Mediterranean Bean Salad Recipe
This delicious Mediterranean bean salad is a cold bowl of Great Northern beans, grilled peppers, zucchini, and red onion folded into a shallot-basil balsamic vinaigrette. I can have this recipe ready in less than 30 minutes and I love that is smoky, tangy, and made to sit in the fridge until dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 seeded red bell pepper
- 1 seeded orange bell pepper
- 1 thickly sliced yellow squash
- 1 thickly sliced green zucchini
- ½ peeled and thickly sliced red onion
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 4 15- ounce cans drained and rinses great northern beans
- 3 tablespoons finely minced fresh parsley
- 1/3 cup balsamic vinaigrette
- Chopped fresh oregano and basil for garnish
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make the balsamic vinaigrette and set it to the side.
- Next, slice the bell peppers into large sides, see video.
- Place the cut vegetables on a sheet tray lined with parchment paper and coat in olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Add the vegetables to a hot grill (450° to 550°) and cook for 2 minutes per side or just until grill marks are formed but the vegetables still have a crunch to it.
- Chill the vegetables completely in the refrigerator, which takes about 15 minutes.
- Drain the beans and rinse under cold water in a colander and then add them to a large bowl.
- Once the vegetables are cooled, medium to large dice them and add them to the bowl with the beans.
- Add in the parsley, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinaigrette and mix until combine.
- Serve with a garnish of fresh basil and oregano.
Notes
If I had to pin this whole salad on one thing, it would be the temperature of the grill before the vegetables hit it. A grill that has not pulled past 450 F is the fastest way to ruin this bowl, because the squash steams instead of grilling, the peppers go limp without color, and what I end up with is a soggy bean salad that tastes nothing like the Mediterranean. I highly recommend to push the grates past 500 F before the first plank of zucchini hits them.
Plank-cut for the grill, not the plate: I cut lengthwise planks on the squash, wide flat planks on the peppers, and thick rings on the onion. Long flat surfaces grill in a single move and dice into sharp cubes once they are cold. Rounds and chunks roll around on the grates and leave me with raw sides.
Mark the vegetables, do not cook them through: I give them 2 minutes a side at 450 to 550°F, and that is the whole window. I pull every piece as soon as the grill marks set.
Chill before I cut: Hot vegetables shred under my knife, weep into the cutting board, and water down the dressing. 15 minutes in the fridge firms everything back up so my dice is square and the vinaigrette stays where I put it.
Season once, taste twice: Cold dulls seasoning on the tongue, so I season once with the dressing, taste after the fold, then taste again after the bowl has sat 10 minutes. Almost every time, I add a second pass of salt and another splash of dressing before the bowl goes to the table.
Make-Ahead: I grill the vegetables and whisk the balsamic vinaigrette up to 1 day ahead and hold them in separate containers in the fridge. I fold the salad together a few hours before serving so the beans have time to drink in the dressing without the herbs going dull.
How to Store: I cover and refrigerate the bowl for up to 5 days.
How to Reheat: I serve this salad cold or at room temperature, every time. If the bowl has been in the fridge a few hours, I set it on the counter for about 20 minutes before serving so the olive oil in the dressing loosens back up.
How to Freeze: I skip the freezer for this one.
Nutrition
Calories: 194kcalCarbohydrates: 19gProtein: 7gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 95mgPotassium: 473mgFiber: 6gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 1157IUVitamin C: 50mgCalcium: 60mgIron: 2mg