Viral Dense Bean Salad (Italian-inspired)

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Jasmine

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The ‘dense bean salad’ concept is going viral on TikTok (I believe creator Violet Witchel originated the trend) and this is one trend I can really get on board with. Essentially, it’s a high-fibre, bean-based salad designed for meal prep (so made without leafy greens that may get soggy throughout the week). As an added bonus, the beans really soak up the dressing as they sit in it, meaning this can taste even better a couple of days after you initially prepare it. This has made it a favourite of mine for office day lunches, so I thought I’d share my Italian deli-style viral dense bean salad recipe…

INGREDIENTS

Salad:

Chickpeas (I used jarred but tinned or boxed also works and white beans such as butter beans or cannellini can also be used – I recommend rinsing these well to remove the cooking liquid)

Red onion

Green olives

Roasted red pepper

Semi-dried or roasted tomatoes

Artichokes

Mozzarella balls

Pine nuts

Fresh parsley

Dressing:

Garlic

Dried oregano

Unwaxed lemon (juice and zest)

Extra-virgin olive oil

Mustard (I used wholegrain)

TIPS & NOTES

This is a really simple recipe; the only bit of ‘cooking’ involved is toasting up the pine nuts in a pan for a few minutes! It’s really all about the prep and I recommend dicing things up pretty small so you can still get a variety of elements in a single forkful. I’ve included around 1/5 of a cup of olive oil in my dressing but I recommend adjusting this depending on how dressed your ingredients are. You can even drain off any ingredients that come in an oil marinade and use that for the dressing. I used semi-dried tomatoes from a jar in oil but olives and artichokes from a deli container in the fresh section. So, just take whatever oil your ingredients are already sat into consideration!

Italian-style Dense Bean Salad

  • Servings: 3
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Print

A meal prep bean-based salad with Italian flavours

Salad shaker or small jar required, no advance prep needed


Ingredients

  • 400g of cooked chickpeas (drained, rinse thoroughly)
  • 1/2 a red onion (finely diced)
  • 100g of roasted red pepper (drained, finely diced)
  • 70g of green olives (pitted, cut in half)
  • 75g of prepared artichokes (drained, finely diced)
  • 70g of roasted or semi-dried tomatoes (drained, roughly chopped)
  • 250g of mozzarella pearls
  • 20g of pine nuts
  • 10g of parsley (finely chopped)
  • 1 unwaxed lemon (zest and juice)
  • 1/5 of a cup of extra-virgin olive oil (*see notes)
  • 1 tsp of oregano
  • 1 tsp of mustard
  • 1 clove of garlic (grated or pressed)
  • Salt and pepper to taste


Directions

  1. In a frying pan, over a medium heat, lightly toast the pine nuts for 3-5 minutes until both sides are golden
  2. Add the mustard, oregano, lemon juice, lemon zest, olive oil and a little salt and pepper in your jar or salad shaker and shake to combine well
  3. Add all the other ingredients to a large bowl, starting with the chickpeas (which will likepy need a bit of seasoning) and toss everything together
  4. Add dressing, toss the ingredients to distribute through and taste for seasoning (add more salt and pepper if required)
  5. Serve right away or store in the fridge for up to 5 days

Let me know if you try my version of a dense bean salad!

See how I make it here:

One response to “Viral Dense Bean Salad (Italian-inspired)”

  1. Dense Bean Salad (Turkish-style) – But First, Food Avatar
    Dense Bean Salad (Turkish-style) – But First, Food

    […] little while back I shared an Italian-style Dense Bean Salad and today I’m back with another take on this viral meal prep trend; this time with some […]

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