Festive 5 Bean Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Why settle for the traditional three-bean salad, when you can use five beans? This party-sized 5 bean salad recipe is a good choice when you need a company dish that’s fast, inexpensive, and goes a long way.

If you’re planning to share this easy bean salad at a potluck or other gathering, it can be made a few hours a ahead of time to develop flavor. It also tastes great the next day.

What types of beans can be used?

This recipe includes edamame (fresh green soybeans) or baby lima beans; I recommend the edamame! Fresh or frozen green beans are another must-have.

It also calls for a choice of three different beans from those suggested. Canned beans are fine, though if you like to cook your own, by all mean! You’ll need 4 ½ to 5 cups in total of the following:

• Navy, cannellini or garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
• Small red or dark red kidney beans
• Black beans

Swap-ins for bean varieties: If you have different beans in your pantry that you want to use, other varieties will work well in this 5-bean salad, including black-eyed peas and pink beans.

Swap-in for green beans: Fresh yellow wax beans will work well in place of green beans.

About the raspberry vinaigrette: You can find bottled raspberry vinaigrette in most any supermarket or natural foods store. A slightly sweet dressing, it balances out the other flavorings. You can also make it from scratch with our Raspberry Vinaigrette Salad Dressing recipe.

Recipe is from Vegan Holiday Kitchen by Nava Atlas. Photos by Hannah Kaminsky, BittersweetBlog.com.

Explore more …

• Tasty, Easy Bean Salad Recipes
• Easy Green Bean Recipes.
• Classic 3 Bean Salad
• Super-Quick 2 Bean Salad

Continue to Content

Yield: 10

Festive 5 Bean Salad with Raspberry Vinaigrette

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This party-sized 5 bean salad recipe is a good choice when you need a company dish that’s fast, inexpensive, and goes a long way.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes

Total Time 28 minutes

Ingredients

Dressing

• 1/2 cup bottled or homemade raspberry vinaigrette (see link in Notes)
• 1 tablespoon yellow or Dijon-style mustard
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 to 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose seasoning blend

The bean salad

• 1 cup fresh or thawed frozen shelled edamame or baby lima beans
• 2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch lengths, or thawed frozen cut green beans
• 15-ounce can navy, cannellini or garbanzo beans (chickpeas), drained and rinsed
• 15-ounce can small red or dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
• 15-ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 large celery stalks, diced
• 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
• 2 to 3 scallions, thinly sliced, ¼ cup minced chives, or ½ cup finely chopped red onion
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
• Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Combine the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and whisk together. Set aside.
2. Bring 2 cups or so of water to a boil in a small saucepan. Add the
   edamame or baby limas and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until just tender. Add the green beans and continue to cook for 2 minutes longer, or until tender-crisp. Drain and rinse under cool water.
3. Combine the edamame and green beans with the remaining ingredients in a large bowl for serving. Add the dressing and toss well.
4. Let the salad stand, covered, at room temperature or refrigerated,
   for at least an hour. Or, refrigerate for up to several hours or overnight.
5. Give the salad a good stir and taste to add more of any of the dressing ingredients if need be, before serving. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.

Notes

Swap in black-eyed peas and/or pink beans for the other types of beans; yellow wax beans may be used in place of green beans.

Here are more plant-forward salads & sides.