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This Green Bean Salad is an easy and delicious alternative to leafy green salads! I love that it’s tossed in a simple red wine vinaigrette that comes together in just minutes, and can be topped with anything else you happen to have on hand.
This recipe comes from The Domestic Geek cookbook, by Sara Lynn Cauchon. (I received a complimentary copy.) If you’re familiar with her YouTube channel, she shares plenty of fuss-free recipes for a variety of diets.
It’s filled with beautiful photos, and fun recipes like Chocolate Chia Breakfast Cookies and Falafel Burgers, along with some classics like Easy-Peasy Risotto and One-Pot Chicken Alfredo.
This Green Bean Salad caught my eye because I never know exactly how to serve green beans as a salad. They’re always a hit in my Vegan Green Bean Casserole around the holidays, but I don’t use them often enough in the summer– which is their peak season!
How to Cook the Green Beans
To make this green bean salad, you’ll want to quickly cook the beans in boiling water to help them soften up. You get to control how crunchy you want the beans to be.
For tender beans with a little crunch to them, you’ll boil them for 4 minutes, until they are bright green.
For softer beans with less of a bite, you can boil them even longer and test them with a fork until they are done to your liking. (I prefer them a little more tender, with 8 to 10 minutes of cooking.)
Prepare the Red Wine Vinaigrette
While the green beans are boiling, you can quickly stir together the dressing. Olive oil, red wine vinegar, shallot, and a few spices are all you need!
When the green beans are done cooking, transfer them to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking process and cool them down.
Drain, and add them to the dressing, along with sliced tomatoes and creamy feta cheese. They combination is delicious!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds green beans , trimmed
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon minced shallot
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- 1/4 cup feta cheese
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook until they are bright green, about 4 minutes. (This keeps the beans crisp and crunchy, but for more tender beans cook them closer to 8 minutes, or until they are to your liking.) Transfer the green beans to a large bowl of ice water to stop the cooking. Let cool, then drain them and blot dry with a towel.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar, shallot, oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and several grinds of black pepper.
- Arrange the green beans and cherry tomatoes in a serving dish. Pour the vinaigrette over the top and toss. Top with the feta.
- Serve immediately or store in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Video
Nutrition
Green Bean Salad Nutrition (for roughly 1 cup of salad): Calories: 165, Fat: 10g, Carbohydrates: 18g, Fiber: 6g, Protein: 6g
Recipe Notes:
- You can use any other oil or vinegar you have on hand for this recipe. It’s very adaptable! Feel free to change the toppings, too. Toasted almonds or maple glazed walnuts might be nice, too.
- For a vegan green bean salad, simply leave off the cheese. (You could stir in a spoonful of tahini to the dressing to make it creamier, as an alternative!)
If you give this recipe a try, please let me know in the comments below! If you try something different, tell us how it worked out! We can all benefit from YOUR experience.
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Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite way to prepare green beans?
I had to do something with some rather bland out of season green beans. This recipe and its suggestions of things to add did the trick. The vinegrette was perfect, I added some toasted almonds to the tomato and feta. Yum!
Amazing green bean salad recipe. I really love this recipe and want to cook this at my lunchtime hour. Thanks for sharing such an awesome post.
Very nice!
Good flavour, I did added some tamari at the end. I like my green beans more tender, 4 minutes wasn’t enough.
So delicious. I didn’t have red wine vinegar, so I used apple cider vinegar instead. Thank you for such delicious recipes.
Hi! Do you have any recipes using nutritional yeast? Like a gravy or mac and cheese?
Yes, there’s an amazing vegan gravy on my site that doesn’t require nutritional yeast, but my Mac n’ cheese is a huge fan favorite and calls for it: https://detoxinista.com/best-vegan-mac-n-cheese/
Yum! This red wine vinaigrette is perfect over the green beans, and this salad was so easy to make!
I don’t think I realized that green beans were a summer veggie– I always think of them at Thanksgiving, too. I just tried this green bean salad today and it was delicious. Thank you!