Mediterranean Bean Salad
This Mediterranean bean salad recipe is so fresh and colorful! It features kidney beans and chickpeas with lemon and fresh herbs. Delicious!
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on July 9, 2024
This Mediterranean bean salad is one of my all-time favorite salads and sides. Bold claim, I know, but I can back it up. I’ve been loving this recipe for ten years running now!
This salad is crisp and satisfying, fresh and full of bright Mediterranean flavors. The recipe features hearty kidney beans and chickpeas, which balance crisp cucumber, celery and red onion. The remaining simple ingredients—lemon and olive oil, garlic and lots of fresh leafy herbs—yield truly irresistible results.
This Mediterranean-style salad is perfect for spring picnics, summer potlucks and cozy fall get-togethers. It’s a crowd-pleasing salad or side dish that suits most special diets, too. The recipe is vegetarian, vegan and gluten free.
With how quickly this salad comes together, it’s an easy addition to your weekend menu! It’s a simple chop, whisk and stir situation that’s ready in about 20 minutes. I hope this dish becomes one of your standby recipes, too.
How This Recipe Developed
Back in 2013, I found creative relief from a not-so-interesting office job in books like Ethnic Cuisine by Elisabeth Rozin. On the especially tough days, I treated myself to lunch at The Mediterranean Deli in Oklahoma City. It was my safe haven, a place where I could catch up with my favorite blogs while I waited for a delicious meal. I always walked out the door with a happy belly, feeling like everything was a little more right with the world.
I often miss their kidney bean salad, which was so much more exciting than it sounds. I found a recipe for a Lebanese bean salad in Ms. Rozin’s book that seemed similar. I tweaked it quite a bit, so I’m not confident that it qualifies as Lebanese. I omitted the tomatoes and added chickpeas, celery and garlic. It’s broadly Mediterranean in flavor profile.
If you’re looking for the lemon-parsley hummus that I originally shared with this recipe, here’s a PDF. Or, make my ultra-creamy hummus recipe and add up to 3/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley.
Watch How to Make Mediterranean Bean Salad
More Mediterranean-Style Salads to Make
Consider serving these salads with falafel, hummus or baba ganoush. Check out even more bean salads here.
- Cucumber Tomato Salad with Greek Dressing
- Favorite Chickpea Salad
- Fattoush Salad with Mint Dressing
- Mediterranean Tomato & Feta Dip
- Tabbouleh
Please let me know how your bean salad turns out in the comments. I love hearing from you.
Mediterranean Bean Salad
This Mediterranean-style bean salad recipe is delightfully crisp and satisfying. Its fresh flavors include kidney beans, chickpeas, lemon, garlic and leafy herbs. This healthy salad is vegan and gluten free, but mostly just delicious! Recipe yields about six 1-cup servings.
Ingredients
- 2 cans red kidney beans (15 ounces each), rinsed and drained, or 3 cups cooked kidney beans
- 1 can chickpeas (15 ounces), rinsed and drained, or 1 ½ cups cooked chickpeas
- 1 small red onion, diced (about 1 cup)
- 2 stalks celery, sliced in half or thirds lengthwise and chopped (about ¾ cup)
- 1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
- ¾ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or mint
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup lemon juice (about 1 ½ lemons)
- 3 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- ¾ teaspoon fine salt
- Small pinch red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a serving bowl, combine the prepared kidney beans, chickpeas, onion, celery, cucumber, parsley and dill.
- Make the lemon dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper flakes until well blended. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir until combined.
- Serve immediately for the most flavor, or let it marinate in the refrigerator, covered, for a couple of hours or longer. Leftovers will keep well, covered and refrigerated, for up to 4 days. If necessary, wake up leftovers with a little sprinkle of salt or drizzle of lemon juice.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Ethnic Cuisine: How to Create the Authentic Flavors of Over 30 International Cuisines by Elisabeth Rozin.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
I used to work in an office job and I, like you, hated every second of it. I am so grateful I never have to go back to that ever again. I felt like that cubicle sucked my soul out of me. I agree, a good lunch makes crappy jobs and crappy days a little more tolerable.
I still go to school, which I’m sure is not nearly as dreary as an office job, but lunch is my favorite part of the day. Especially if it’s out in the sun. It’s kind of amazing how lunch+sunlight makes me so much happier.
Luckily I’ve never had to work a terrible office job, but I have had plenty of crappy other kinds ;) this dip looks 100% amazing, K!
This looks heavenly… I’m in an office job, and can promise you that I’ll be enjoying this while sitting at my desk in my cubicle. I’m happy in my job though, I have a great boss, and it fits right now in my life. You sound happy…and that’s wonderful. Life is good. :-)
Life is good! I’m glad you’re happy where you are, Pru.
Could not agree more. The freelance life is riskier and sometimes more stressful and it’s a whole new way of life, but it is SO MUCH BETTER than my old office job. Thanks for reminding me of that with this post.
This is EXACTLY the sort of food I love to eat! Absolutely filing this one into my recipes bookmark right now :) I’ve just finished working at an office job for the summer & though I did enjoy it, I absolutely empathised with your counting-down-the-minutes-til-lunchtime. Though that said, I think I’d do that in any job!
