In this side salad recipe, the lemon juice and crunch of almonds gives standard green beans and peas a real lift.
Green beans are a common side dish that can be enjoyed straight-up. However, they can be flavoured to offer a tasty side.
Combinations that work well with green beans are:
- lemon juice
- olive oil
- butter
- dill
- basil
- chilli
- garlic
- onions
- mushrooms
- soy sauce
- almonds
- bacon
Selecting Green Beans
Choose young beans, which snap when bent in half.
Preparing Green Beans
Young green beans can be eaten raw as crudités with dipping sauce or are delicious steamed, blanched or sautéed until tender but still slightly crunchy. Just cut off the tips and peel away the fibrous strip before preparing.
Green Bean Salad with Almonds and Feta
Ingredients
Salad – Ingredients
- 4 cups chopped green beans, trimmed and cut to 3-5 cm lengths (approx. 2 x 250 g bags)
- 2 cups peas (fresh or frozen)
Dressing – Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ lemon, juiced
- 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (or ½ teaspoon powdered mustard)
- ½ teaspoon garlic or onion powder
- pinch of salt and pepper, to taste
Garnish – Ingredients
- ½ block feta (100 g), crumbled (or Parmesan cheese, grated or shaved)
- 4 tablespoons sliced almonds (raw or toasted)
- 2 tablespoons parsley, basil or mint leaves, thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest from about ½ lemon, for garnish
Instructions
- Lightly steam or blanch the beans and peas until just soft.
- Meanwhile, mix dressing ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
- Toss the cooked beans and peas through the dressing.
- Place on a serving platter and sprinkle with crumbled feta, sliced almonds, herbs and lemon zest. Enjoy.
Tried this recipe?
Let me know in the comments below and also what you served it with. Me, I just had it with grilled tempeh.
It is also a delicious festive salad, which looks gorgeous alongside the Coconut Carrot Salad with Cranberries.
