This Italian Bean Salad combines cannellini beans, chickpeas, fresh cherry tomatoes, and diced red onion tossed in a tangy homemade dressing. This salad recipe is refreshing and delicious, perfect for a light lunch or a tasty side.
Today, I'm thrilled to share my latest obsession: the Italian Bean Salad. This quick side dish recipe is here to rescue you from "boring salad syndrome" with an outrageous and unexpected punch of flavor.
Cannellini beans, chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, and red onion create a colorful and tasty mixture that will rock your taste buds. The real secret to this recipe is the outrageously flavorful homemade dressing. An incredible blend of olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, fresh garlic, and honey ties this summer white bean salad together.
Whether making a light lunch or searching for a side dish to be the star at your next potluck, this salad recipe will be your new best friend. With a zesty homemade dressing that's so good you'll want to drink it (but don't; we need it for the salad!), it's ready in just a few minutes leaving plenty of time to entertain.
This Italian bean salad recipe is a superhero of quick and easy meals. Believe me, once you try it, you'll wonder how you ever lived without it.
Ingredients
Salad Ingredients
- Cannellini Beans: Also called white kidney beans, canned cannellini beans are tender, creamy, and mild in flavor. Canned beans are an excellent addition to any salad.
- Garbanzo Beans: Also known as chickpeas, are a staple in Mediterranean cooking. They are easy to find in the canned beans section of the grocery store. Because they are firmer than cannellini beans, they give a great textural contrast to this salad.
- Cherry Tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes add a great pop of color and freshness to this salad. I always have an abundance of them because they are easy to grow at home, and I love adding them to any salad.
- Red Onion: Onions add a delicious crunch and flavor to salads. To tone down the strong flavor, add the diced red onion to the salad dressing and allow it to sit for 10 minutes before adding the other ingredients. Soaking the red onions in red wine vinegar and lemon juice reduces their intense flavor.
- Flat Leaf Parsley: Parsley is a great addition to add fresh flavor and color.
Dressing Ingredients
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: As always, high-quality extra virgin olive oil is best for salad dressing. This Sicilian Extra Virgin Olive Oil is one of my favorites.
- Red Wine Vinegar: I have found that red wine vinegar always works great with any beans. Alternatively, white wine vinegar, champagne vinegar, or even balsamic vinegar are also great substitutes.
- Lemon Juice: Lemon juice should always be freshly squeezed for the best flavor.
- Honey: This Italian bean salad dressing has lemon juice and red wine vinegar, so it needed a sweetener to round out the flavors. Honey adds a subtle sweetness without being too strong.
- Garlic: I love adding minced garlic to my salad dressing before mixing with the other ingredients. As a result, the vinegar mellows the flavor but leaves enough in the background to add a wonderful umami flavor.
- Salt and Black Pepper: Salt and freshly cracked black pepper are always necessary to make a perfectly seasoned salad dressing.
How to Make Italian Bean Salad
- First, in a small bowl, combine the extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, minced garlic, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper and stir with a whisk.
- Next, combine the cannellini beans, chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, diced red onion, and freshly chopped parsley in another large bowl. Pour the dressing over the cold bean salad and gently stir to combine. Chill until ready to serve.
Tips for the Best Italian White Bean Salad
Go Easy on the Dressing: This recipe makes a lot of dressing because that's how I like it. Start by adding half of the dressing to the white bean tomato salad and add more to your liking.
Toss Before Serving: Just before serving, mix the bean salad to ensure the dressing is evenly distributed.
Rinse the Beans Well: Canned beans are packed in a mixture of water, salt, and starch from the beans themselves. Rinse the garbanzo and cannellini beans thoroughly under cold water to remove excess sodium.
Let It Marinate: If you have time, let the Italian white bean salad sit for at least 30 minutes after mixing. Marinating allows all the flavors in this Tuscan bean salad to meld together beautifully.
Make It Ahead: This Mediterranean white bean salad tastes even better the next day, making it an excellent option for meal prep. To prepare in advance, refrigerate this salad in an airtight container and enjoy it within three days.
Tone Down the Onion: To mellow the flavor of the diced red onion, add it to the dressing for ten minutes before adding it to the bean salad.
Substitutions
- Beans:
- Substitute cannellini beans with great northern beans, butter beans, or navy beans. Any white beans will work.
- Swap chickpeas (garbanzo beans) with black beans or kidney beans for a different texture and flavor.
- Vegetables:
- Use sun-dried tomatoes, grape tomatoes, diced Roma, or heirloom tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes.
- If red onion is too strong, green onions and shallots have a milder flavor.
- Fresh Herbs:
- Replace fresh parsley with fresh basil, cilantro, or dill.
- Dressing:
- If you don't have red wine vinegar, try white wine vinegar, champagne vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or balsamic vinegar.
- Maple syrup and agave are fantastic alternatives to honey in this lemony white bean salad for a unique sweetness.
Variations
- Add Cheese:
- Add crumbled feta cheese, goat cheese, or shaved Parmesan for a salty kick.
- Extra Veggies:
- Mix in diced bell pepper, cucumbers, or celery for added crunch and color.
- Add cooked green beans for extra flavor and color.
- Toss in some pitted green or black olives for a Mediterranean twist. Castelvatrano olives are my favorite.
- Add diced avocado for some textural contrast.
- Leafy Greens:
- Serve the bean salad over mixed greens, spinach, arugula, or kale for a more hardy salad.
- Add Your Favorite Protein:
- Add shredded chicken, diced cooked shrimp, or canned tuna to turn the salad into a complete meal.
- Make it Spicy:
- Turn up the heat with a pinch of red pepper flakes, hot sauce, or thinly sliced jalapeños.
Storage Suggestions for Italian Bean Salad
Store this cold bean salad in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days. It is a great make-ahead option, as the flavors meld over time. If making it in advance, gently toss it before serving to redistribute the dressing.
I do not recommend freezing this salad as the texture of beans becomes mushy once they thaw.
FAQ's
Absolutely! If you prefer dried beans, cook them according to package instructions until tender and allow them to cool. You'll need ½ cup of dried beans or 1 ½ cups of cooked (dried) beans to replace one 15 ounce can of beans.
Italian white bean salad should be transferred to an airtight container and refrigerated for up to three days. It tastes better the next day as the flavors have more time to meld together.
Yes, I recommend it! This salad can be made up to three days in advance. Gently mix the salad just before serving to ensure the dressing is redistributed evenly.
This Italian cannellini bean salad will always be my go-to for lazy evenings when I still want something delicious and nutritious. Food should be delicious and entertaining, and this simple side salad recipe is just that. Remember, life's too short for boring salads, so make every bite count!
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Italian Bean Salad
Ingredients
Bean Salad
- 1 15-ounce can cannellini beans (white kidney beans) drained and rinsed
- 1 15-ounce can chickpeas (garbanzo beans) drained and rinsed
- 10 ounces cherry tomatoes halved
- ⅓ cup red onion diced
- ¼ cup flat leaf parsley chopped
Homemade Dressing
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 clove garlic minced
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- First, in a small bowl, combine the extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, minced garlic, salt, and freshly cracked black pepper and stir with a whisk.
- Combine the cannellini beans, chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, diced red onion, and freshly chopped parsley in another large bowl. Pour the dressing over the cold bean salad and gently stir to combine. Chill until ready to serve.
Carrie says
This salad is so quick to put together. It's perfect for making something fast and fresh for a party. I made it for a family BBQ a day in advance and my husband almost ate the whole thing before our guests arrived! We will definitely be making it again.