Sounds like we enjoy the same kind of food! Truth be told, I’m always counting down the minutes to my next meal. :)
I was looking for appetizers for a party I’m throwing this weekend, and I think I just found one. This looks amazing! Definitely going to give it a try soon. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for the great dinner idea! I cannot wait to try the bean salad. Hopefully some cucumbers grew last night in the garden.
Hope you loved the salad, Carrie!
I love this salad Kate! It’s so jam packed with protein and the hummus on the side makes it even more lovely. Great recipe!
Thank you – nice recipes.
I totally hear you on relishing freedom. My current job allows me to make my own hours and work basically where and when I want to (even if it’s not my ideal work), but the freedom to make tea when I want to, or sit in the sun for a few moments, is so precious.
And these recipes? The lemon-garlic-parsley trifecta is one of my favourites, and I love the way you’ve shown it off in two different ways! That salad looks perfect for a hot summer’s day.
Oh my gosh, this post brings back memories! I still work in an office, but it’s a happy one. A previous job wasn’t that way though, and a lunch time escape (although extremely rare) for a good sandwich and a green juice was often the biggest highlight of the day! This salad sounds wonderful. Such simple ingredients, but sometimes simple is the best!
I’m glad your office now is a happy one, Angela!
Hummus + pita chips is my ultimate weakness. I could eat that entire bowl!
I absolutely know that you mean girl! I am totally jealous of those who do not work an office job and get out of the office very often just to escape. Cubicle=soul sucker. I hope one day I can call my home my office, rather than that nasty office building!
I am pretty sure I couldn’t handle being in an office either. Working in a lab at least I’m almost always on my feet or running around doing things…rarely is it all about sitting in one place for hours!
There’s a Mediterranean food place across the street from where I work/live and it is fabulous!! Though…I think I’ll start making this bean salad and hummus to save myself some money. Plus they look awesome.
Thankfully, I have never had to sit in an office. So happy about this!!
But I still need lunch and geez, this is an incredible one! I love the hummus and pita chips and the salad is so my thing! I cannot wait to make this!
I don’t really have a go-to bean salad recipe and I need one! I’ll be returning to this for sure :)
I quit my 9-5 to go full-time freelance a few months ago. Definitely a risky move, but regardless of what I end up doing next, I’ve never once looked back and regretted leaving my office job. Sometimes changes are just meant to be made, and leaps of faith too.
This is totally my style of salad, and I love it! Light, simple and super summery. Looks gorgeous.
That’s so great, Grace! Cheers to going on your own.
Oh, La, that bean salad looks sooooo refreshing and tasty, just have to make that for lunch. We eat hummus a lot, make my own and your recipe is right on. Now, you’ve made me craving it….well since I use dried chickpeas, guess I had better get them soaking. Thanks
Thank you, Jaan. I hope you enjoy the recipes!
Ahh, I haven’t had bean salad in ages. And with hummus… a couple of my favorite things! Hoping I have the ingredients so I can try this for an afternoon snack when I get home (from the office… working hard on changing that part! )
Your photos!!!!! So very lovely. Now please stop by for lunch with this giant bowl of beans…
even though I dont work in office environment – I am at the office staring at the computer for the most part and it kinda sucks..i love refreshing salads like this and hummus – always a pleasure :)
Girrrrrl I feel you. I used to work in an office environment and it was most definitely not for me. Now I”m a SAHM/part-time freelancer and I don’t know if I can ever go back to a cubicle. Making it work is really tricky but so, so worth it.
Anyway, this is dish is totally up my alley! I know some people only like parsley as a garnish but I say the more, the better.
Parsley is totally underrated, if you ask me! Let’s never go back to the cubicles.
I’m in an office environment but i’ve tried to personalize it a bit. I do love lunching by myself though, it’s hard to drag yourself back to work :)
Haha this made me giggle. I was in an office job for a while, hated it and longed to start my own cafe. So I did, designing menus, importing ingredients (my community has no roads in or out, and no real supermarket) and creatively using whatever is available to make a nutritious meal for this little town amidst a culture of burgers, chicken wings and fries. Now I’m dying to get back to a job where I sit and do the work that needs doing. Ha! Oh to create food by choice, in my own home, without customers! Being able to get income from having a blog must be the ultimate.
How funny! I must say, as an introvert, that working from home suits me well. Good for you for starting your own cafe, though!
565 days- not like you were counting or anything, huh? :) I’m straining to get to that position- of comfortably posting from pajamas- and it’s always nice to see when someone else has made it, it makes me feel like I can, too!
Your pictures are gorgeous. They made me crave bean salad and hummus quite badly. I’ve never been in a toxic office environment before, having been self-employed all my life. While I’ll never give up this line of work in a million years, even self-employment has its downs every once in a while. Everything is relative, I guess.
So funny, I’m eating a bean salad- with greens- and hummus for lunch right now! Why didn’t I remember the parsley? Your spread looks delicious :)
The parsley makes the hummus look so pretty!
