This homemade Three Bean Salad recipe is a family favorite that’s easy to prepare and tastes delicious!
This easy side salad has three types of beans (we use canned beans to make it extra fast to prep) marinated in a sweet and tangy vinaigrette dressing.
Why You’ll Love This Bean Salad
This recipe comes from my mother-in-law and it’s a favorite!!
- This old-fashioned three bean salad is both fast and easy to prep!
- The dressing is sweet, tangy, and honestly so delicious.
- This recipe uses canned beans making it easy and no soaking or boiling is required.
- This is best made ahead of time so it’s perfect for any gathering or BBQ!
What’s in Bean Salad?
BEANS: This salad uses a mixture of 3 types of canned beans. I usually use green and yellow beans along with red kidney beans but use any kind you’d like.
Change them up based on what you have on hand (or whatever your preference for beans in salad is). Great options include lima beans, navy beans, chickpeas/garbanzo beans, cannellini, among others.
VEGGIES: Celery, green peppers, & onions are added to the beans in this salad for a texture and bright color.
When purchasing the onion for this recipe, choose white onions with white papery skin (not yellow skin) as they’re milder and add great flavor to this recipe!
DRESSING: This simple dressing is both tangy and sweet. Be sure you use celery seed (not celery salt) and don’t skip it, it makes a big difference in the taste (I also use it in coleslaw dressing).
How to Make Bean Salad
- Make dressing: Simmer the dressing per recipe below.
- Combine all ingredients: Drain the beans and place in a bowl with bell pepper, celery, and onion. Toss with the bean mixture.
- Marinate: Let sit in the refrigerator overnight.
To ensure everything marinates evenly, we place this in a freezer bag or container with a lid and shake or turn it a few times as it marinates.
Using Fresh or Dried Beans
This recipe can be made with dried beans or fresh green or yellow beans. Either will need to be cooked first.
- Trim green/yellow beans and cook in boiling water with a pinch of baking soda until tender crisp.
- If using dried beans, they should be cooked and cooled according to package directions. You can also find more cook times for dried beans here.
What Goes With Bean Salad?
We most often serve bean salad at BBQs or picnics with ribs, coleslaw, corn, and beans.
This side dish is sweet and tangy so it pairs well with grilled foods like burgers or grilled chicken.
Storing Bean Salad
Bean salad can be stored in an air-tight container or ziptop bag in the refrigerator for 5 days.
It can also be frozen for up to 3 months, the vegetables will soften a little bit. To make ahead for lunches, separate the salad into single portions and freeze.
More Classic Salads
- Famous Dill Pickle Pasta Salad – a reader favorite
- Creamy Cucumber Salad – summer classic
- The Best Potato Salad Recipe – easy make-ahead recipe
- Italian Pasta Salad – potluck perfect and full of flavor
- Cucumber Onion Salad– cool, creamy, and refreshing
A Sweet Return
I truly have the most amazing Mother-In-Law, I don’t think I could’ve hand-picked a better one myself. Sometimes when my mother-in-law comes for a big turkey dinner, I send her home with leftovers in containers. Last week I was so excited to see that she had brought back my containers because when she returned them they sometimes come back full of food too! Bran muffins (and my kids totally love them too), sometimes her amazing baked beans, and one day, this amazing bean salad.
I’d been sneaking spoonfuls out of the fridge all day long when I finally phoned her and asked for the recipe! She originally found this recipe in an old cookbook called “Women in Uniform” and it’s a great version of a classic bean salad.
Did you make this Bean Salad? Be sure to leave a rating and a comment below!
5 from 34 votes↑ Click stars to rate now!
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Old Fashioned Three Bean Salad
This Bean Salad has been a family staple for years. 4 kinds of beans and a hint of white onion, all dressed in a sweet tangy vinaigrette dressing.
Prep Time 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes minutes
Chill Time 12 hours hours
Total Time 12 hours hours 25 minutes minutes
Servings 12 servings
Author Holly Nilsson
Ingredients
- 14 ounces green beans
- 14 ounces yellow beans
- 14 ounces red kidney beans
- 14 ounces lima beans optional
- ½ cup green pepper thinly sliced
- ¾ cup white onion thinly sliced
- ¾ cup celery chopped
DRESSING
- ⅔ cup white sugar
- ½ cup white vinegar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon celery seeds
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
Drain all of the beans well. Combine beans, green pepper, celery and onion in a bowl.
Heat all dressing ingredients in a small saucepan until sugar is dissolved and mixture is hot.
Pour the hot dressing mixture over the beans and toss to coat. Refrigerate overnight turning or stirring occasionally.
Video
Notes
To ensure everything marinates evenly, we place this in a freezer bag or container with a lid and shake or turn it a few times as it marinates.
Ingredient Tips
Beans: Any kind of beans are great in this recipe. This recipe can be made with dried beans or fresh beans. Either will need to be cooked first.
Try any of the following:
- lima beans
- navy beans
- chickpeas/garbanzo beans
- cannellini
Onion: When purchasing the onion for this recipe, choose white onions with white papery skin (not yellow skin) as they're milder and add great flavor.
Celery Seed: This is an important flavor in the dressing, ensure you are using celery seed (and not celery salt). You can purchase celery seed in any spice asile (it is also a great addition to coleslaw dressing).
5 from 34 votes
Nutrition Information
Calories: 154 | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 205mg | Potassium: 486mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 280IU | Vitamin C: 17mg | Calcium: 52mg | Iron: 3mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Salad, Side Dish
Cuisine American
© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Categories:
Salads, Side Dishes
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About the author
Holly Nilsson is the creator of Spend With Pennies, where she creates easy, comforting recipes made for real life. With a passion for nostalgic flavors and simplified techniques, Holly helps busy home cooks create delicious meals that always work. She is also the author of “Everyday Comfort,” which promises to inspire even more hearty, home-cooked meals.
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