Long a staple of the picnic table and salad bar, the classic Three-Bean Salad from childhood is made with red pinto beans, green beans, and wax beans. It’s simple to make, tasty, and reliably inexpensive.
When you guy it, this salad is often soggy and loaded with sugar. Too bad. When you make it yourself, it has a fresh, beany crunch.
Ingredients
1/4 cup mild vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 pound fresh green beans, cut into pieces
1/2 pound fresh wax beans, cut into pieces
1 can (16 ounces) red kidney beans
1 small red onion, diced
1 large red or green bell pepper, cored and diced
1/4 cup chopped parsley
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, olive oil, mustard, salt, and pepper. Cook the fresh beans in a small amount of salted water, just until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and rinse the kidney beans. Toss the hot beans, the drained beans, and the onion, pepper, and parsley with the dressing. Add salt, if necessary. Chill, covered, to let the flavors combine.