I can relate. I quit my office job last year to make cakes…the best decision I’ve made! This bean salad and hummus looks heavenly. I have pinned it, and now I am going to make it (like tomorrow!) Thank you for sharing!
Making cakes sounds like a lot more fun than working in an office! Hope you enjoy the recipes, Monet.
I’m such a fan of mediterranean food, and bean salads in particular. I love the dill in your version. I don’t use it too often, but when I do, I’m always surprised at how much I love it. I can’t imagine having an office job. Right now I work in a climbing gym, and I must say it suits me well – I get to work in a wonderful environment and do what I love nearly every day. And then I can come home and blog!
Hi Kate, I’m a fellow Oklahoma girl! I currently have an office job in Tulsa and feel exactly like you described. It was a nice reminder that I’m not alone and that it is possible to create other opportunities for myself! My ultimate goal is to be self-employed, not sure how I’ll get there but am working on figuring out how. Anyways, just wanted to say thanks for sharing! The bean salad looks amazing – I can’t wait to try it!
Thanks, Jordan! It’s great to hear from another Oklahoma girl. If you really want to be self-employed, I’m sure you’ll figure out a way to make it happen! Hope you love the salad.
I can totally relate to this. I used to work in an office (advertising), and it was OK for awhile, but over the years, I just really grew to hate it. The best part of the day (besides LEAVING) was lunch, for sure. I eventually quit and went to culinary school. Now I do freelance recipe development/testing, as well as the food blogging thing, and I’ve never regretted it. Even for a minute.
That’s so awesome! Good for you!
I have been looking for easy salad recipes to make at the beginning of the week and have for quick lunches the rest of the week. This is perfect. Thanks Kate!!
Hi Kate,
I just thought I’d let you know (in case you didn’t know) but your website is completely nonfunctional on my Android through Chrome. I just see the first photo and that’s it. Hopefully you can fix it. I can read it properly on my desktop Chrome.
This looks like such a delicious and refreshing combination ;)
Interestingly, I loved my corporate job and miss every second of it. It’s been a few years now and I can still recall how rewarding it was — an open office concept without so much of a cubicle. The lunches were pathetic but I used to pack from home or drove somewhere further for a better lunch. Win some, lose some I guess ;)
Having satisfaction in what we do on a daily basis is so important and I’m glad you’ve found yours!
I could’ve easily get lost into this beautiful bean salad and wonderous hummus. Yum!
This is my kind of salad! Yum!
This salad is PERFECT.
Reading this post made me think you were in my head. I’m sure the recipe was lovely, but to be honest, you got me daydreaming about making lunch in my pajamas, working from home, and working for myself. That sounds better than chocolate right now. (1 hour to go-home time…)
Hi Kate,
I’ve made a few of your recipes and loved all of them! This one is delicious, but I’ve realized garlic and onions just don’t sit well with me. I want to make the salad again though, can you recommend any substitutions? I would so appreciate it! :)
Hey Paige! I’m sorry that garlic and onions are causing you trouble. If green onions/chives don’t bother you, you might try adding some chopped chives. Otherwise, I’d say leave out the garlic and onion altogether. It won’t have as much flavor, but I think it will still be good, especially since celery is involved. Here are some tips I found that you might find helpful:
For some reason your tips didn’t come through, but I still appreciate it! I will definitely try the chives. I’ve only made a few of your recipes, but they have all been delicious(I am super excited to make the butternut squash chili again this fall!). Thanks for doing what you do. :)
Sorry Paige! Maybe I forgot to hit paste. Here you go.
This recipe for bean salad is amazing! I’ve tried replicating the salads that I have at Lebanese restaurants but I think I’m always off with the amounts of ingredients and it never turns out quite right. You got it bang on with this one!!! :)
Thanks, Juliana! I’m so glad the salad tastes just right to you. I love bean salads with bold flavors!
I love this so much! I served it with roasted tomato hummus as I made some a couple nights ago. Soooo good!
Thanks, Ashley! Your roasted tomato hummus sounds delicious.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this salad recipe! I am going to be living on this all summer long! It is exactly what I was looking for. Love your blog Kate!
Karen, delighted to hear it! Thank you for commenting and have a lovely weekend.
Just made this and yummmmmm! Love it with Food Should Taste Good crackers and I’m about to use as a wrap filling with hummus. Thanks for a great recipe!
Oh man, your meal sounds amazing! Glad you enjoyed the salad!
Thanks so very much! Really great recipes! :)
Thank you, Ashley! :)
Hey! Just wanted to say, the salad is amazing! My husband and I are eating it as I write this and it really does look exactly like the picture above. No joke!
Hooray, thank you!
Would this work with either cumin instead of red pepper flakes or just omitting the red pepper flakes? So excited that it looks like maybe this one can be made nightshade free!
Yep, I’d say just skip them!
This salad is absolutely amazing. I literally cannot stop eating it! Love the parsley and garlic. Thank you for this recipe!!
Thanks, Emily! Happy to hear it!
This recipe is fabulous. It made my weekend! Thank you!
Hooray! Thanks, Katie!