This Three Bean and Vidalia Onion Salad has to be one of my favorite salads to make when we are barbecuing over the summer. It’s a classic salad that you probably have seen more than once on a salad bar – but homemade is so much better! Wow, can you taste the freshness. I love to add sweet Vidalia onions for extra flavor, especially when they are in season mid-April to early August.
How to make three bean salad
So easy! All you need is a few ingredients for the base of the salad and a few for the dressing. The base of the salad is fresh green beans, garbanzo beans, kidney beans and sliced Vidalia (or sweet) onion.
The dressing is vinegar, oil, sugar, garlic, salt and pepper. You boil the dressing for a short time to meld the flavors then combine with the beans. That’s it!
Vidalia Onions
I’m obsessed with using Vidalia onions in my recipes, especially in salads—they’ve got this mild, sweet flavor that’s just perfect. Fun fact: the reason these onions are so sweet is that they’re grown in the sandy soils of southeast Georgia. The rain there helps wash away the sulfur compounds, which means no tears when you’re slicing them up. How cool is that?
Oh, and here’s another tidbit: Produce For Kids was started by John Shuman back in 2002 to encourage families to eat more fresh produce and raise money for charity at the same time. If you’ve been following my blog, you probably already know I’m a huge fan—I’ve been contributing recipes and supporting their blog for years. I’m all about their mission, and it’s awesome to see how they’re giving back to communities and charities they work with.
I first whipped up this Three Bean Salad way back when I started blogging after spotting a recipe for it on another blog. I gave it my own twist by using apple cider vinegar and throwing in a bunch of sliced Vidalia onions. The best part? The leftovers are amazing because you can toss the beans and that tasty dressing into a fresh green salad. Plus, this salad travels super well, so it’s perfect for your next summer hangout. Trust me, your friends are gonna love it!
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 1 1/2 lbs fresh green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 cup water
- 1 can garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained
- 1 can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 large Vidalia onion, thinly sliced
For the Dressing:
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup canola oil
- 2 medium cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat up the vinegar, sugar, oil, garlic, salt, and pepper in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves (about 5 minutes). Let it cool to room temp.
- Steam the green beans in a large pot with 1 cup water and 1 tablespoon of salt. Cook until they’re crisp-tender (around 5 minutes). While they’re cooking, fill a medium bowl with ice water. When the beans are done, toss them into the ice water to stop cooking—let them chill for about 2 minutes, then drain well.
- In a large bowl, mix the green beans, garbanzo beans, kidney beans, and onions. Pour the dressing over the top and gently toss everything together. Cover and pop it in the fridge for a few hours (or overnight) to let all those flavors mingle. Give it a stir every now and then while it’s chilling.
Notes
- The dressing makes a lot, so you’ll have some left at the bottom of the bowl—it’s more of a marinade for the salad. Just give the salad a stir occasionally while it’s in the fridge to keep everything coated.
- Serve with a slotted spoon.
- You can keep this salad covered and in the fridge for up to 4 days.
