i've ever tried it with oregano and caraway. i'm sure it's very good.

thanks for your visit, comment & advice about how to make the raw onions less harsh. vidalias are also often a good choice for those who don't like strong flavours.