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BEAN SALAD RECIPE
I realize a bean salad may not be the most impressive dish but who doesn’t need the perfect potluck type dish to take to summer gatherings? I love this bean salad because it’s so simple to make, tastes delicious, and it’s different than the usual mayo based potato and pasta salads.
Whenever I take this to gatherings it’s usually one of the first to go and I always come back with an empty bowl. It’s the perfect combination of beans, fresh veggies, and a sweet and creamy honey mustard dressing.
HOW TO MAKE EASY BEAN SALAD
Kidney Beans – Use the dark red kidney beans or the light red kidney beans. It really does not matter. I’ve used both and the only difference is the color of the bean.
Black Beans
Chick Peas – These are also called Garbanzo beans which are the same thing. Some times you can only find one or the other at the stores. They have a buttery, nutty flavor and they’re so yummy in a bean salad.
Frozen Corn – I prefer to use the gold n’ white frozen corn in this recipe but any frozen corn will work just fine. Just make sure it’s the size called for in the recipe.
Red Bell Pepper
Sweet Vidalia Onion
Honey Mustard Salad Dressing – Most of the time I say don’t use lite products but I actually prefer using lite honey mustard dressing in this recipe. I have tried it with the regular, full fat dressing and it was really thick tasting when paired with the beans and crisp veggies. I always use Ken’s Steakhouse Lite Honey Mustard Dressing.
MY TIPS FOR MAKING BEAN SALAD
– The leftovers of this bean salad are fabulous! The dressing and some liquid from the veggies will pool up in the bottom of the bowl. Just take a spoon and give it a nice stir before eating and it will be fine. Leftovers will keep well in the fridge for 2-3 days.
– For the best presentation and texture cut all the veggies the same size. Aim to cut everything the same size as the beans so there are not large chunks of random things in the salad.
– As mentioned above, I am usually against using lite products when it comes to dairy and salad dressing but I have to say that I actually prefer the lite honey mustard dressing in this recipe.
– You do not need to cook the corn before using. Instead let the corn sit on the counter at room temperature for 1 hour before you make the salad. You want the corn to be cold but lightly thawed.
TRY THESE OTHER SALAD RECIPES
- cowboy caviar pasta salad
- ranch pasta salad
- fancy company salad
- citrus berry kale salad
- cashew chicken pasta salad
- avocado black bean salad
- fiesta avocado salad
- mango black bean quinoa salad
The Best Bean Salad
Ingredients
- 1 can (15 oz) light kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 can (15 oz) black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 bag (16 oz) frozen corn thawed slightly but still cold
- 1 red bell pepper finely diced
- 1 Vidalia sweet onion finely diced
- 1 cucumber peeled, seeded, and finely chopped
- 1 cup lite honey mustard salad dressing
Instructions
- ** Put the bag of frozen corn on the countertop, at room temperature, for 1 hour before making salad. This will allow the corn to be cold but mostly thawed.
- Combine all the beans, corn, red pepper, cucumber, and onion in a large mixing bowl. Stir together to combine. Pour honey mustard dressing over it and stir.* Use more or less salad dressing depending on preference and taste.
- For best results put the bean salad in the fridge for 4-6 hours before serving. Serve with a slotted spoon as liquid will pool up in the bottom from the veggies and salad dressing.
Notes
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
I'd love to see it! You can share it with me on @togetherasfamilyblog and follow on Pinterest @together-as-family-blog-recipes or Facebook @togetherasfamilyblog for more!
The recipe looks delicious and thanks for the tutorial on cutting onions, that’s such a good way to do it!
No problem 🙂 I learned that way of cutting onion a few years ago, and it’s awesome! Gets the onion into the smallest cuts, instead of large ones.
Looks delicious… you do realise any honey mustard dressing will be mostly oil and have vinegar in it though, right.
Yes, of course 🙂 I just prefer the creaminess with the oil & vinegar instead of a straight vinaigrette. Thanks for stopping by & visiting.
What is one bag of frozen, thawed?
So sorry. My mistake. That is the one bag of frozen corn, thawed. I am fixing that now. You want it to still be cold but thawed. I leave mine out on the counter for about an hour before I make this. I hope that helps 🙂 Have a great weekend!
I’m not a huge fan of onions or peppers , anything else you could suggest instead?
Unfortunately, onions and peppers are a big part of this salad. I am not even sure what you could add in it’s place that would still provide enough flavor and texture for the salad. Perhaps this ranch pasta salad would be a better fit if you don’t care for onions and peppers https://togetherasfamily.com/2017/05/ranch-pasta-salad/
Just prepped my veggies and will throw them all together with the beans and dressing tomorrow for potluck! Super excited to try it!
I like your idea of doing prep work before! I hope you love it. Enjoy 🙂
I’m going to make this, sounds yummy
I’ve made the recipe and going to make it for about 80 – 100 people for our 4th of July party at our lawn bowling club. Can you tell me how many people one batch with serve?
One recipe makes a lot! I would say at a potluck/side dish type serving event, one recipe would easily feed 20 side dish servings. That’s assuming that everyone takes like 1/2 cup of the bean salad. But again, if it’s a potluck where there is different options, I think you would be fine doing 2x or 3x the recipe. Good luck! That’s a lot of people!
how much does this recipe make? 1lb ,2 lbs?
I don’t know how much it makes in pounds. But it makes a large bowl of salad, easily enough to serve 12-15 people as a side dish serving.
Mine was approximately 4.5 pounds but it all got DEVOURED.
Measure the dressing, If you’re feeling it, a double batch with more color (a red pepper and an orange one; small red beans and dark kidneys, purple onion and sweet onion, etc.) IT IS FANTASTIC!
I LOVE this recipe. I am not a fan of bean salad at all, but my whole family loved it! We didn’t have the exact beans (we used a medley from Costco with black, kidney, and pinto beans in it) and it was still delicious. I made a honey mustard dressing to minimize the amount of sugar, but WOW! I will definitely use this recipe again!
This recipe looks really good and I’m going to go make it to go with tonight’s supper.. for the person who doesn’t like onions and peppers.. how about asparagus tips and maybe diced radish, or tomato? You’d still be getting a bit of colour in there..
I have made this bean salad for years and it goes over very well. I also use celery cut very small instead of cucumber. I gives a good crunch to the recipe.
A new favorite it is so good
Thank you Daryl!
I make pasta salads for our food pantry volunteers each week. I normally take a salad I find on Pinterest and just add pasta. So far no failures. How do you think this would work with pasta added as a pasta salad?
I think it would be great! I would suggest doubling the dressing to cover the pasta as well. You don’t have to use all of it but it would be nice to have a little extra.
I did this as a pasta salad. I use regular, not light honey mustard dressing and added small, boiled elbow, pasta, and a nacho/taco cheese blend sold by Harris Teeter. Very good.