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Square overhead shot of a bowl of three bean salad.
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5 from 2 votes

Three Bean Salad

This old fashioned three bean salad is perfect for cookouts, potlucks, and quick weeknight dinners!
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Keyword bean salad recipe, canned three bean salad, easy three bean salad, three bean salad, vegetarian side dish
Prep Time 10 minutes
Chill 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 6 cups
Calories 90.7kcal
Author Blair Lonergan

Ingredients

  • 1 (16 oz) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can cut green beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can cut golden wax beans or garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 small sweet onion, diced (about 1 cup total)
  • Optional garnish: chopped fresh parsley, basil, or chives

DRESSING

Instructions

  • In a large bowl, gently combine the beans and onion.
    Process shot showing how to make three bean salad.
  • Whisk together dressing ingredients in a small bowl until completely combined (or shake in a jar with a lid). Pour the dressing over the salad; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve (up to 24 hours in advance).
    Pouring dressing over canned three bean salad.
  • Taste and season with additional salt or ground black pepper, if desired. Garnish with chopped fresh herbs for a bright, fresh, and colorful finishing touch.
    Close overhead image of a bowl of 3 bean salad.

Notes

    • You do not need to cook canned beans before using them in this salad. Simply drain and rinse the beans and they're ready to serve!
    • Serve the salad cold or at room temperature. It's delicious either way.
    • Garnish the salad with fresh herbs, such as parsley, fresh dill, or basil for a bright, colorful finishing touch. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice or lime juice would also be great!
    • Add a can of drained corn to the salad for some sweetness. You can use corn in place of the onion, or add an 11-ounce can of corn in addition to the rest of the ingredients.
    • Instead of apple cider vinegar, try distilled white vinegar or red wine vinegar.
    • Sweeten the dressing with honey rather than sugar.
    • Swap out the extra virgin olive oil and use vegetable oil or canola oil instead.
      • Use cut fresh green beans instead of canned green beans. If starting with fresh beans, you'll need to boil them in a pot of boiling water until crisp-tender, transfer them to a bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process, and drain them well.
      • Just about any variety of canned beans will work in this salad. For instance, swap out the wax beans or chickpeas and try navy beans or white beans, lima beans, pinto beans, pink beans, black eyed peas, black beans, or cannellini beans.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 0.5cup | Calories: 90.7kcal | Carbohydrates: 10.2g | Protein: 2.4g | Fat: 4.8g | Saturated Fat: 0.7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.6g | Monounsaturated Fat: 3.3g | Sodium: 416.2mg | Potassium: 100.9mg | Fiber: 3.4g | Sugar: 4.1g | Vitamin A: 115IU | Vitamin C: 3.9mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 0.5mg